Connecticut Sun Fall to New York Liberty, 89-81
Published on June 27, 2023 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Connecticut Sun News Release
Uncasville, CT - Tonight, the Connecticut Sun (12-4) fell to the New York Liberty (10-3), 89-81.
The Sun was led by DiJonai Carrington who tallied a career-high 23 points, six rebounds and two assists.
Alyssa Thomas notched her fifth triple-double of her career, third this season and second in the last two games with 11 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in the effort.
1Q- The Sun and Liberty were knotted as 12 apiece heading into the first media timeout of the contest. Natisha Hiedeman led Connecticut with four points and two rebounds in the first five minutes of the quarter. The Sun finished the quarter outscoring the Liberty by one, 19-18, to take a 29-28 advantage into the second. DeWanna Bonner tallied 10 of her 12 points in the first to lead Connecticut.
2Q- The Liberty opened the second quarter on a 9-6 run to take a 37-35 advantage with 5:10 to go in the first half. The Sun responded on a quick 6-2 spurt to take back the lead, 41-39, forcing the Liberty into a timeout with 3:10 remaining in the quarter. All of Connecticut's points on that run came from the bench- Carrington, Ty Harris and Olivia Nelson-Ododa each with two.
New York finished the half on an 8-2 run out of that timeout to take a four-point advantage over Connecticut, 47-43, into the locker room. Carrington and Nelson-Ododa led the Sun in scoring in the quarter with six points apiece. Connecticut's starters were held scoreless in the second.
3Q- The Liberty opened the second half on a 6-0 run to push their lead up to 10, 53-43, with 8:43 remaining in the third. The Sun's offensive struggles continued as the Liberty took a 15-point advantage, 64-49, with 4:52 remaining in the quarter.
Connecticut closed the quarter on a 16-6 run to close the gap to five, 70-65. Carrington tallied 11 of the Sun's 16 points during that stretch.
4Q- New York opened the four quarter on a 10-5 spurt to push their lead back up to 10, 80-70, with 5:42 to go in the game. The Sun responded on a 9-0 run behind two-three pointers from Carrington and an and-one from Nelson-Ododa to force the Liberty into a timeout with 4:18 remaining in the quarter, 80-79. A basket by Thomas put the Sun ahead 81-80 with 3:39 to play, but the Liberty finished the game on a 9-0 run to seal the victory.
New York was led by Breanna Stewart who notched 24 points, nine rebounds, three assists and one steal.
Connecticut shot 39.2% (31-79) on the night, while New York went 34-70 (48.6%) from the floor. Despite the loss, the Sun outscored the Liberty in the paint (50-46), in second chance points (16-9), on the fast break (15-2) and from the bench (44-12).
Sun Notes:
With six points in the game, Tiffany Hayes now has 4,000 career points.
Olivia Nelson-Ododa finished with a career-high 14 points, five rebounds, one assist, two steals and one block.
With her triple double, Alyssa Thomas became the:
1st player in WNBA history to record back-to-back triple-doubles in the regular season.
1st player in WNBA history to record three triple-doubles in a single season.
1st player in WNBA history to reach 5 triple-doubles.
Alyssa Thomas has the last seven triple-doubles in the WNBA (regular and postseason).
With two threes in tonight's game, DeWanna Bonner is now 11th all-time in three-point field goals in Sun history, tying Shannon Johnson (148).
Rebecca Allen tallied a career-high five blocks.
The Sun tallied a season-high eight blocks and season-high 44 bench points.
Women's National Basketball Association Stories from June 27, 2023
- Connecticut Sun Fall to New York Liberty, 89-81 - Connecticut Sun
- Mercury Signs Alaina Coates as an Emergency Hardship Exception - Phoenix Mercury
- Austin Out with Hip Strain - Washington Mystics
- Alyssa Thomas Named WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week - June 19-25 - Connecticut Sun
- A'ja Wilson Earns 11th Career WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week Honor - Las Vegas Aces
- Connecticut Sun Announced as Finalist for the 2023 ESPYS - Connecticut Sun
- Aces Escape Fever for Regular Season Series Sweep - Indiana Fever
- Moxy Williamsburg Becomes Proud Partner of the WNBA's New York Liberty - New York Liberty
- Aces Sweep Fever, Improve to 13-1 on the Year - Las Vegas Aces
- Last Week around the Leagues - OSC Original by Fran Stuchbury
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
