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Connecticut Sun

Connecticut Sun's Season Ends in WNBA Semifinals, Drop Game 4 to New York 87-84

October 1, 2023 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Connecticut Sun News Release


Uncasville, CT - Today, the Connecticut Sun (27-13, 1-3) fell to the New York Liberty (32-8, 3-1), 87-83, in Game 4 of the WNBA Semifinals. With the loss, the Sun are eliminated from WNBA Championship contention, losing the series, 3-1.

The Sun was led by Alyssa Thomas who notched her third career postseason triple-double with 17 points, 15 rebounds, 11 assists and two steals.

1Q- Connecticut took an early 19-14 lead heading into the first media timeout of the contest. Rebecca Allen led the Sun early with five points, while Thomas added four points, three rebounds, four assists and one steal with 3:09 to go in the first quarter. The Liberty outscored the Sun, 5-4, the rest of the quarter but the Sun took a 23-19 lead into the second, 23-19. Thomas led Connecticut with eight points, five rebounds, four assists and one steal after ten minutes of action.

2Q- The Sun opened the second on a 10-4 spurt to take a ten-point lead over the Liberty, 33-23, with 6:08 to go in the first half. DeWanna Bonner and Tiffany Hayes each nailed triples on that stretch for Connecticut. New York responded on a 7-0 run to force Connecticut into a timeout with 4:55 remaining in the second, 33-30. Breanna Stewart notched all seven of the Liberty's points on that run. The Liberty closed the half on a 15-11 run to take a 45-44 lead into the locker room. Thomas led Connecticut with 13 points, six rebounds, six assists and two steals at the break.

3Q- New York opened the second half on an 8-0 run to push their lead up to eight, 52-44, forcing Connecticut into a timeout with 7:09 remaining in the third. A basket by Hayes at 6:58 in the third ended the Sun's field goal drought dating back to 1:41 in the second quarter. The Liberty outscored the Sun, 21-14, in the third quarter to take a 66-58 lead into the fourth. Hayes led Connecticut in scoring in the third with five points, while Thomas added two points, seven rebounds and two assists out of the locker room.

4Q- The Sun opened the fourth on a 6-0 run to cut the Liberty's lead to two, 66-64, with 8:03 to go in the contest. Connecticut was able to take the lead twice down the stretch, 72-71, and 75-74, but New York was ultimately able to close out the game and the win over the Sun, 87-84. Ty Harris and DiJonai Carrington each tallied eight points in the final eight minutes to keep Connecticut in the game down the stretch.

New York was led by Breanna Stewart who tallied 27 points, nine rebounds, one assist and two blocks.

Sun Notes:

Tiffany Hayes tallied 15 points, two rebounds, one assist and one block.

DiJonai Carrington set a new postseason career-high with 14 points, along with four rebounds and one assist.

DeWanna Bonner finished with 12 points, six rebounds, two steals and two blocks.

Ty Harris added 10 points, two assists and two steals in 18 minutes off the bench.

With 12 points today, DeWanna Bonner moved into fourth all-time in scoring in WNBA postseason history (1,079), passing Maya Moore.

Alyssa Thomas moved into 9th all-time in rebounding in WNBA postseason history, tying Maya Moore (338).

DeWanna Bonner moved into 6th all-time in blocks in WNBA postseason history, tying Sylvia Fowles (69).

Connecticut outscored New York in the paint (42-34), on second chance opportunities (14-13), on the fast break (11-5) and from the bench (26-2).

The Liberty (21-25) made 18 more free throws than the Sun (3-8). That is the largest free throw disparity in a playoff game since 2016, when the Sparks made 18 more than the Sky (28-10) on 10/4/16.

Alyssa Thomas finished the 2023 postseason with 72 assists in seven games, three shy of the franchise single postseason record she set last season in 12 games (75).

Alyssa Thomas' triple-double marks her third in her career in WNBA postseason play (league leader) and seventh of the 2023 season (including regular season).

She now has 11 triple-doubles in her career (regular season and postseason play). The next closest player is Sabrina Ionescu with four triple-doubles (all in regular season play).

Team Score Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 PTS REB AST

CON 84 23 21 14 26 Thomas- 17 Thomas- 15 Thomas- 11

NYL 87 19 26 21 21 Stewart- 27 Jones- 15 Ionescu/Vandersloot- 7

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