Sun Drop Road Contest to Valkyries, 87-63
June 23, 2025 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Connecticut Sun News Release
San Francisco, CA - Tonight, the Connecticut Sun (2-12) fell in the first meeting with the Golden State Valkyries (7-6), 87-63, on the road in San Francisco.
Rookie forward Aneesah Morrow led the Sun in scoring for the second time this season, finishing with 14 points and four rebounds. The outing marked her third straight-game scoring in double figures and two points shy of her career-high. Jacy Sheldon was the only other player to finish in double-digits with 10 points, two rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block in the game.
The Sun trailed the Valkyries, 15-10, heading into the first media timeout of the contest. Tina Charles and Aneesah Morrow each had four points through the opening minutes of the game to lead Connecticut. Nine of Golden State's 15 points came from beyond the arc to begin the contest. The Sun went on a 10-4 run out of the timeout to take a one-point lead, 20-19, but the Valkyries closed the quarter on a 4-0 spurt to take a 23-20 lead into the second. Six Connecticut players scored in the opening quarter, with Jacy Sheldon notching five points to lead the way for the Sun.
The Valkyries opened the second outscoring the Sun, 14-6, to take a 37-26 lead and force the Sun into a timeout with 6:18 to play in the first half. Golden State went on to outscore Connecticut, 36-12, in the second to take a 59-32 lead into the locker room. The Valkyries' 36 points in the second mark the most the Sun have given up in a quarter this season. Aneesah Morrow had eight points to lead the Sun in scoring at the break, while Tina Charles added seven points and five rebounds through twenty minutes of play.
Golden State began the second half on an 8-7 spurt to take a 67-39 lead over Connecticut with 4:48 to play in the third. Both teams struggled offensively in the third quarter, with the Valkyries outscoring the Sun, 14-13, in the ten minutes coming out of the locker room, to take a 73-45 lead into the fourth. Connecticut started the final quarter on a 13-4 run to close the gap to 19, 77-58, with 2:53 to play in the game. Golden State closed the contest outscoring Connecticut 10-5 to take the 87-63 win.
Connecticut shot 30.3% (20/66), while Golden State finished 35.9% (28/78) from the floor. The Sun shot 29.2% (7/24) from three-point range, while the Valkyries shot 29% (9/31).
The Sun tallied a season-high 11 blocks in the game. The last time Connecticut had 10+ blocks in a game was May 25, 2021, when the team recorded 11 blocks against Seattle. Olivia Nelson-Ododa recorded a career-high five blocks to lead the Sun in that stat category.
All Sun players to record minutes scored in tonight's contest. Rookie forward Rayah Marshall notched her first career-field goals in the game, finishing with a career-high five points, along with three rebounds and one block.
Kayla Thornton led the Valkyries with 21 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals. The Valkyries outrebounded the Sun, 51-35. The rebound count marks the second time this season a Sun opponent has grabbed 50+ rebounds and just the 8th time in a regular season game in franchise history.
Team Score Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 PTS REB AST
CON 63 20 12 13 18 Morrow- 14 Charles/Nelson-Ododa- 6 Three players- 3
GSV 87 23 36 14 14 Thornton- 21 Amihere- 12 Talbot- 4
NEXT GAME: The Connecticut Sun continue their road trip on Wednesday, June 25 at 10:00 PM ET/7:00 PM PT when they match up against the Las Vegas Aces at Michelob Ultra Arena.
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