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Alyssa Thomas led the Connecticut Sun to a 83-75 victory over the Chicago Sky at Wintrust Arena Wednesday, overcoming shooting struggles from beyond the arc to maintain their strong season performance in the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup, finishing with a 4-1 record.
Thomas excelled for the Sun, delivering an all-around performance with 20 points, seven rebounds, a season-high six steals and four assists. Brionna Jones also contributed to the offense with 18 points, shooting 7-for-12 from the field. In a balanced team effort, four of Connecticut’s five starters reached at least 12 points and the team collectively dished out 21 assists on 28 made field goals.
Connecticut started strong, racing to an eight-point lead within the first five minutes of the game. Thomas was dominant from the tip-off, scoring six points, grabbing four rebounds and providing two assists in the first quarter. Jones also capitalized early, scoring four points against Chicago's young frontcourt. However, the Sky’s rookie Angel Reese matched their efforts with six points in the first quarter.
The momentum shifted when Chicago turned to its bench after a timeout. Chennedy Carter sparked a 14-4 run with six points in her first two minutes on the court, pushing the Sky ahead 22-20 by the end of the first quarter. Connecticut's offense stalled during this period, managing only four points in the last five minutes of the quarter.
Jones found her rhythm in the second quarter, helping Connecticut regain the lead. She had 14 points by halftime, shooting 5-for-8 from the field. Meanwhile, Chicago rookie Kamilla Cardoso made her presence felt in her second career start, scoring eight points in the second quarter and leading the Sky in first-half rebounds with four.
Angel Reese has career-high night against the Sun
Sun head coach Stephanie White noted the challenge Cardoso posed.
“It’s just a tough matchup, because all you have to do is throw it up and she goes and gets it,” White said, per Emily Adams of the Hartford Courant. “I thought Breezy did a good job being physical with her, but any time she had to get engaged off the ball it just opened her up for a lob. I thought Olivia Nelson-Ododa did a really good job as well. Liv’s length and her improvement in ability to stay vertical and contest shots … and her level of physicality was really good, so you just have to continue to mix it up.”
The Sun's struggles from the 3-point line were evident, as they began 0-for-6 and finished 3-for-14. Tyasha Harris hit Connecticut's first 3-pointer early in the third quarter, a pivotal moment that helped keep the Sky at bay. Harris also played a crucial role as a facilitator, leading the team with seven assists and making the pass that led to her only failed 3-pointer, from DiJonai Carrington.
“They decided to put a guard on me most of the night, so that made it easy for Ty to get in the pocket and facilitate for us,” Thomas said. “It feels good when you have two people able to create, and we just play well off each other.”
Connecticut began to pull away in the fourth quarter, opening with a 10-3 run fueled by three consecutive turnovers by the Sky. Thomas's defensive prowess, highlighted by her six steals, helped the Sun capitalize on 18 Sky turnovers, scoring 14 points off those opportunities.
Reese led the Sky with a career-high 20 points and 10 rebounds, including four points in the final two minutes to narrow the deficit. Diamond DeShields added a 3-pointer with under 30 seconds remaining to bring Chicago within four points, but DeWanna Bonner sealed the game for the Sun with two free throws. Bonner, despite a tough shooting night (0-for-7 from 3-point range and 4-for-16 from the field), was 8-for-9 from the free-throw line.
Reflecting on the game, Jones emphasized the team's resilience.
“I think we had good looks, but they just weren’t going down tonight,” Jones said. “It happens, but we found a way to get it done from the free-throw line, continued to attack the basket, and found other ways to score.”
