The Connecticut Sun are off to their third 5-0 start in franchise history, and their past four wins were decided by a combined 16 points.
Coming off another close win, the Sun attempt to start a season with six straight wins for the first time Tuesday night when they host the Phoenix Mercury in Uncasville, Conn.
The Sun are off to the same five-win start as the 2021 and 2018 seasons. After opening with a 21-point rout of Indiana, Connecticut earned a seven-point victory over Washington, a four-point win at Indiana and a one-point overtime home win over Minnesota.
Connecticut kept the unbeaten start going on Saturday when it earned an 86-82 win at Chicago thanks to DeWanna Bonner, who leads the team in scoring at 20.6 points. Bonner scored eight of her 19 points in the fourth quarter.
Bonner scored five straight points to spark a 7-0 run that turned a one-point Sun deficit into a 85-79 lead with about 3 1/2 minutes remaining in regulation. Bonner started by missing her first five 3-point attempts, and her big fourth quarter helped the Sun overcome Alyssa Thomas getting ejected in the third quarter for a flagrant foul against Chicago rookie Angel Reese.
“Certainly you don’t want to have your MVP off the floor. She was on her way to a triple-double,” Sun coach Stephanie White said of Thomas, who had nine points, six assists and six rebounds before the ejection. “But everybody stepped up, and for us to be successful, that’s what it’s going to take.”
After winning three straight and holding their first four opponents to 42.3 percent shooting or lower, the Mercury (3-2) were handed a 107-92 loss to the Dallas Wings on Saturday. Phoenix allowed 52 percent shooting and a 40-point game to Arike Ogunbowale while struggling in the paint and on the glass.
The Mercury experienced their worst struggles on the inside while Britney Griner continued to recover from a fractured toe. They were outrebounded 38-25 and outscored 52-26 in the paint.
“This is one of those games where we got dominated inside,” Phoenix coach Nate Tibbetts said. “Give them credit, that’s their strength. They took full advantage tonight.”
Kahleah Copper led the Mercury with 32 points for her third 30-point game of the season; she now leads the league with 29.2 points per game. Diana Taurasi added 28 but Phoenix struggled to overcome a 17-point halftime deficit.
