Sports: Jasmine Thomas scores 30 as Sun beat Aces, 109-88
Ease by Aces as Jasmine Thomas scores a career-high 30 points
Mohegan — Sharon Thomas wanted to be at Sunday's Connecticut Sun game but couldn't make it.
Sun point guard Jasmine Thomas played as if her mom had a front row seat. Thomas scored a career-high 30 as Connecticut thumped the Las Vegas Aces, 109-88, before 6,791 at Mohegan Sun Arena.
The Sun honored breast cancer survivors as part of Rock The Pink. Sharon Thomas is a breast cancer survivor.
“I enjoy playing for her,” Thomas said about her mom. “I just talked to her before the game and it was an emotional conversation, but also a funny one because that's just how she is.
"She's always going to joke and make sure I realize to play hard and have fun, but it's just a game. Especially on a night like tonight where you're playing for more than just the game of basketball.”
Thomas made 12 of her 15 shots and tied a career record with five 3-pointers. She scored 20 in the first half. “It was easy to be motivated,” Thomas said. It was the fourth straight win and a record-setting one for the fifth-place Sun (16-12). They led 6449 at halftime, a franchise record for most points in a half (they scored 62 in the second half in a 110-72 win over the Chicago Sky on June 1, 2018).
Connecticut made a franchise record 46 field goals on 77 shots (59.7 percent). Its previous record was 43 versus the Dallas Wings on Sept. 16, 2016 and the tied for the second most in a WNBA game.
The Sun led for all but the first three minutes, 5 seconds of the game.
The Aces' Kelsey Plum had backto-back steals and layups to cut Connecticut's lead to 71-61 with 6:02 left.
Thomas scored the Sun's next seven points on a short jumper, a 3-pointer, and a 14-foot pullup jumper. It pushed her team ahead, 78-65, with over four minutes left.
The Sun never led by less than 13 the rest of the game.
“Amazing,” Connecticut's Chiney Ogwumike said about Thomas. “She's one of the most positive people I know. She works so hard. She shoots the ball so well, but she's so unselfish.
“As posts, we set good screens, but she always hits us (with a pass). She always looks for us, and today, I was glad she was looking for herself. So proud of her. So happy for her.”
It was an incredibly big win for the Sun as they put more distance between them and ninth-place Las Vegas (12-15) in the standings and clinched the head-to-head tiebreaker.
The top eight teams make the playoffs with four games separating the second-place Atlanta Dream (18-10) and eighth-place Dallas Wings (14-14).
Connecticut moved into fifth place hours after its win when the Los Angeles Sparks beat the Phoenix Mercury, 78-75. It's a half game behind the Washington Mystics (16-11), and the teams split their regular season series.
The Sun have a half-game lead over Phoenix (16-13), which owns the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Connecticut has a 2 1/2 game lead over the Wings. The teams play at Dallas on Wednesday, and at Mohegan Sun Arena on Aug. 14. The Sun have won their only meeting.
Connecticut has a four game lead over the Aces and six games left.
Ogwumike had 15 points, seven rebounds and two steals for Connecticut and reserve Morgan Tuck had 10 points and six rebounds. Reserve Betnijah Laney played well off the bench, too, as she had eight points, five rebounds and two steals.
Kelsey Plum had 21 points, four assists and three steals for Las Vegas and rookie A'ja Wilson scored 24. Kayla McBride added 17 points and four assists.
“Connecticut played very well,” Aces head coach Bill Laimbeer said. “They were geeked to play. They found their mojo again. They are a quality basketball team, especially at home.” n.griffen@theday.com
“As posts, we set good screens, but she always hits us (with a pass). She always looks for us, and today, I was glad she was looking for herself. So proud of her. So happy for her.” CHINEY OGWUMIKE, ON SUN TEAMMATE JASMINE THOMAS