Jones, Williams lead Sun past Mercury
UNCASVILLE, Conn. — Jonquel Jones had 15 points and 14 rebounds, Courtney Williams scored 12 of her 14 points in the fourth quarter and the Connecticut Sun beat the short-handed Phoenix Mercury
68-62 on Thursday night. Connecticut (15-6), which is 11-1 at home this season, has won six straight games to remain atop the WNBA standings. Phoenix (10-10) was without star center Brittney Griner after the
6:23 mark of the second quarter due to an ankle injury.
Shekinna Stricklen added 12 points, and Jasmine Thomas had
10 for Connecticut. Jones had her fourth double-double in six games, totaling 11 on the season.
DeWanna Bonner had 20 points and 10 rebounds, and Leilani Mitchell added 13 points for Phoenix. Former UConn star Diana Taurasi, whose lone appearance against the Sun this year was on July 12, did not play.
UConn coach Geno Auriemma sat courtside.
Wings 87, Liberty 64
ARLINGTON, Texas — Arike Ogunbowale scored 22 points, fellow rookie Megan Gustafson added 11 points and eight rebounds and Dallas beat New York to move out of last place in the WNBA standings.
Dallas (6-15) snapped a sixgame losing streak with its first victory since July 9. New York (8-12) has lost four in a row on the road.
Kayla Thornton chipped in with 14 points, and Isabelle Harrison and Allisha Gray each had 13 for Dallas. Gray had a season-high nine of Dallas’ 24 assists on 30 field goals. Ogunbowale was 7 of 12 from the field for her sixth 20-plus game.
Dallas led by as many as 30 points in the third quarter, easily topping its previous season high of 16, but did not make a field goal in the fourth until the 5:13 mark.
Kia Nurse scored 13 points for New York, and rookie Asia Durr added 10.
Sparks 76, Aces 68
LOS ANGELES — Nneka Ogwumike had 19 points and 11 rebounds, Candace Parker added 16 points in her return and Los Angeles beat Las Vegas for its sixth victory in seven games.
Los Angeles missed its first seven shots of the fourth quarter until Chelsea Gray’s 3-pointer gave the Sparks a 66-62 lead with 5:48 remaining. Parker, back after missing five games, sank a 3-pointer with 2:30 remaining for a 74-68 lead.
Gray added 16 points and 10 assists for Los Angeles (12-8), which has won six of seven. Chiney Ogwumike did not play after getting a tooth pulled.
Kayla McBride led Las Vegas (14-7) with 19 points. Dearica Hamby added 11 points. A’ja Wilson did not play.
Las Vegas trailed 24-15 at the end of the first quarter after shooting 30%, but the Aces opened the second on a 12-2 run to take a 27-26 lead.
Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving and boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. were in attendance.