Sun pushed to brink of elimination

Sky take Game 3, go up 2-1 in series

It’s “win or go home” time for Connecticut.

The top-seeded Sun dropped Sunday’s Game 3 of the best-of-five WNBA semifinal series, 86-83 to No. 6 Chicago. The Sky hold a 2-1 advantage heading into Game 4 on Wednesday night in Chicago.

While the Sun (27-8) did manage to own the start-ofgame momentum — their first time doing so in the semifinal series — they ultimately couldn’t sustain the effort down by the basket when and where it mattered most.

After only bringing down one offensive board in the first half, it was Chicago’s Candace Parker who snagged the crucial rebound in the game’s final possession to secure the victory and put more distance in front of Connecticut in its journey for the franchise’s first WNBA title.

“Both teams, more than anything, just played their guts out tonight, so disappointed that we came up short. We had some momentum at times and had chances certainly right there at the end, but came up a little bit short,” Sun coach Curt Miller said.

Alyssa Thomas, who came off the bench for 18 points, again came up clutch for the Sun in the fourth quarter in her fifth game back from an Achilles injury suffered in January. Thomas scored eight straight to get Connecticut within a single possession in the final minute. But after the Sun missed their last four shot attempts in the last 10 seconds, Parker gathered the rebound.

Chicago held a 35-30 rebounding advantage, including 12-7 offensively.

“Now it’s about will and it’s not really about skill when it comes to rebounding, it’s about who wants the ball. And we just have to make sure we stay there,” Sky head coach James Wade said. “We just want to make sure we keep them off the boards as much as possible. We take care of the ball as much as possible and we think we

give ourselves a shot.”

The Sky (16-16 in the regular season) is playing their best basketball of the season, so Connecticut (26-6 during the season) must find a way to get around the Sky’s length and power below the basket — Parker and former UConn players Stefanie Dolson and Azurá Stevens — if it wants to continue its “banner or bust” postseason after ending the regular season with a 14-game winning streak.

“We gotta go back to who we are and that’s rebounding,” Thomas said. “So you can be as physical as you want, but the next game will be different.”

The Sun started Sunday’s game strong and led by as many as six in the first half, thanks to a surge from DeWanna Bonner (14 points in the half).

However, Chicago didn’t let up. The Sky increased its smothering defense against Connecticut and held a

22-12 rebounding edge. Chicago had eight offensive rebounds to Connecticut’s one in the second quarter.

While the teams were tied three times in the second, Chicago was stronger in the paint both offensively and defensively. It was Stevens who carried the Sky with 11 rebounds to help keep Connecticut’s 2021 MVP Jonquel Jones scoreless in the second after scoring six in the first quarter. Chicago finished the half with a 10-3 run to lead by two at halftime.

Connecticut was forced to fall back on its defense — something the team has been hanging its hat on all season, with four players named to the league’s AllDefensive team — to open the second half.

The teams traded baskets throughout that third that totaled 51 points. The Sun grabbed hold of the lead going into the final quarter with neither team in full control of the pace.

Sparked by a Thomas jumper and two assists from the star forward, the Sun used a 7-2 run to open the fourth and gain their largest lead of the game at 70-62.

But Chicago proved again that it would not fade, responding with its own 9-2 run capped by a 19-foot jumper by Courtney Vandersloot to cut the deficit to one.

The Sky then drew a foul on Thomas and grabbed the momentum with a 4-0 run to take the lead. As Chicago rode out the run, Connecticut began to turn the ball over, including back-toback bad passes resulting in Chicago steals.

Four straight points from Chicago’s Kahleah Copper (26 points) pushed Chicago to extend its run to 15-2, to lead by six with 3:28 remaining.

Thomas, the Sun’s fourth-quarter spark from Game 2, scored eight straight points and got Connecticut within one point at the final-minute mark.

However, the Sun couldn’t capitalize on any of its final offensive drives as the game ended with the ball in Parker’s hands and the series advantage with the Sky.

With a trip to the finals on the line, the Sun now have to win Game 4 to keep their hopes of a title alive.

“I don’t think we’re doing anything different, I mean of course we were a better rebounding team [in the regular season] so we gotta rebound better. I think it starts there first, but we’re still playing the same toughness. We still have the same defensive toughness,” said Bonner, who led the Sun with 22 points.

“Nobody wants to lose, nobody wants to go home. I think that’s the difference. We don’t want to go home and neither do they. So they have confidence and we still have confidence, too. It’s just a battle. Playoffs is just a battle.”

Connecticut will remain in Chicago for Game 4 of the semifinal series, scheduled for Wednesday (8 p.m. on ESPN). If the Sun win

Game 4, the teams will return to Connecticut for Game 5 on Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Paul Beaty / Associated Press The Sun’s Jonquel Jones, right, looks to pass against the Sky’s Azurá Stevens during Game 3 of their WNBA semifinal playoff series Sunday.