Players to Watch:Connecticut –Jonquel Jones led Connecticut in both scoring
(15.4 ppg) and rebounding (11.9 rpg) last season…Alyssa Thomas led the Sun in
assists (4.5 apg), was tied for the team lead in steals (1.6 spg) and ranked
second in scoring (14.8 ppg) and rebounding (6.8 rpg)… Jasmine Thomas finished
tied for the team lead in steals (1.6 spg), second in assists (4.3 apg) and
third in scoring (14.2 ppg)…Chiney Ogwumike returns after missing 2017 with an
Achilles injury…Courtney Williams averaged 12.3 points with 142 rebounds last
season.
Las Vegas –A’ja Wilson was the No. 1 pick in the 2018 WNBA Draft…Kayla McBride
led San Antonio in scoring (15.4 ppg), and finished third on the team in assists
(2.6 apg) last season…Isabelle Harrison led the Stars in rebounding (6.4 rpg)
and was second in scoring (11.4 ppg)…Moriah Jefferson led the team in assists
(4.4 apg) and steals (1.6 spg), and was third in scoring (9.1 ppg).
Noteworthy:
— Sunday will be Las Vegas’ first regular season game since relocating
from San Antonio after the 2017 season.
— The Connecticut Sun were 3-0 against San Antonio last season.
— McBride and Kelsey Plum are still playing overseas and are on the
temporarily suspended list. Harrison is also on the temporarily
suspended list because of an injury.
— McBride (17.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.0 apg), Harrison (11.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg) and
Plum (10 ppg, two rpg, 3.3 apg) led the Stars in the three games against
the Sun.
— Jefferson is with the team but will be in street clothes as she
continues to recover from offseason knee surgery.
— Williams (18.3 ppg, 6.7 rpg), Alyssa Thomas (14.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 4.7 apg,
4.0 spg) and Jones (10.0 ppg, 9.3 rpg) led the Sun in the three games
against San Antonio.
— Jones set a new WNBA record as she led the league with 403 rebounds last
year.
— Alyssa Thomas was tied for fourth in the WNBA in steals (52) and sixth
in assists (147). She recorded a career-high seven steals against the
Stars on July 5, 2017.
— Jasmine Thomas finished sixth in the league in steals (51) and eighth in
assists (139).
Connecticut Sun Head Coach Curt Miller:“I’m excited about the first game of the
season. Obviously still a work in progress. Across the league, none of us have
our entire playbooks in. We have a tough challenge right off the bat with a very
large Vegas team that’s going to put (A’ja) Wilson, the number one overall draft
pick, on the floor with quality centers around her. They’re going to play really
big out of the gate at the wing position so we’ve got to take care of business
on the boards and understand they’re going to pound the ball against us. We’re
excited to see where we are at. Every season has a starting point and we’ll see
exactly what we need to keep working on and get better at after game one.”
