Having already carved a notch in the WNBA record books, the high-scoring
Connecticut Sun host the defensively challenged Indiana Fever on Saturday night
at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.
The Sun (2-0) became the first WNBA team ever to start a season with two
100-point games when they defeated the short-handed league-favorite Los Angeles
Sparks 102-94.
It was Connecticut’s first win over L.A. since 2015.
Chiney Ogwumike, playing against her sister, led six Sun players in double
figures with 18 points in her second game back after missing last season with a
ruptured Achilles tendon.
This is the second time in franchise history the Sun have scored 100 points in
two straight games.
“We knew this game would be big for us,” Connecticut’s Alyssa Thomas said.
“They’re missing Candace (Parker) and (Jantel) Lavender. The way the season is
set up, any win that you can get against a team like that is huge and super
important for us. We just went out there and played hard and finally got a win
against them.”
The Sun limited the Sparks, weaker inside with the players out, to 14 rebounds.
As far as playing against her sister, Nnkea, Chiney Ogwumike said, “Man, it felt
good, it just felt right. Even though we’re playing against each other, I feel
her positive vibes.
“It’s just sort of funny because there was a point where she hit a shot and then
I hit a shot, I traveled and then she traveled, and then I remember I hit a
jumper and she hit a three and I’m like really, she always has to one-up me.
“Nonetheless, she’s such a talented player. She is poised, she’s a leader and
she’s everything I aspire to be. To be able to play against her and compete, I
learn a lot from her, it’s just nice to win this time around.”
The Fever (0-4) have allowed 86 points per game in dropping their first four,
including two to the Washington Mystics.
“It’s too easy for other teams,” Candice Dupree said after Thursday night’s
93-84 loss at home to Washington. “Then offensively we’re almost shooting
ourselves in the foot. I thought we had great pace to start off the game, but
kind of later in the game we went away from what was working for us early.”
Rookie guard Kelsey Mitchell, who had scored 36 points off the bench in the
previous two games, got her first pro start and scored 25 Thursday night — the
most points by a Fever rookie since 2005.
But it wasn’t enough to get Indy its first win.
“You’re not going to win many games if you’re giving up 93 points,” Fever coach
Pokey Chatman said. “It negates some of the positive things. You get off to the
quick start you wanted to get off to, you do a decent job of moving the
basketball I think, 20 assists on 29 field goals. In actuality, it should have
been 26 assists on 30 something field goals. … You have to ask yourself, did
Washington stop us or did we stop ourselves?”
The Sun embark on a four-game road trip after Saturday night’s game.
