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Recap: Jonquel Jones scored 25 points to lead the Sun to an 88-77 win over the Fever

Connecticut’s collective rebounding, three-point shooting and free throws overcame strong performances by Indiana’s Candice Dupree and Erica Wheeler.

By Albert Lee
Jonquel Jones scored 25 points and made four three-point shots in the Connecticut Sun’s 88-77 win over the Indiana Fever.
Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images

The Connecticut Sun (2-0) defeated the Indiana Fever (1-1) on Monday night, 88-77.

After trailing in the first quarter, Connecticut outscored Indiana, 41-29 in the second and third quarters to give them a double-digit lead heading into the final period.

Jonquel Jones led the Sun with 25 points and 8 rebounds while also making 4-of-7 three-pointers and 10-of-16 shots overall.

But Jones wasn’t the only Sun player to fuel Connecticut to its second consecutive win. Jasmine Thomas and Courtney Williams added a combined 28 points while Alyssa Thomas grabbed 10 rebounds despite only scoring 3 points on 1-of-8 shooting from the field.

For Indiana, strong efforts by Erica Wheeler, who scored 26 points and dished 9 assists, and Candice Dupree, who scored 20 points, grabbed 8 rebounds and dished 5 assists, were squandered. Both players shot over 70 percent from the field and made some impressive shots along the way.

Check out these highlights:

The two things that set apart the Sun and Fever in this game were three-point shooting and free throws. Connecticut was more aggressive, resulting in 22 trips to the line where they made 14 free-throw attempts. The Sun also shot 10-of-22 (45.5 percent) from the three-point line. The Fever, however, only made 2-of-3 free throws and shot just 5-of-16 (31.3 percent) from three.

In their next games, expect the Fever to become more aggressive in driving to the basket and the Sun to shoot for higher than 63.6% made free throws.

Next up for the Sun

The Sun started their 2019 season on a strong note, with two wins. But their next two games are on the road, starting with the Los Angeles Sparks on Friday, May 31, at 10:30 p.m. ET and then the Aces on Sunday, June 2, at 6 p.m. ET. If Connecticut can win both games, it will lead all other WNBA title contenders in wins.

Next up for the Fever

For the Fever, the loss against Connecticut was unfortunate. But the Fever started its season with two games on the road and was able to come out with a win in one of them — against the still-rebuilding New York Liberty on May 24. The Fever will head back to Indiana to kick off a four-game homestand that begins Saturday, June 1, at 7 p.m. ET against the Liberty.

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