Connecticut Sun survive big game from former UConn star Napheesa Collier, hold off Lynx in OT

UNCASVILLE — Despite starting on an early deficit for the third straight game, the Connecticut Sun remained undefeated in 2024 with a thrilling 83-82 overtime win over the Minnesota Lynx at Mohegan Sun Arena on Thursday.

Connecticut now stands alone at the top of the WNBA leaderboard as the only team with a perfect record. The New York Liberty suffered their first loss Thursday against the Chicago Sky to fall to 4-1, and no other one-loss team has played more than three games. The Sun’s next game is a road matchup against the Sky on Saturday.

The Sun continued their trend of sluggish starts, trailing Minnesota 23-14 at the end of the first quarter. Star forward Alyssa Thomas had one of her worst quarters of the season, logging just five points and a turnover, and the team struggled to find a rhythm offensively shooting just 5-for-14 on field goals with three turnovers. Meanwhile, former UConn star Napheesa Collier set the tone early for the Lynx with 11 points in the first quarter, and Minnesota shot 62.5% from the field as a team.

“I think our defense early — our energy on the defensive end, our execution on the defensive end, our sense of urgency on the defensive end — hasn’t been there, particularly on ball screen actions,” Sun coach Stephanie White said. “You see a difference when we impose our will and we dictate versus when we when we react, and we were really reactive in that first quarter.”

Connecticut started building momentum early in the second quarter, beginning on a 20-3 run behind seven unanswered points from Brionna Jones. Though the All-Star center is still on limited playing time as she recovers from her Achilles rupture last June, she was the Sun’s leading scorer at halftime with 11 points in just nine minutes. DeWanna Bonner then nailed her first 3-point attempt of the game, and she egged on the home crowd after converting a steal into a fast-break assist to DiJonai Carrington.

Despite her inefficient start, Thomas still came close to a double-double with 18 points, seven rebounds, five assists, two steals, two blocks. Of the Sun’s five starters, all logged at least seven points and three scored in double-digits against the Lynx led by Bonner’s 20. Jones ended with 19 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals in a season-high 27 minutes.

“I’m just trying to do everything I can for this team, and we talked about in close games and stuff like that that I might be out there for longer,” Jones said. “I’m just trying to get my wind back every game, so it’s just steadily increasing the minutes, but I feel good and felt good out there … I felt more myself than I felt in the last few games, so just carrying that as we move forward I think is going to be huge.”

The Sun defense started to find its rhythm in third quarter, but Collier was practically unstoppable with 20 points entering the fourth to keep Connecticut’s lead to a single point, 52-51. The Lynx star finished with the sixth 30-point game of her career, logging 31 points, 11 rebounds and four assists plus four steals and two blocks.

“She’s an MVP-caliber player. She’s gotten better every year,” White said. “Her versatility is off the charts, her ability to stretch the floor from the three, to score with her back to the basket, to put the ball on the floor … She’s really, really active smart player, so she’s a matchup nightmare.”

Bonner powered the Sun in the fourth, recording her fourth consecutive 20-point game plus three rebounds, two assists and three steals. But after she scored five unanswered points to put Connecticut up 61-55, the Lynx went on an 11-2 run to take a two-score lead with just over four minutes left to play.

Starting guard Tyasha Harris ended the run with a clutch 3-pointer, her first of the game, to cut Minnesota’s lead to a single point. Tiffany Mitchell, who played for the Lynx in 2023, hit a game-tying layup with under two minutes to play, and Collier and Jones traded free throws to equalize it again with 30 seconds on the clock. Collier then matched a layup from Thomas that sent the game to overtime tied 72-72.

“I liked what (Mitchell) was doing on the defensive end of the floor, liked her activity level,” White said. “She got some critical rebounds for us and did a really good job of sustaining plays on (defense). I mean, she was a plus-9 off the bench, and that’s big time. That’s important, and she stayed engaged.”

Rachel Banham, who also played in Minnesota last year, tied the score for an 11th time in overtime with a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Collier went 1-for-2 on free throws with 35 seconds left, opening the door for Thomas to take the lead for Connecticut on an off-balance jump shot at the 17-second mark. The Lynx got back in front four seconds later with a pull-up from Kayla McBride, but Bonner drew a shooting foul against Collier and hit the winning pair of free throws, also securing the rebound that ended the game. The matchup finished after 14 lead changes and 12 tie scores.

Mitchell and Banham were standouts off the bench for Connecticut against their former team. Banham, who signed with the Sun as a free agent in 2024 after four years in Minnesota, was third on the team in rebounding with five plus six points. Mitchell had her most complete performance since she was traded to Connecticut with five points, three rebounds and two steals.

“From how the start of the season’s been going, I hadn’t logged a lot of minutes in recent games, but I’m a pro at the end of the day,” Mitchell said. “Off the bench I just try to bring some type of energy, just bring something the starters don’t have. I’m still getting used to playing with the starters because I’m so used to just coming in at the end, but I think that’s just my role to bring energy defensively and try to get some easy buckets.”