DeWanna Bonner scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds Thursday night as the visiting Connecticut Sun erased a 16-point first half deficit and outlasted the shorthanded Washington Mystics 94-91 in overtime.
Tyasha Harris added 23 points and DiJonai Carrington hit for 22, including a 3-pointer with 57.1 seconds left in overtime that gave Connecticut (14-3) a 92-88 lead. Carrington added a pair of clinching foul shots with 3.2 seconds remaining.
Six players scored in double figures for Washington (4-14), which had four starters out with injuries and had only eight players available. Myisha Hines-Allen went 8-for-8 from the field and led the way with 21 points, while Stefanie Dolson added 18.
Shatori Walker-Kimbrough came off the bench for 16 points, while Julie Vanloo netted 12. Ariel Atkins and Jade Melbourne each hit for 10 points as the Mystics shot 51.5 percent from the field.
The Sun forced overtime after Carrington converted a driving layup with 24.1 seconds but missed the ensuing free throw. Neither team scored on its last possession of regulation, leaving the game tied at 82.
Washington made 11 of 28 3-pointers and drew 26 assists on 35 made baskets but also committed 26 turnovers that Connecticut converted into 32 points.
The Mystics came out firing on all cylinders in the first quarter, looking more like a team that won four of its last five instead of the one that started 0-12.
Washington made six 3-pointers in the first 7 1/2 minutes and established a 32-21 lead going to the second period.
The margin reached 37-21 on a 3-pointer by Melbourne early in the second before Connecticut finally found some footing on both ends. A 20-2 run gave the Sun a 41-39 edge on Brionna Jones’ jumper, but the Mystics answered back to grab a 50-46 advantage at the half.
Connecticut tightened up its usually stingy defense in the third quarter and took a 60-55 lead on Harris’s jumper at the 3:24 mark before Washington fought back, tying the score at 65 entering the fourth period.
–Field Level Media