The Connecticut Sun are going back to the semifinals for the fourth straight season. On Wednesday night, they pulled away from the Dallas Wings in the second half for a 73-58 win in the deciding Game 3 of their first-round series. The Sun will now advance to play the defending champion Chicago Sky in a rematch of last season's semifinal series.
At the end of a competitive but ultimately forgettable first half, DeWanna Bonner drained a deep 3-pointer to tie the game. That shot seemed to wake the Sun up, and they took control in the third quarter. With their defense ratcheted up, they held the Wings to just 12 points in the frame and built a double-digit lead that they would maintain for the rest of the game.
On a night where neither team was getting much done on the offensive end, the Sun's defense, offensive rebounding and ability to get to the free throw line proved to be the difference. The Sun forced the Wings into 19 turnovers, which they were able to turn into 20 points. Under the basket they grabbed a whoping 17 offensive rebounds and outscored the Wings 20-4 in second chance points.
Bonner led the way for the Sun, finishing with 21 points, five rebounds and five assists, while playing a major role in disrupting the Wings' offense. Jonquel Jones, meanwhile, added 11 points and 10 rebounds for another double-double despite being saddled with foul trouble in the first half. The Sun had their worst shooting performance of the entire season at 35.5 percent, but it was good enough for this game.
.@DEEBONNER24 with a BIG 21-5-5 Game 3 to lead the @ConnecticutSun to the Semifinals of the #WNBAPlayoffs presented by @google pic.twitter.com/eJAZpTCFrM
— WNBA (@WNBA) August 25, 2022
Now, the Sun are on to the semifinals for the fourth consecutive season, where they'll meet a familiar foe. This will be the third straight postseason in which they've faced the Sky; the Sun were victorious in the second round in 2020, while the Sky won in the semifinals last season. The Sun will hope they can break through to the Finals for the first time since 2019, but they are 0-4 against the Sky this season.
Marina Mabrey led the Wings in scoring with 20 points, but she turned the ball over eight times in the process. No one else scored in double figures for the Wings, as they shot 20 of 55 from the field. Isabelle Harrison went down with a sprained ankle in the first quarter, which was a big blow; Arike Ogunbowale, who had not played since Aug. 6 due to an abdominal injury, briefly checked in during the second half but did not score.
While a loss like this will sting, the Wings took a step forward this season. They finished 18-18 for their first non-losing season since 2015, when they were the Tulsa Shock. Furthermore, they won their first playoff game since 2009, when they were still the Detroit Shock. This is an extremely young team -- there are no 30-year-olds on the roster -- and their inconsistency was on display throughout the regular season and this series. It's clear, though, that they are moving in the right direction.
