UNCASVILLE, Conn. — The Connecticut Sun are no strangers to letdown games. Four times in the past two postseasons, the Sun have lost Game 2 of a playoff series after winning the opener, including twice on their home court.
That’s why “urgency” was the buzzword as Connecticut looked to close out its first-round series against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever on Wednesday.
“Any time you’re a team that’s down, you’re desperate, right?” Sun coach Steph White said pregame. “Your back is against the wall, and there’s a sense of urgency, and we have to meet that sense of urgency. We’ve got to be the team that sets the tone.”
SIX STRAIGHT SEMI-FINALS FOR THE SUN 🙌
The Connecticut Sun defeat the Indiana Fever 87-81 in Round 1, Game 2 of the #WNBAPlayoffs presented by @google behind big time performances from Alyssa Thomas and Marina Mabrey!
The Sun look to take on the winner of the MIN/PHX series pic.twitter.com/blhs8ziPnQ
— WNBA (@WNBA) September 26, 2024
Connecticut may not have been the team that struck first, but the Sun recovered soon enough in an 87-81 win over the Fever. With the victory, Connecticut advances to the WNBA semifinals for the sixth consecutive season to play the winner of the Minnesota–Phoenix series, while Indiana’s first trip to the postseason in eight years ends in the first round.
The Sun had a balanced attack, as seven players scored at least eight points, but their star was once again Marina Mabrey. After scoring a bench record 27 points in Game 1, Mabrey was a spot starter for the injured Ty Harris but her rhythm wasn’t disrupted at all. The sixth-year guard had 17 points and six assists, including the dagger 3-pointer that put Connecticut up four with 47 seconds to play.
It didn’t appear the Sun would need such heroics down the stretch after building a double-digit fourth-quarter lead. But the Fever stayed close with big nights from their All-Star trio, even taking a one-point lead on a Clark triple with four minutes left.
Caitlin Clark connects from distance for her 2nd triple of the night 🗣️#WNBAPlayoffs presented by @google pic.twitter.com/cKAMtiCQow
— WNBA (@WNBA) September 25, 2024
But Mabrey responded with a 3 of her own right away, and when Indiana continued to respond through Aliyah Boston, it was the veteran DeWanna Bonner who had the big buckets to put Connecticut back ahead.
Bonner, who tied Lindsay Whalen for the most postseason games in WNBA history by playing in her 82nd playoff game Wednesday, had the poise down the stretch despite shooting just 4 of 14.
For days, Indiana has been saying that the Sun knew what to do on this stage and while the Fever were learning on the fly. That proved to be the case in the closeout as Connecticut executed in the final minutes and Indiana came up just short.
Required reading
(Photo: Joe Buglewicz / Getty Images)
