Evenly matched Sun, Liberty square off (Jul 31, 2018)
If the first two games between the teams is any indication, Wednesday night's game in Connecticut between the Sun and the New York Liberty will come down to the final shot.
Literally.
And the final second.
Literally.
And if the first two games told us anything, the home team better watch out for that final shot.
June 7 in Westchester, N.Y., Shekinna Stricklen of the Sun converted a rare 4-point play at the buzzer to give the Sun a dramatic 88-86 victory.
A month later, at the Mohegan Sun Arena, the buzzer-beater belonged to the Liberty, as Shavonte Zellous banked home a 3-pointer -- her only shot of the game from behind the arc, to give New York a 79-76 win over the Sun.
Now, the Sun (14-12) and struggling Liberty (7-18) come out of the All-Star break for their third meeting.
Connecticut's Chiney Ogwumike scored six points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out two assists in 15:25 of action as Team Parker downed Team Delle Donne 119-112 in the All-Star Game in Minneapolis Saturday.
Ogwumike, an All-Star after missing all last season with a ruptured Achilles tendon, tweeted, "Blessed to have had the opportunity to represent the ConnecticutSun at #WNBAALLSTAR." She entered the break seventh in the league with 7.4 rebounds per game.
New York's Tina Charles, a UConn star who formerly played for the Sun, had seven points, five rebounds and two assists in the game, logging 18:38. She enters Wednesday night's game fifth in the league in scoring (prior to Tuesday's action) at 20.2 points per game. She was 10th in rebounding at 7.2 per.
The Sun, in eighth place, a half-game out of seventh and a game and a half ahead of ninth-place Las Vegas, hit the break with a home win over the Washington Mystics.
Jonquel Jones, who has struggled after a big 2017, came off the bench with 23 points and six rebounds in that victory.
"Without question, she's looking more and more like 2017 Jonquel again," Connecticut Curt Miller said. "She missed training camp (to personal issues) and her decision to add strength and weight, she added nearly 20 pounds of weight to her (6-foot-6 frame), that was all an adjustment with very little practice time adjusting to her new body.
"We're just starting to see her be comfortable playing with a confidence, with a swagger, that bodes well for the future."
The Liberty's problems have continued, with four straight losses leading up to the break.
Charles at the All-Star Game is one of the few highlights for the team, the Liberty tweeting, "Congrats to our All Star tinacharles31 and #TeamParker on today's victory!"
