INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — DeWanna Bonner scored 19 points, Alyssa Thomas had 18 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, and the Connecticut Sun held on to #1 pick Aliyah Boston and the Indiana Fever 70-61 Friday night to start the WNBA season. .
Former Indiana coach Stephanie White got the win in her Connecticut debut after replacing Kurt Miller, who led the Suns to the WNBA Finals last season.
Connecticut led by 15 points after three quarters, but Indiana scored the first 10 points of the fourth to cut its deficit to 58-53. The Sun eventually scored with 3:06 remaining on Bonner’s fastball.
Boston, the top pick in the WNBA draft, scored the next four points to put Indiana to a 60-57 lead. But Thomas scored six points in 70 seconds to keep Connecticut ahead.
Kelsey Mitchell scored 15 of Indiana’s 28 first-half points and finished with 20 points. Boston added 15 points and nine rebounds.
Breonna Jones added 13 points and nine rebounds for Connecticut though a fumble with 4:06 left them in fourth place. Debutantes Tiffany Hayes and Natisha Heidemann combined to film only 3 out of 19.
Connecticut opened the game 12-1 with Indiana not getting its first field goal until the 3:29 mark. The Sun extended it to 25-11 after scoring six of their first seven points in the second quarter. Indiana had a 35-28 halftime lead despite shooting only 25% from the field.
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