Sports

Bonner, Thomas lead Sun to rout of Lynx in WNBA playoff opener

DeWanna Bonner scored 17 points and grabbed a season-high 15 rebounds as the Connecticut Sun opened the WNBA playoffs with a 90-60 rout of the visiting Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday night.

Connecticut can win best-of-3 series at home on Sunday

A female basketball player wearing number 24 looks to her left while dribbling the ball with her right hand in an arena filled with fans.
DeWanna Bonner of the Sun, pictured earlier this season, recorded a double-double in her team's 90-60 win over the Lynx in Game 1 of their playoff series on Wednesday night in Uncasville, Conn. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

DeWanna Bonner scored 17 points and grabbed a season-high 15 rebounds as the Connecticut Sun opened the WNBA playoffs with a 90-60 rout of the visiting Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday night.

Game 2 of the best-of-three series will be in Connecticut on Sunday.

Alyssa Thomas added 15 points and 10 assists for the Sun, who earned the No. 3 seed after going 27-13 in the regular season. Rebecca Allen also scored 15 points on five three-pointers and Tiffany Hayes had 14 points and four three-pointers.

The Sun made 16 of their 30 shots from behind the arc and held Minnesota to 35 per cent shooting overall. Connecticut scored 30 points off 19 Lynx turnovers.

WATCH | Sun dominate Lynx in Game 1:

Sun dominate Lynx in opening game of WNBA playoffs

1 year ago
Duration 0:57
Connecticut defeats Minnesota 90-60 in Game 1 of their first-round series. Alyssa Thomas becomes the second player in WNBA playoff history to record at least 15 points, 10 assists and five steals in a game.

Connecticut led by 14 at halftime and took their first 20-point lead in the third quarter at 56-36 on a layup by Thomas. The Sun closed the game on a 17-3 run.

Kayla McBride had 16 points for the Lynx, who made the playoffs despite losing their first six games this season. Napheesa Collier added 14 for Minnesota, which also lost three of four regular-season meetings with Connecticut.

Bridget Carleton of Chatham, Ont., had six points, four rebounds and an assist for the Lynx.

McBride scored 14 of her points in the first half and the Lynx used a 16-6 second-quarter run to take a 22-20 lead. But the Sun turned up the defensive pressure and went on a 21-3 run to take a 43-27 lead and control of the game.

With files from CBC Sports

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