Home|Sports|Jones’ 20 points not enough as Sun lose to WingsSports
The Nassau GuardianSend an emailAugust 23, 2022 159 2 minute readFacebookTwitterLinkedInShare via Email
Bahamian Jonquel ‘JJ’ Jones and the Connecticut Sun had a chance to wrap up their playoff series against the Dallas Wings on Sunday, but fell 89-79, at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Jones was on the court for 22 minutes and shot 6-for-12 from the field, including one three-point shot, to finish with 20 points. She was perfect from the charity stripe, making all seven of her shots from there.
Jones missed out on a double-double as she pulled down nine rebounds – five defensive rebounds and four offensive rebounds. The reigning Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) Most Valuable Player (MVP) also had two blocked shots.
The Sun tried to come back in the fourth quarter. They trailed 76-47 at the end of the third quarter, and the game seemed all but over. The Sun outscored the Wings 32-13 in the fourth quarter but the lead was too large to overcome.
“It’s the playoffs. One minute you’re up, the next minute you’re down, but you have to weather that storm and be ready to play,” Jones said. “We know what we’re capable of. We’re not in panic mode at all. That’s the beauty of winning Game One. We have another opportunity to go out there and close it out. We didn’t handle business tonight, but we have another game, so we’re ready to go.”
It was not the start that the Sun wanted as they dug themselves into a 13-3 hole with 3:35 remaining in the first quarter. The Grand Bahama native missed her two shot attempts in the first quarter and finished scoreless in that period. The Wings led 22-7 after one.
Jones’s first points came via two made free throws by the halfway mark of the second quarter. The Wings led 33-21 at that point. Jones then made her first made field goal of the afternoon which came at the 2:36 mark of the second quarter. She made a layup but the Wings led 40-25. At the end of the first half, it was a 16-point deficit as the Wings led 46-30. Jones finished with seven points in the first half.
Jones scored seven more points in the third quarter giving her 14 after three quarters. The Wings played the same way they did in the first quarter, outscoring the Sun by double digits in the third – 30-17.
The Wings’ lead was so large heading into the fourth quarter that a 22-2 fourth quarter run by the Sun still had them in a
double-digit deficit.
The win was the Wings’ first playoff victory since 2009. Kayla Thornton scored 17 points for them.
The Sun shot 45.2 percent from the field and made four shots from deep where they shot just 28.6 percent for the game. They were sloppy with the ball as the Wings stole the ball eight times from them. The Wings shot 48 percent from the field, made 11 three-point shots, and finished with 28 assists.
The Wings scored 20 points off their 12 turnovers by the Sun, and the Sun gave up 23 second-chance points.
The Sun pummeled the Wings in Game One, 93-68, to take the 1-0 lead in the best-of-three mini series.
The decisive third game in the series gets underway at 9 p.m. on Wednesday at the College Park Center in Dallas, Texas. That game will be broadcasted on ESPN.