Tina Charles stars as
Connecticut Sun edge out New York Liberty 78-73: WNBA Recap
Midway into the fourth quarter, New York Liberty, after leading the game throughout 3 frames, were sure that they have this one in the bag.
But then Connecticut Sun’s Asjha Jones came up with a jumper that tied the scores and things never remained the same afterwards. Liberty didn’t alone bank the game with a 5 points margin, 78-73 but also silenced
the New York home crowd.
5 Sun players scored in double-figures. Tina Charles recorded a double-double with 19 points and 13 boards.
She was contended with her teams’ performance and she boasted about the ultimate recovery.
“We came out with a lot of aggression,'' Charles said. ``There were times we were down seven, but we were able to get it back. Coach (Mike Thibault) had different lineups out there and everybody just came together
collectively and we handled ourselves well on the court.''
Allison Hightower collected 13 points coming off the bench and Asjha Jones tallied 12 points to go with 8 boards. Reserve Renee Montgomery was also in the mix with 11 points while Danielle McCray had 10 in Connecticut’s
2nd consecutive victory of the season.
Liberty ruled the game in the 1st three frames but they melted down in the 4thallowing Sun to claim the game. They were outscored 27-15 in the 4th period,
mainly due to poor offense, and in the same interval Connecticut outrebounded them 9-5.
New York coach John Whisenant was disappointed.
`We got to play better. We got to improve from where we are tonight,'' John Whisenant said. ``We got static (in the fourth quarter). ... We weren't efficient. Not efficient around executing our offense and we
weren't getting turnovers from our defence.''
Only three Liberty players managed to hit double figures with Cappie Pondexter leading the charge with 19 points to go with 5 rebounds. Forward Plenette Pierson had a double-double with 15 points and 10 boards
while Kara Braxton chipped in with 13 points and 9 rebounds.
New York claimed an early 10-6 lead in the opening frame but the Suns clawed that off by hitting three triples in a row and changed hands with a 15-10 lead. Late into the frame, Liberty trimmed that down to 17-14
and then reclaimed their lead 20-17 with a 6-0 burst. Jones concluded the stanza with a jumper for Suns reducing the gap to 20-19.
The hosts opened the 2nd period with a 6-2 run and widened the gap to 26-21. However Connecticut tied the scores at 26 each with 5 unanswered points. The game remained closely contested in the ensuing passage
and with 04:51 in hand the scores were tied at 30 apiece.
Liberty blasted their way out of the stalemate with an 11-2 run and claimed a 41-32 lead. The visitors could only reduce the gap to 41-33 by the end of 1st half.
Sun came back strongly in the 3rd quarter, as with an 8-nothing run they tied the scores at 41 each. The game remained neck to neck afterwards, as with 3 minutes and 41 clicks to expire
in third the scores were tied at 49 each. However Liberty erupted with a 9-2 burst and capped of the frame after claiming a 58-51 lead.
Connecticut opened the final period with a 7-0 run and tied the scores at 58 apiece. After some seesaw action, with 1:57 on clock the game was tied at 71 apiece. Suns then came up with a 7-2 run and bagged the
game.
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