2018 Connecticut Sun season

2018 Connecticut Sun season
CoachCurt Miller
ArenaMohegan Sun Arena
Attendance6,626 per game
Results
Record21–13 (.618)
Place3rd (Eastern)
Playoff finish4th seed, Lost in Second Round to Phoenix Mercury 86–96
Team Leaders
PointsChiney Ogwumike – 14.4 ppg
ReboundsAlyssa Thomas – 8.1 rpg
AssistsJasmine Thomas – 4.8 apg
Media
TelevisionNBC Sports Boston and WCCT-TV

The 2018 WNBA season is the 20th season for the Connecticut Sun franchise of the WNBA. It is also the 16th season for the franchise in Connecticut. The season tipped off on May 13.[1]

The Sun got off to a strong start, going 3–0 in May. All three wins were at home. In June, the Sun started strong, winning their first 4 of 5. However, they lost 5 of their next 7 games to finish 6–6 on the month. That skid included a 1–4 road trip, where all losses came 4 of eventual top 5 playoff teams. Their up and down season continued into July, where the Sun were 5–6. July started with another tough road trip where the Sun went 1–3. From there the Sun couldn't get a streak going; losing 2 then winning 2 then losing 2 again. The Sun surged in August posting a 7–1 record, including going 6–0 at home. Their only loss came on the road to Chicago. The Sun finished 21–13, which earned them the 4th seed in the 2018 WNBA Playoffs. Their playoff run fell short when they lost at home in the second round 86–96. This was the Sun's only playoff game, as they earned a first round bye.

Transactions

[edit]

WNBA draft

[edit]
See also: 2018 WNBA draft
Round Pick Player Nationality School/Team/Country
1 9 Lexie Brown  United States Duke
3 33 Mikayla Cowling  United States California

Trades/Roster Changes

[edit]
Date Details
February 2, 2018 Acquired C Cayla George via trade from the Phoenix Mercury in exchange for 21st pick in the 2018 WNBA Draft.[2]
February 7, 2018 Signed G Leticia Romero[3]
April 12, 2018 Sun receive Bria Holmes in exchange for 15th pick in 2018 WNBA Draft and a second round pick in 2019 WNBA draft.[4]
July 9, 2018 Sun receive Layshia Clarendon and a second round pick in 2019 WNBA draft in exchange for Alex Bentley.[5]

Roster

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2018 Connecticut Sun roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Height Weight DOB From Yrs
G 1 United States Banham, Rachel 5' 9" (1.75m) 168 lb (76kg) 07-15-1993 Minnesota 2
G 4 United States Brown, Lexie 5' 9" (1.75m) – 10-27-1994 Duke R
G 23 United States Clarendon, Layshia 5' 9" (1.75m) 158 lb (72kg) 05-02-1991 California 5
G 32 United States Holmes, Bria 6' 1" (1.85m) 170 lb (77kg) 04-19-1994 West Virginia 2
F 35 The Bahamas Jones, Jonquel 6' 6" (1.98m) 190 lb (86kg) 01-05-1994 George Washington 2
C 42 United States Jones, Brionna 6' 3" (1.91m) 230 lb (104kg) 12-18-1995 Maryland 1
G/F 44 United States Laney, Betnijah 6' 0" (1.83m) 160 lb (73kg) 10-29-1993 Rutgers 2
F 13 United States Ogwumike, Chiney 6' 4" (1.93m) 173 lb (78kg) 03-22-1992 Stanford 2
G/F 40 United States Stricklen, Shekinna 6' 2" (1.88m) 178 lb (81kg) 07-30-1990 Tennessee 6
F 25 United States Thomas, Alyssa 6' 2" (1.88m) 185 lb (84kg) 04-12-1992 Maryland 4
G 5 United States Thomas, Jasmine 5' 9" (1.75m) 145 lb (66kg) 09-30-1989 Duke 7
F 33 United States Tuck, Morgan 6' 2" (1.88m) 200 lb (91kg) 04-30-1994 Connecticut 2
G 10 United States Williams, Courtney 5' 8" (1.73m) 136 lb (62kg) 05-11-1994 South Florida 2
Head coach
United States Curt Miller (Baldwin Wallace)
Assistant coaches
United States Brandi Poole
United States Steve Smith



Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (IN) Inactive
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Game log

[edit]

Preseason

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2018 pre-season game log
May: 3–0 (Home: 3–0; Road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 May 7 Los Angeles W 68–65 J. Thomas (12) Ogwumike (8) Tied (2) Mohegan Sun Arena
 1–0
2 May 8 Dallas W 79–58 Williams (18) A. Thomas (12) A. Thomas (5) Mohegan Sun Arena
3,695 		2–0
3 May 11 Atlanta W 74–58 Bentley (13) 3 Tied (5) J. Thomas (3) Webster Bank Arena
1,610 		3–0
2018 pre-season schedule

Regular season

[edit]
2018 game log
Total: 21–13 (Home: 13–4; Road: 8–9)
May: 3–0 (Home: 3–0; Road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 May 20 Las Vegas W 101–65 Bentley (18) A. Thomas (17) J. Thomas (6) Mohegan Sun Arena
6,637 		1–0
2 May 24 Los Angeles W 102–94 Ogwumike (18) A. Thomas (9) J. Thomas (8) Mohegan Sun Arena
5,571 		2–0
3 May 26 Indiana W 86–77 A. Thomas (21) Ogwumike (8) Williams (6) Mohegan Sun Arena
5,843 		3–0
June : 6–6 (Home: 2–1; Road: 4–5)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
4 June 1 @ Chicago W 110–72 Tied (20) A. Thomas (13) J. Thomas (8) Wintrust Arena
4,131 		4–0
5 June 3 @ Washington W 88–64 J. Thomas (25) Williams (10) A. Thomas (4) Capital One Arena
5,176 		5–0
6 June 5 @ Atlanta L 77–82 A. Thomas (19) A. Thomas (17) A. Thomas (7) McCamish Pavilion
2,830 		5–1
7 June 7 @ New York W 88–86 J. Thomas (19) 3 Tied (9) J. Thomas (8) Westchester County Center
1,581 		6–1
8 June 9 Minnesota W 89–75 Williams (22) Tied (11) Tied (4) Mohegan Sun Arena
6,771 		7–1
9 June 13 Washington L 91–95 Williams (34) Ogwumike (13) J. Thomas (5) Mohegan Sun Arena
 7–2
10 June 15 @ Seattle L 92–103 Ogwumike (30) J. Jones (8) J. Thomas (6) KeyArena
7,094 		7–3
11 June 16 @ Phoenix L 72–89 Tuck (20) Williams (6) Banham (4) Talking Stick Resort Arena
12,497 		7–4
12 June 22 @ Atlanta L 70–75 Bentley (18) J. Jones (7) Tied (4) McCamish Pavilion
4,047 		7–5
13 June 24 @ Indiana W 87–78 Banham (20) B. Jones (10) Bentley (6) Bankers Life Fieldhouse
5,458 		8–5
14 June 26 @ Washington L 80–92 Ogwumike (17) Ogwumike (11) Bentley (6) Capital One Arena
4,139 		8–6
15 June 27 Indiana W 101–89 Tied (21) Ogwumike (10) J. Thomas (6) Mohegan Sun Arena
5,112 		9–6
July : 5–6 (Home: 2–3; Road: 3–3)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
16 July 1 @ Seattle L 70–84 Bentley (15) 4 Tied (6) Bentley (4) KeyArena
9,307 		9–7
17 July 3 @ Los Angeles W 73–72 Ogwumike (21) Tied (7) Banham (6) Staples Center
6,280 		10–7
18 July 5 @ Phoenix L 77–84 3 Tied (11) Tuck (8) 3 Tied (3) Talking Stick Resort Arena
8,599 		10–8
19 July 7 @ Las Vegas L 90–94 Tuck (20) Ogwumike (11) J. Thomas (8) Mandalay Bay Events Center
3,363 		10–9
20 July 11 New York L 76–79 Ogwumike (17) A. Thomas (10) Williams (5) Mohegan Sun Arena
7,413 		10–10
21 July 13 Phoenix W 91–87 Williams (25) Williams (10) A. Thomas (10) Mohegan Sun Arena
7,696 		11–10
22 July 15 @ Minnesota W 83–64 Tuck (15) Williams (8) Clarendon (5) Target Center
9,234 		12–10
23 July 17 Atlanta L 83–86 J. Jones (19) A. Thomas (10) J. Thomas (6) Mohegan Sun Arena
5,555 		12–11
24 July 20 Seattle L 65–78 Ogwumike (21) Ogwumike (12) Banham (5) Mohegan Sun Arena
7,908 		12–12
25 July 22 @ Dallas W 92–75 Stricklen (24) A. Thomas (8) J. Thomas (9) College Park Center
4,935 		13–12
26 July 24 Washington W 94–68 J. Jones (23) Williams (10) Williams (6) Mohegan Sun Arena
5,125 		14–12
August : 7–1 (Home: 6–0; Road: 1–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
27 August 1 New York W 92–77 J. Jones (21) A. Thomas (12) Williams (6) Mohegan Sun Arena
6,412 		15–12
28 August 5 Las Vegas W 109–88 J. Thomas (30) Tied (7) Williams (5) Mohegan Sun Arena
6,791 		16–12
29 August 8 @ Dallas W 101–92 A. Thomas (22) Williams (10) J. Thomas (9) College Park Center
3,483 		17–12
30 August 10 @ Chicago L 86–97 Ogwumike (18) Tied (6) Tied (3) Wintrust Arena
5,976 		17–13
31 August 12 Chicago W 82–75 Williams (22) J. Jones (15) J. Thomas (8) Mohegan Sun Arena
7,687 		18–13
32 August 14 Dallas W 96–76 J. Jones (27) J. Jones (10) J. Thomas (7) Mohegan Sun Arena
6,365 		19–13
33 August 17 Minnesota W 96–79 J. Jones (26) Tied (8) A. Thomas (8) Mohegan Sun Arena
7,089 		20–13
34 August 19 Los Angeles W 89–86 J. Thomas (27) J. Jones (9) J. Jones (7) Mohegan Sun Arena
8,040 		21–13
2018 season schedule

Playoffs

[edit]
2018 playoff game log
Total: 0–1(Home: 0–1; Road: 0–0)
WNBA Second Round: 0–1 (Home: 0–1; Road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 August 23 Phoenix L 86–96 Williams (27) Williams (8) J. Jones (7) Mohegan Sun Arena
7,858 		0–1
2018 playoff schedule

Standings

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# Eastern Conference
W L PCT GB Home Road Conf.
1 Atlanta Dream (2) 23 11 .676 – 13–4 10–7 12–4
2 Washington Mystics (3) 22 12 .647 1 12–5 10–7 12–4
3 Connecticut Sun (4) 21 13 .618 2 13–4 8–9 9–7
4 e – Chicago Sky 13 21 .382 10 7–10 6–11 6–10
5 e – New York Liberty 7 27 .206 16 4–13 3–14 6–10
6 e – Indiana Fever 6 28 .176 17 2–15 4–13 3–13

Playoffs

[edit]
Main article: 2018 WNBA Playoffs
First round:
Single elimination
(Aug. 21)		Second round:
Single elimination
(Aug. 23)		Semifinals:
Best-of-five
(Aug. 26 – Sept. 4)		WNBA Finals:
Best-of-five
(Sept. 7 – Sept. 12)
1Seattle Storm9191668494
4Connecticut Sun865Phoenix Mercury8787868684
5Phoenix Mercury1015Phoenix Mercury961Seattle Storm897598
8Dallas Wings833Washington Mystics767382
2Atlanta Dream8478817681
3Washington Mystics963Washington Mystics8775769786
6Los Angeles Sparks756Los Angeles Sparks64
7Minnesota Lynx68

Note: Teams re-seeded after second round and semi-finals.

Awards and honors

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Recipient Award Date awarded Ref.
Alyssa Thomas WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week May 29, 2018 [6]
Chiney Ogwumike WNBA All-Star Selection July 17, 2018 [7]
Jonquel Jones WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week August 20, 2018 [8]
WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year Award August 23, 2018 [9]

Statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage  TO  Turnovers per game
 PF  Fouls per game Team leader League leader

Regular season

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Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Chiney Ogwumike 31 31 25.5 .603 .500 .797 7.3 1.0 1.2 0.6 14.4
Jasmine Thomas 34 34 28.1 .398 .311 .855 3.3 4.8 1.1 0.2 12.9
Courtney Williams 30 29 27.1 .456 .377 .680 5.9 3.0 0.8 0.1 12.6
Jonquel Jones 34 16 20.5 .550 .467 .671 5.5 1.7 0.1 1.2 11.8
Alyssa Thomas 24 24 30.6 .464 .000 .547 8.1 4.2 1.2 0.4 10.3
Shekinna Stricklen 34 30 18.8 .430 .430 .857 2.3 0.5 0.6 0.1 6.6
Morgan Tuck 34 1 13.6 .473 .349 .826 2.3 0.5 0.4 0.1 5.9
Layshia Clarendon 15 0 15.9 .492 .000 .826 1.6 2.7 0.5 0.0 5.4
Rachel Banham 33 5 12.8 .414 .370 .868 0.9 1.5 0.5 0.1 5.2
Brionna Jones 27 0 9.0 .469 .000 .727 2.0 0.2 0.2 0.2 3.1
Betnijah Laney 29 0 9.3 .471 .111 .909 1.7 0.7 0.4 0.0 2.7
Lexie Brown 22 0 5.6 .273 .310 .571 0.8 0.5 0.3 0.0 1.7

References

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  1. ^ "2018 Connecticut Sun Schedule". Women's National Basketball Association. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  2. ^ "Phoenix sends Cayla George to Connecticut for 21st-overal pick in WNBA draft". sun.wnba.com. February 2, 2018. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  3. ^ "Romero Signs With Connecticut". sun.wnba.com. February 7, 2018. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  4. ^ "Atlanta Dream Trade Bria Holmes to Connecticut Sun". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. April 12, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  5. ^ "Dream Trade Layshia Clarendon, Draft Pick to Sun For Alex Bentley". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. July 9, 2018. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  6. ^ "Alyssa Thomas, Chelsea Gray Named WNBA Players Of The Week". wnba.com. WNBA. May 29, 2018. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  7. ^ "2018 WNBA All-Stars Announced; Elena Delle Donne, Candace Parker To Serve As Player-Captains". wnba.com. WNBA. July 17, 2018. Retrieved July 18, 2018.
  8. ^ "Jones, Bonner Named Players Of The Week". wnba.com. WNBA. August 20, 2018. Retrieved August 20, 2018.
  9. ^ "Connecticut Sun's Jonquel Jones Named 2018 WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year". wnba.com. WNBA. August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
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