Thomas secures 5th career triple-double; Sun beat Storm 85-79
Seattle Storm's Ezi Magbegor is fouled Connecticut Sun's Alyssa Thomas (25) during the first half of a WNBA basketball game Tuesday, June 20, 2023, in Seattle. Credit: AP/Dean Rutz
SEATTLE — DeWanna Bonner scored 20 points to move into 10th on the WNBA scoring list, Alyssa Thomas secured her fifth career triple-double and the Connecticut Sun beat the Seattle Storm 85-79 on Tuesday night.
Thomas tied Candace Parker and Sabrina Ionescu for the most career regular-season triple-doubles with three. Thomas scored with 1:26 left in the third quarter to reach the mark, before finishing with 13 points, 15 rebounds and 12 assists. Thomas also had three steals.
Bonner passed Sylvia Fowles to move into the top 10 in league history. She trails Katie Smith by 36 points for ninth.
All five starters for Connecticut (10-3) scored in double figures. Natisha Hiedeman had 17 points, Brionna Jones added 13 and Tiffany Hayes scored 12.
Jones was helped off the court with about a minute left with an apparent leg injury.
Connecticut scored the opening 12 points of the second quarter for a 34-25 lead. Thomas had seven points, nine rebounds and eight assists at the break.
Jewell Loyd, who scored 39 points in a 109-103 victory over Dallas on Saturday, scored 33 points for Seattle (3-8). Ezi Magbegor had 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Seattle Storm's Ezi Magbegor scores against the Connecticut Sun during the first half of a WNBA basketball game Tuesday, June 20, 2023, in Seattle. Credit: AP/Dean Rutz
Loyd made five 3-pointers in the first half and scored 22 points to help Seattle take a 48-45 lead at halftime. Loyd finished 8 of 20 from the field, including 6 of 15 from 3-point range, and 11 of 12 at the free-throw line.
