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Down 13 in fourth quarter, Sun rally to defeat Mercury

May 9, 2019; New York City, NY, USA; A general view of the game ball during the preseason WNBA game between the New York Liberty and the China National Team at Barclays Center.  Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Jonquel Jones scored 24 points and the visiting Connecticut Sun overcame a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Phoenix Mercury 92-88 on Friday night.

Brionna Jones scored 18 points, DeWanna Bonner had 14, Alyssa Thomas added 13 points and 10 rebounds and Courtney Williams scored 11 for the Sun (8-3), who finished the game on a 24-7 run.

Diana Taurasi scored a season-high 32 points, Skylar Diggins-Smith had 22, Diamond DeShields added 15 and Sophie Cunningham 13 to lead the Mercury (2-8), who lost their seventh straight.

Diggins-Smith had four points and Taurasi made a 3-pointer as Phoenix scored the first 13 points of the fourth quarter to take an 81-68 lead.

Thomas had two assists and added jumper during a 15-3 run that pulled the Sun within 84-83 with 2:32 remaining.

Taurasi made a 3-pointer, but Bonner answered with a 3-pointer, Jonquel Jones and Thomas had baskets and Williams rebounded her own miss with 6.2 seconds left to help Connecticut hold on.

Bonner scored six points as the Sun turned a three-point halftime deficit into a 59-53 lead midway through the third quarter.

Cunningham and Taurasi made back-to-back 3-pointers, but Brionna Jones had a field goal and Jonquel Jones a 3-pointer to help Connecticut open a 66-59 lead.

Taurasi’s 3-pointer and Diggins-Smith’s three baskets helped the Mercury pull even at 68 at the end of the period.

The Sun started fast as Natisha Hiedeman made two 3-pointers and Jonquel Jones made one to give them a 15-8 lead.

Taurasi scored the Mercury’s final six points, including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to give her 12 points and hand Phoenix its first lead at 22-20 as the period ended.

She made two free throws to complete a 7-0 run that gave the Mercury a 33-24 lead early in the second quarter.

Brionna Jones made a steal and beat the buzzer with a layup to complete a 9-2 run that pulled the Sun within 45-42 at halftime.

–Field Level Media

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