Rachel Banham had the hot hand, drilling a career-best eight 3-pointers and scoring 24 points, while DiJonai Carrington recorded her first career double-double as the Connecticut Sun rolled past the visiting Phoenix Mercury 96-69 on Sunday afternoon.
Banham’s final 3-pointer came with 23.6 seconds to go as the Sun extended their lead to 96-67. She set the single-game WNBA record for 3-pointers in a game by a bench player.
Carrington finished with 12 points and a career-high 11 rebounds.
Connecticut (18-5) utilized a balanced attack that also featured 17 points from DeWanna Bonner and 16 points and eight rebounds from Brionna Jones.
The Sun improved to 3-0 this season against the Mercury (12-12).
Kahleah Copper led Phoenix with 17 points, while Brittney Griner added 16 points and nine rebounds. Natasha Cloud scored 10 points for the Mercury, who lost their second straight game.
Ahead 48-42 at the half, Connecticut turned the tide in the third quarter, outscoring Phoenix 19-9 to lead 67-51 entering the fourth. The period ended with Bonner hitting a turnaround jumper as time expired.
The Sun took their first double-digit lead of the day with 8:57 remaining in the third when Carrington sank two free throws for a 52-42 cushion.
The Mercury failed to respond and trailed by as many as 29 in the second half.
Phoenix had the upper hand early, building an 18-9 lead with 3:40 left in the opening quarter. Copper fueled the charge with eight points.
The momentum was soon ripped away as Connecticut closed the quarter on an 11-2 run to pull even at 20-20. Tiffany Mitchell’s off-balance shot with 53.9 seconds to play punctuated the surge.
In the second quarter, Jones grabbed a rebound and was fouled trying to go back up for a shot with 5:44 to go. Her two free throws put the Sun up 31-29 and started a 7-0 run that Banham capped with her third 3-pointer of the quarter.
Banham hit her fourth shot from distance with 23.8 seconds left in the half, and then almost knocked down a desperation 33-footer at the buzzer.
–Field Level Media
