Sun's Thomas sets team record for assists in win over Lynx

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Natisha Hiedeman scored 19 points, Alyssa Thomas had 16 points, nine rebounds and a franchise-high 16 assists and the Connecticut Sun beat the Minnesota Lynx 89-84 on Thursday night.

Thomas passed Lindsay Whalen’s single-game mark of 13 for the team record before finishing two shy of Courtney Vandersloot's WNBA record of 18. Thomas had seven assists in the first quarter and she reached 10 with 3:24 left before halftime to set a franchise record for the most assists in a half, passing Renee Montgomery’s nine in 2010.

Connecticut scored the opening 12 points of the second half for a 59-47 lead as Minnesota missed its first nine field-goal attempts before Bridget Carleton’s 3-pointer with 4:25 left in the third.

The Lynx started the fourth with consecutive turnovers as the Sun extended it to 74-59. But Napheesa Collier scored 10 straight Minnesota points to pull within 77-74 and Kayla McBride tied it on a three-point play with 4:02 left.

The Lynx had a chance to take the lead with 1:31 left but Dorka Juhasz missed two free throws. Thomas grabbed an offensive rebound at the other end before making a hook shot to make it 85-82 with 57.7 left. After a Minnesota turnover, Thomas spun her defender for a layup and a five-point lead.

DeWanna Bonner added 13 points for Connecticut (5-1). Brionna Jones, who picked up her third foul with nine minutes left in the second quarter, finished with 12 points.

Collier scored a career-high 30 points for Minnesota (0-6), which has lost its first six games for the first time since 2007. McBride added 12 points and Jessica Shepard had 11 points and 12 rebounds. Rookie Diamond Miller did not play due to an ankle injury.

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