DeWanna Bonner scored 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds and Alyssa Thomas had 22 points, nine rebounds and nine assists as the Connecticut Sun clinched a playoff spot with an 85-70 victory over the Phoenix Mercury on Monday night.
Connecticut (10-10) have won 10 of their last 15 games, after starting the season with five straight losses. The two teams will meet again on Wednesday night.
The Sun opened the game on a 9-0 run, led by 11 in the quarter, and held the advantage the rest of the way. Bonner was 9-of-20 from the field in her first meeting against Phoenix, where she spent 10 seasons.
Diana Taurasi, who averaged 23.2 points during the Mercury's winning steak, scored 10 of her 19 points at the free-throw line. Skylar Diggins-Smith added 16 points, six rebounds and six assists for Phoenix (12-8), which was held to 35 per cent shooting.
The game was originally scheduled to be played on August 26, but was postponed because the WNBA players decided not to play that night or the next night in solidarity with their NBA counterparts following the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin.