Jonquel Jones’ 21 points led five Connecticut scorers in double figures, and the Sun rolled past the host Los Angeles Sparks 97-71 on Tuesday.

The Sun (23-11) set the tone early, with seven players making at least one field goal through the first quarter. Nine Connecticut players finished the night with multiple made field goals, and all 10 had scored once Nia Clouden made a pair of free throws late in the fourth quarter.

Jones shot 8 of 12 to lead the balanced scoring attack and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds. Alyssa Thomas added 11 points and dished seven assists, DeWanna Bonner recorded 10 points and made three steals, and Brionna Jones came off the bench to post 14 points.

The Sun reserves totaled 36 points, including eight and seven from DiJonai Carrington and Odyssey Sims, respectively.

Natisha Hiedeman rounded out Connecticut’s double-figure scorers. She went for 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including 2 of 3 from 3-point range.

Connecticut shot 8 of 19 from beyond the arc, despite missing its final three attempts once the outcome was no longer in doubt.

Los Angeles (13-21) shot a solid 6 of 15 from long range, but it could not overcome 20 turnovers.

Katie Lou Samuelson made a pair of early 3-pointers for the Sparks, but she went scoreless the rest of the way. Brittney Sykes scored a team-high 18 points, while Nneka Ogwumike chipped in 16 points and Jordin Canada added 15 points and six assists.

Tuesday’s loss marked Los Angeles’ seventh in the last eight games, and it delivered a critical blow to the Sparks’ quickly fading playoff aspirations. They came into the first of consecutive matchups with the Sun one of three teams a game out of the final postseason spot.

Connecticut, meanwhile, needed a win to avoid losing ground to Las Vegas in pursuit of the No. 2 seed. The Aces — who lead the Sun by one game — registered a 97-90 win over Atlanta earlier in the night.

–Field Level Media