WNBA MVP candidate Alyssa Thomas recorded her 25th double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds and led five Connecticut Sun starters scoring in double figures in an 83-68 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday in Uncasville, Conn.

Thomas also had eight assists and nearly recorded her sixth triple-double of the year and 10th of her career as the Sun (24-11) snapped the six-game winning streak of the Sparks (15-19).

Olivia Nelson-Ododa recorded a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds while Rebecca Allen made three of the Sun’s eight 3-pointers to finish with 14 points. DeWanna Bonner and Natisha Hiedeman scored 12 points apiece. Tiffany Hayes added 11 as Connecticut won its eighth consecutive regular-season game over Los Angeles.

Azura Stevens poured in 17 points for the Sparks, who are in a position to make the playoffs for the first time since 2020. Layshia Clarendon added 13 points and Nneka Ogwumike scored 11.

Connecticut led 53-44 with less than seven minutes to go in the third quarter, but the Sparks seemed poised to rally after back-to-back 3-pointers from Karlie Samuelson cut the Sun lead to 57-52. Ogwumike then made a layup and a free throw to pull Los Angeles within 57-55 with 4:35 left.

But the Sun did not cool off during a dominant third, closing it out with their first double-digit lead of the day (69-57) after Tyasha Harris drilled a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired with three seconds remaining.

Eight lead changes and three ties highlighted the opening quarter that ended with Los Angeles up 20-19.

The Sparks opened the second on an 8-2 run that was punctuated by Clarendon, who stole a pass and raced down the court for an easy layup and 28-21 lead at the 7:52 mark.

Connecticut responded with an 11-2 run capped by Hayes, who was fouled hard by Jordin Canada going into the lane. She initially appeared to injure her wrist but was fine and hit two free throws for a 32-30 lead with 4:44 left.

Bonner’s catch-and-shoot 3-pointer from the corner with 3:37 left gave the Sun the lead for good at a 35-32 advantage. The Sparks kept themselves in the game in the first half by scoring 11 points off 12 turnovers but trailed 43-38 at halftime.

–Field Level Media

Breanna Stewart scored 38 points and tied her career-high with six 3-pointers as the New York Liberty steamrolled the Minnesota Lynx 111-76 on Saturday in Minneapolis.

Stewart racked up 17 points in the first quarter and had 27 by halftime for the Liberty (27-7), who outscored the Lynx 37-15 in the second quarter and led by as many as 43 en route to their highest scoring output this season.

The five-time all-star shot 12-of-17 from the field, made all eight of her free throws and grabbed 11 rebounds.

Sabrina Ionescu supplied 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 3-of-4 from distance, and Betnijah Laney posted 15 for New York.

Courtney Vandersloot bundled 15 points with nine assists and notched her 4,000th career point on her free throw that made it 101-64 with 6:15 remaining.

The Liberty shot 55.4 percent from the floor and canned 12 of 27 3-point shots while going a perfect 17-17 from the free throw line.

The visitors also outscored Minnesota 28-4 on fastbreak opportunities and held a 50-36 advantage in points in the paint.

Diamond Miller led the Lynx (17-18) with 18 points and Ariel Powers chipped in 15 off the bench. Napheesa Collier’s 10-point effort rounded out the double-figure scorers for Minnesota, which shot 43.7 percent from the floor and committed 14 turnovers that led to 25 Liberty points.

New York blew the game open after Kayla McBride’s 3-pointer pulled the Lynx to within 23-20 at the 2:08 mark in the first quarter.

Stewart’s running triple put the Liberty ahead 28-20 entering the second quarter, which began with Ionescu’s jumper that stretched New York’s lead to double digits.

Ionescu capped an 11-0 Liberty run with a basket to make it 34-20 with 8:05 left and tacked on two 3-pointers amid a 15-2 surge that Stewart polished off with her fourth trey of the half to swell New York’s lead to 52-29.

The Liberty made nine of their final 10 shots in the first half and took a 65-35 lead into the break on Vandersloot’s layup two seconds before the halftime buzzer.

New York shot 25-of-40 from the field, including 9-14 from 3-point range, in the first half.

–Field Level Media

Elena Delle Donne returned from her brief injury absence to score a team-high 21 points and guide the Washington Mystics to a home upset of the league-leading Las Vegas Aces 78-62 on Saturday night.

Ariel Atkins added 16 points, including three critical 3-pointers in the third quarter that gave Washington (16-18) some control. Brittney Sykes added 14 points and six assists as the Mystics ended a two-game losing streak.

Kelsey Plum scored 21 points for the Aces (30-5), who were held to a season-low 30.8 percent field-goal shooting and their second-lowest point total. A’ja Wilson had 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Jackie Young added 10 points.

Las Vegas has lost two of its past four games but still owns the No. 1 seed in the WNBA standings. On Thursday, the Aces broke the league record for most wins in a regular season when they beat Chicago.

Delle Donne, back after a hip injury sidelined her for two games, scored the first four points of the game to fuel Washington to an early 13-2 advantage. The Aces trimmed their deficit to 19-17 by the end of the first period.

Young scored an old-fashioned three-point play and a 3-point jumper to put the Aces up 23-19 while Washington started the second quarter on a 3:54 scoreless drought. Plum sank a 3 and a free throw during the final minute to give the Aces a modest 30-27 halftime edge.

Las Vegas shot just 10-for-30 from the field and 3 of 16 from 3-point range in the half, but Washington was even colder, going 8-for-32 overall and 0-for-13 from the arc.

Atkins made the Mystics’ first 3-point attempt of the second half to end that drought. Near the end of a quarter that featured five lead changes and four ties, Atkins made two more triples in a 27-second span to help Washington lead 52-48 after three.

Natasha Cloud’s defensive rebound and bounce pass to Sykes for a layup launched a 6-0 Mystics run to make it 63-52 with 5 minutes to play. Tianna Hawkins drilled a corner 3 to give the Mystics their largest lead at 66-54 with 3:04, and the game was in hand the rest of the way.

The Mystics finished 40 percent from the field and 7-for-26 shooting from the arc.

–Field Level Media