Jones, Sun head into break on winning note

With the league’s all-star classic on the horizon, Bahamian women’s professional basketball player Jonquel “JJ” Jones and the Connecticut Sun went into the break with a 71-64 win over the New York Liberty on Sunday afternoon at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Jones was phenomenal as she finished with game-highs of 17 points and 17 rebounds, marking the 10th double-double of the season in 15 games for her. She finished 6-for-14 from the field, shooting at a 42.9 percent clip. Jones was also able to connect on three of her eight three-point attempts. She added five assists and two steals.

The all-round player is once again an all-star in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) this season. The all-star game is set to be played at the Michelob ULTRA Arena at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, tomorrow night. That game gets underway at 7 o’clock and will be broadcasted live on ESPN. With the Bahamian averaging 2.1 three-pointers per game – tied for sixth-best in the league – she was invited to the MTN Dew Three-Point Contest. That will be held during half-time of the all-star game.

In their game against the Liberty, the Sun quickly jumped out to a 5-0 lead. They never looked back. That lead went up by 11 points when Beatrice Mompremier made a layup at the 2:31 mark of the first quarter. The Sun led 19-8 at that point, taking their first double-digit lead of the game. At the end of the first quarter, the Sun led 22-12.

Defensively, the Sun held the Liberty to 30.4 percent shooting from the field as they only made 17 shots on 56 attempts. In the rebounding column, the Sun won that battle, 42-34.

The Sun’s defense was on full display in the third quarter as they held the Liberty to only nine points in that quarter. They went into the fourth quarter with a convincing 55-37 lead. In the fourth quarter, the Liberty outscored the Sun 17-16 but it was not enough to dig themselves out of the hole.

Kylee Shook led the home team with 16 points.

The win has the Sun ranked at number three in the league with a 14-6 win/loss record on the season. The Seattle Storm led the way with a 16-5 record and the Las Vegas Aces sit in second with a 15-6 record. Jones and the Sun are first in the Eastern Conference Standings. They have won two in a row and six of their last seven games.

This game counted toward the inaugural 

Commissioner’s Cup Standings, which ended with the Sun securing the best record in the Eastern Conference with a 9-1 record. With that, they advanced to the Commissioner’s Cup championship game to get a chance at winning $500,000. The Storm is first in the Western Conference with an 8-2 record.

The championship game will see the Sun take on the Storm on August 12. It will be a home game for the Sun.

In their previous game on Friday night, Jones was brilliant again, recording another double-double in an 84-72 home victory for them over the Atlanta Dream.

Playing in front of the home crowd at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, the Grand Bahamian led all scorers with 24 points and also had a game-high 16 boards, in 33 minutes of play. It was the eighth time this season that she hit the 20-points plateau. The fifth-year player was 8-for-11 from the field and finished 2-for-5 from deep.

The Sun was hot from the field, shooting at a high 51.5 percent clip. Their tough defense made it difficult for the Dream as they shot just 38.5 percent from the field.

Jones and her team held a slim 43-39 lead at the half. After a 23-17 advantage in the third quarter, the Sun led 66-56 heading into the fourth quarter. That lead was too much for the Dream to overcome as they had no answer for the home team in the fourth quarter.

With the first half of the season in the books, the number six pick in the 2016 WNBA Draft is still among the frontrunners for the league’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award.

Jones is one of two players who is averaging a double-double this season – the other is the Washington Mystics’ Tina Charles. Jones is averaging a league-leading 11.1 rebounds per game and Charles is second with 10 rebounds per contest.

The 6’ 6” versatile player, Jones has been consistent in scoring, averaging 21 points per game. She is one of four players in the league who is averaging 20 or more points per game this season. She is ranked second in the league in scoring behind Charles’ 26.3 points per contest.

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