Minnesota
Bonner scores 24 to lift Connecticut Sun past Minnesota Lynx 78-73
DeWanna Bonner scored 24 points, Alyssa Thomas had 14 assists, 13 points and 10 rebounds, while DiJonai Carrington made big plays down the stretch to help the Connecticut Sun hold off the Minnesota Lynx 78-73 on Thursday night.
Lynx star Napheesa Collier left late in the third quarter because of a foot injury. Selected to the U.S. Olympic team, Collier scored nine points, ending her double-figure scoring streak at 29 games.
Bonner made 10 of 16 shots with two 3-pointers and added nine rebounds for the Sun (16-4), who have posted back-to-back wins after losing three of their previous four.
Thomas matched her season high for assists and Carrington finished with 17 points including 3 of 4 from beyond the arc.
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Alanna Smith scored 14 before fouling out to lead the Lynx (14-6). Kayla McBride had 13 points and eight rebounds.
Bridget Carleton connected on a 3-pointer and Diamond Miller followed with a three-point play as the Lynx scored the first six points of the fourth quarter to knot the score at 64. Bonner answered with a 3-pointer and a three-point play for a 70-64 lead and the Sun never trailed again.
Carrington blocked McBride’s layup attempt with 28 seconds left that would have pulled the Lynx within two and added two free throws with 16 seconds remaining to push the lead to six. McBride sank a 3-pointer, but Carrington answered with a layup to wrap up the victory.
Bonner scored 11 on 5-for-7 shooting to lead Connecticut to a 20-17 lead after the first quarter.
Veronica Burton sank a 3-pointer to give the Sun a 32-24 lead with 4:42 left in the first half. McBride hit two 3-pointers and Carleton and Smith both made one in a 16-4 run to end the period and the Lynx took a 40-36 lead into halftime.
Smith had a 3-pointer and a layup in an 8-2 spurt to begin the third quarter to give Minnesota its largest lead at 48-38. Carrington made back-to-back 3-pointers to cap a 10-0 run and Connecticut evened the score at 48. Thomas followed her three-point play with six straight free throws and a layup, scoring 11 of the Sun’s final 14 points for a 64-58 advantage heading to the final quarter.
Connecticut has won five in a row against Minnesota in Minneapolis and improves to 2-0 against the Lynx this season.
Up next
Minnesota will host the Washington Mystics on Saturday. Connecticut returns home to play the Atlanta Dream on Sunday.
Minnesota
Driver who fatally struck bicyclist in Minneapolis may have been impaired, police say
Minneapolis police suspect a driver was under the influence when he hit and killed a bicyclist on the city’s southside early Monday morning.
Officers responded to the crash at the intersection of Hiawatha Avenue and East 35th Street around 3 a.m., according to the Minneapolis Police Department.
Upon arrival, police found a man in his 50s suffering from apparent life-threatening injuries. Officers provided immediate medical aid, including CPR, before the man was transported to Hennepin Healthcare, where he later died.
The Minneapolis Police Department says that preliminary information indicates the driver, a 23-year-old man, had been traveling south on Hiawatha Avenue in a Ford Edge when he struck the bicyclist.
Officers arrested the driver and took him to the hospital, where police say “a search warrant for evidence collection was carried out.” Police later booked the driver into Hennepin County Jail on suspicion of criminal vehicular homicide.
The incident is still under investigation.
Minnesota
I-94 rest area in Minnesota closed until Independence Day for $2.9M improvement project
A rest area along Interstate 94 in Minnesota has been closed to trucks until about Independence Day to accommodate an almost $3 million improvement project.
The eastbound I-94 Enfield rest area between St. Cloud, Minnesota and the Twin Cities between Wright County Road 8 and Highway 25 is now closed to cars and commercial vehicles as crews resurface the entrance and exit ramps, and update nearby sidewalks.
According to KNSI, the full closure is just the first phase of the project. The rest area will reopen to passenger vehicles only the week of May 11th. During that time, the truck parking area will remain closed as crews repave the lot.
The truck parking lot will reopen the week of June 30th, right around Independence Day. During that time, the passenger vehicle area will be shut down to allow for the resurfacing of the lot. The Minnesota DOT expects the rest area to be fully open by late July. The entire project is expected to cost $2.9 million.
Drivers heading east on I-94 are encouraged to use the Big Spunk Lake rest area near Avon, or to drive a little farther out to the Elm Creek rest area.
Minnesota
UCLA baseball remains perfect in Big Ten by beating Minnesota
Could a UCLA baseball team that’s perfect in Big Ten play get better?
Bruins coach John Savage thinks so, which is a frightening prospect for the rest of a seemingly overmatched conference.
While Savage’s top-ranked Bruins completed a three-game sweep of Minnesota on Sunday with a 5-2 victory at Jackie Robinson Stadium — stretching their Big Ten winning streak to 21 games — he said there’s more upside to be realized.
“Offensively, we just really couldn’t get a lot going,” Savage said after his team went 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position and stranded six baserunners. “We just weren’t able to put a lot together, but when that pitching and defense shows up every day, it gives yourself a chance to win, and that’s kind of what we did all three games, really.”
Those elements were so good Sunday that they overshadowed Roman Martin’s solo homer in the third inning and Will Gasparino’s two-run shot in the sixth.
Bruins left fielder Dean West made three superb catches — two leaping and one diving — and four relievers combined to give up only one run in 4 ⅔ innings. Closer Easton Hawk needed only six pitches to record a 1-2-3 ninth inning while notching his third save in as many days.
Savage credited Minnesota’s pitching after the Golden Gophers (22-17 overall, 5-13 Big Ten) held the Bruins (36-3) to an average of five runs during the series and said many of his team’s offensive struggles were situational.
“We have very, very good offensive players — some of them are in … little ruts right now, but that’s OK,” Savage said. “These guys play a lot and get a lot of at-bats; there’s a lot of ups and downs.”
When it comes to UCLA’s conference record, it’s all been up.
What it means
UCLA’s sweep is further evidence that the Bruins aren’t getting complacent because of their record.
“This culture is really solid, and these guys truly believe in one another and they’re playing for the team,” Savage said. “We’re very fortunate to have this group, and so they love playing together, so there’s no complacency and there’s no reason to because we haven’t done anything; I mean, you’re 36-3, that’s great, but at the end of the day it’s about getting better and playing your best baseball the next 75 days.”
Turning point
Spotting a dominant team an early lead is never a good idea.
That’s what happened when the Bruins struck for two runs in the bottom of the first inning.
West led off with a single to center field, took third on Roch Cholowsky’s double to left and scored on a balk. With one out, Martin hit an RBI infield single off the pitcher’s glove. UCLA was up 2-0, and the Golden Gophers could never catch up.
Did you see that?
Minnesota did not like it when Gasparino admired his home run by lingering in the batter’s box before commencing his trot around the bases.
There was consensus in both dugouts because Savage also didn’t care for it.
“I thought he probably stayed in the box a little too long for me,” Savage said. “That’s kind of not who we are, and they didn’t like that; I wouldn’t like that either, really.”
MVP
West saved multiple extra-base hits with his catches.
Which was his favorite?
“Probably the diving one,” West said. “I think that was the coolest one. I got to leave my feet and make a play on it.”
Up next
The Bruins will open a five-game stretch of nonconference games when they host Hawaii on Tuesday evening at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
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