UNCASVILLE, Conn. — Tina Charles scored 18 of her 25 points in the second half and the Connecticut Sun overcame an early double-digit deficit to beat the Liberty 92-77 yesterday, opening the season with back-to-back wins against the Liberty.
Charles, who shot 11 for 15 from the floor, also had 11 rebounds.
Asjha Jones added 20 points and eight boards for Connecticut, which beat the Liberty at Madison Square Garden on Saturday to open the season. Renee Montgomery had 15 points and six assists.
Cappie Pondexter scored 18 points for the Liberty and Plenette Pierson added 16.
Connecticut, 15-2 at home last season, hasn’t lost to the Liberty at Mohegan Sun Arena since the 2008 playoffs.The Liberty scored the game’s first eight points and opened with a 13-3 run. The Sun hit just one of their first nine shots and made three of 18 in the first quarter. They trailed by 11 early and 24-15 after a quarter.
Connecticut used a 10-2 run to cut the deficit to three points, before the Liberty stretched the lead again. Charles, who faced double teams every time she touched the ball, didn’t score her first points until midway through the second period.
Connecticut used free throws to steadily climb back into the game, and closed the quarter on a 14-3 run that turned a 37-30 deficit into a 44-40 halftime lead.
The Sun made 23 of 26 free-throw attempts while the Liberty had just eight shots from the line, hitting five of them.
Liberty coach John Whisenant responded to that disparity by picking up a technical foul.
After scoring just seven points in the first half, Charles had eight in the third quarter as the Sun extended their lead to 67-59.
She started the fourth quarter on the bench and New York pulled to 69-67 on a three-point play by Essence Carson. But once Charles returned, the Sun pulled away, outscoring the Liberty 23-10 the rest of the way.
Charles, who is in her third year, needs four rebounds in her next game to reach 800 faster than any player in WNBA history. Yolanda Griffith currently holds that distinction, reaching the mark in her first 72 games. Charles has played 70.
The game marked the start of the Sun’s 10th season in Connecticut since moving from Orlando.