With the WNBA playoffs looming and on the outside looking in, the Chicago Sky (11-17) look to gain ground on the visiting Seattle Storm (13-16) for a final playoff spot.
We might as well start saying “Courtney Courtney Vandersloot Vandersloot,” because her points/assists double-doubles do not seem to be going away any time soon. In the August 18 115-106 double-overtime loss vs. the Los Angeles Sparks (21-8), Vandersloot recorded her sixth straight double-double with 22 points, 12 assists and had a season-high 8 rebounds to boot. The Sky point guard shot 9-13 overall and a perfect 4-4 from three-point distance. Fellow guard Allie Quigley had a team-high 26 points, 7 rebounds, and Center Stefanie Dolson also had a double-double with 18 points, 10 rebounds. Late in the fourth quarter, Dolson knocked down back-to-back three-pointers and her heroics sent the game in to extra minutes.
The Sparks All-Star frontcount tandem of Candace Parker and Nneka Ogwumike both had powerful games across the board. Ogwumike had a game-high 32 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals. Parker added 29 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocked shots. The Sparks starting backcourt was equally impressive, Chelsea Gray had 20 points, 10 assists, and Odyssey Sims threw in 15 points, 10 assists.
The Sky outshot the Sparks 50% to 45% and out rebounded the Sparks 43-42, but the story of the game was ball protection. The Sky gave the Sparks extra possessions by losing the turnover battle 21-6. Despite the miscues, the Sky still fought to stay in the high scoring bout. There was an astonishing 17 lead changes and 11 ties in the game, but the Sky ran out of gas and were outscored 16-7 in the second-overtime.
The last time the Sky faced the Storm was back on July 18. The final score was 94-83 with the Sky prevailing. The Storm outscored the Sky 29-11 in the first quarter, but then the Sky returned the favor by outscoring the Storm 30-13 in the second quarter and never looked back.
Quigley led the charge by scoring 25 points, including a dangerous 6-10 from deep, tying a career high. The Sky bench went off for 42 points while the Storm’s bench only squeezed out 6 points.
Breanna Stewart led the way for Storm with a 25 points, 11 rebounds. Center Crystal Langhorne and guard Jewell Loyd each chipped in an additional 16 points.
The Storm are currently on a three-game win streak and along with the Dallas Wings (13-16) are 1.5 games over the Sky for the final seventh and eight playoff spots. Their most recent win on August 18 came at the hands of the San Antonio Stars (7-23), where they escaped with a narrow 79-78 victory.
Storm vs. Sky tips off at 5:00 PM CDT Sunday, August 20, at All-State Arena in Rosemont. Tickets start as low as $18. Call 866.SKY.WNBA or visit CHICAGOSKY.NET to purchase tickets today. You can also watch the game on The U Too or WNBA League Pass. For live updates, download the Sky mobile app from the App Store or on Google Play.