By Caroline Lau

The Chicago Sky lost to the league-leading Minnesota Lynx 75-80 inside Target Center on Sunday, July 6. Chicago stayed in the game until the very end, but ultimately fell to 5-12.

Rachel Banham led the Sky in scoring in her home state of Minnesota, going for season highs of 20 points and six made three-pointers. Angel Reese extended her league-record consecutive stretch of games with 15 or more rebounds to five games after recording 16 points, 17 rebounds and six assists.

The Sky started the game hot on both ends of the floor, holding the Lynx to just 10 points in the first quarter, one point shy of their season low for points in a quarter. In all, the Sky outscored the Lynx 24-10 in the first. Chicago’s success in the first quarter was a result of amped-up pressure defensively.

Banham and Minnesota’s Diamond Miller traded triples to open the second quarter. The Lynx chipped away at the Sky’s first-quarter lead with a 12-3 run, cutting the lead to five. Banham ended the run with two straight three-pointers, bringing her to a perfect 4 for 4 from beyond the arc in the first half.

Still, Minnesota held strong and vanquished the Sky’s lead, forcing Chicago to go into the half trailing 37-38.

Despite falling behind, Chicago kept a level head and took its first lead of the second half at the 2:35 mark thanks to Banham’s fifth triple of the night. Minnesota responded with a quick 8-0 run, but Ariel Atkins nailed a half-court buzzer-beater that cut the score to 52-56 heading into the fourth quarter.

Back-to-back offensive rebounds and an eventual floater from Kayla McBride put the Lynx up six with 25 seconds remaining. Not going away, the Sky’s Reese responded with a quick bucket on the other end and Banham knocked down another three, cutting the lead to 2 with 16.5 seconds left. The Sky ultimately fell as Minnesota continued to respond to Chicago’s impressive bursts.

The loss was the Sky’s second consecutive defeat decided by fewer than five points.

All of Chicago’s starters were in double figures in Sunday’s game, including Banham’s 20 points, Reese’s 16, Elizabeth Williams’ 12, and Atkins and Michaela Onyenwere’s 11 each.

Quote of the game from Rachel Banham: “We could be anybody and we know that. We’ve had some struggle games in the beginning, but these last few games, I think we’ve really found ourselves. We found our identity and I just think we’re just playing so well off of each other and everyone is having their big moments, everyone hits the floor. We really trust each other. We really like each other. We just know we can beat anybody on any night. And you know our record’s not great … But we can. I think these last few games have showed that.”