CHICAGO SKY at MINNESOTA LYNX
(Game #1) TARGET CENTER | MAY 25, 2019
FULL GAME RECAP: https://on.nba.com/2MbsGrj
HIGHLIGHTS: https://bit.ly/2JCGZ61
SKY NOTES:
● Courtney Vandersloot scored six points and notched seven assists in the first half.
● The Sky shot 48.6% from the field during the first half and 31.4% in the second half.
● Sky’s largest lead in the game was four points, when they led 20-16 in the first quarter.
● Allie Quigley, recently voted best pure shooter by WNBA GMs, scored 10 points on 4-9 field goals and 2-5 threepointers.
● Katie Lou Samuelson, fourth overall pick in the 2019 draft, scored four points and dished two assists while taking only a single field goal attempt in her WNBA debut.
● Jantel Lavender, who was acquired from the Los Angeles Sparks on May 20, recorded 10 points and three rebounds in her Sky debut.
● Diamond DeShields, who was limited to 11 minutes due to early foul trouble and took a hard foul by Napheesa Collier, was held scoreless on 0-7 shooting. ●
Rookie Chloe Jackson finished with four points, three steals, and two assists.
LYNX NOTES:
● The Lynx outrebounded the Sky 46-29, with a pair of Lynx players finishing with double-figure rebounds.
● Sylvia Fowles, who posted a double-double, and Napheesa Collier combined for 43 points on 14-18 shooting.
● The Lynx went on a 17-2 run over 4:55 in the third quarter, increasing their six-point lead to 21 and ended the third quarter with a 20-point lead.
● The Lynx shot 71.9% from the free-throw line, making 23 of 32 attempts, while the Sky attempted just 15 free throws in the game.
● The Lynx committed 20 turnovers, compared to their 17 assists.
● Jessica Shepard, who led the Lynx in assists, also had a game-high six turnovers.
● Former Sky Center Alaina Coates faced the team for the first time since she was traded on May, 21, 2019, scoring three points in limited minutes.
● Stephanie Talbot, who played her first game since being acquired from the Mercury, scored four points.
Lynx Head Coach Cheryl Reeve
On the Napheesa Collier matchup with Allie Quigley…
“We certainly liked the matchup, right? I don’t think Quigley really wanted to be on Phee (Napheesa Collier). I thought that with Diamond DeShields in foul trouble, you know, we knew she didn’t want to foul. We really started throwing the ball inside to Phee. We were fortunate. We were able to get the ball where we wanted it to get to. And again, her confidence. She’s worked really hard on her shot. So that was really fun, to see her have some go down. She practiced well yesterday. Yesterday was how she played today. Team-high 33 minutes. Not a bad rookie showing.”
On the future of the league…
“Yeah, I mean, the young kids is what it’s about. If you think about it, these young kids are going to grow up never knowing that there wasn’t a WNBA before. Whether it’s a girl or a boy, you know, boys are here watching, going, ‘oh, women play professional sports’ and they grow up with it as a norm. So that helps the way that they think about women. But for the young girls, now you can play at a younger age, because you’re going home and you’re excited. You’re at the game tonight and you want to go do something that Pheesa (Napheesa Collier) did in the game or Lexie (Lexie Brown) or Syl (Sylvia Fowles) or whatever. So you have a dream at a much younger age. That helps the quality of the game, as the quality of the game keeps going up, up and up, and there’s going to be a greater need for expansion. I will say that business is probably, you know, the reason why we haven’t expanded yet. We need people that are in decision-making positions, to think of women in sport differently than the way that we’re thinking of it now. We invest in men like crazy, no matter what. Build a new stadium. Taxpayers pay for it. For the women we go, meh, you can play over here, behind this building. We have to change that mindset and we have to invest the same way we do men.”
Minnesota Lynx Forward Napheesa Collier
On tonight’s performance…
“I think I just realized tonight that I was starting, the team was counting on me. I needed to go out there and play as aggressively as I can, so I wouldn’t be a liability for the team. I just tried to go out there and play as hard as I could.”
On getting her first points at the foul line and finding a rhythm in the game…
“It felt good to get them in foul trouble, for one. Trying to get my first points on the free throw, like you said those are usually easy buckets, even though I missed three of them. Then defensive, obviously, that’s one of our things. Try to have them not have anything easy. So our deflections and steals and things like that also got us going.”
Lynx Forward Jessica Shepard
On what she was feeling tonight…
“I think, for me, I knew I missed a couple bunnies, so I just wanted to make it up rebounding. To me, rebounding’s effort, so anytime I can get in there, and get the rebound and get my team those extra chances that’s what I try to do.”
On Coach saying she is playing similarly to how she did in college…
“I think playing at Notre Dame, we played against some of the best players. I’m going against Bri Turner, who’s in the league, too. I think that definitely gets you ready, but I also think just the confidence that she (Coach Reeve) has in us rookies. When you can go in there and play comfortably, and not be worried about making one mistake and coming out, it makes it a lot easier.”
Minnesota Lynx Guard Danielle Robinson
On the win…
“We didn’t really start defensively how we wanted, they were getting too many looks in the paint and too many layups, so that’s something we talked about, making them hit outside shots. I think our team hit our stride going into halftime. We knew that we had to limit the easy shots at the rim, whether that was courtside or more ball pressure, so they didn’t see that backside, but just different things and adjustments we had to make throughout the game.”
On the chemistry between herself and Odyssey Sims…
“From the moment she got here, there was instant chemistry. Odyssey is just a great person and has great energy, so it was easy for us to vibe because I’m the same way. We enjoy playing with each other, we can get on runs, so that makes it even more fun.”
Chicago Sky Head Coach James Wade
On how he feels after getting his first head coaching game out of the way…
“Honestly, I don’t care. I just want to learn from it. I want us to do better next time. That’s my whole thing. I never made it about me. I think if I did, it would be the wrong move to make. Especially with me being so young as a coach and playing against all these great coaches. It has to be about our team.”
On goals for the season…
“No goals. Just want to get better tomorrow. And get better the next day and just try to build something. And we will see where we are.”
Chicago Sky Forward Gabby Williams
On how she felt she performed…
“I think it’s, kind of, how well we didn’t play. I mean, I don’t know how many I had, but I know it wasn’t enough to win a game. I was attacking. I’m faster than a lot of forwards in the league, so I just tried to attack tonight. It has to be more of myself and from everyone.”
On the difference this year, compared to last…
“There has been a different atmosphere in practice, for sure. We have a lot more energy, a lot more positivity. There’s a determination this year to make the playoffs. I don’t think we had that as much last year so. Today was a rough start but I’m still really hopeful with this team.”
Chicago Sky Forward Katie Lou Samuelson
On what could’ve gone better…
“I think just overall, we could have played a little smarter with the ball sometimes. We have a lot of things that we’re going to go back to Chicago and work on.”
On guarding Napheesa Collier…
“It’s definitely different to see her out there in a different uniform. She played great. We could’ve done a little better overall, on her, but its definitely weird now being on different teams.”