The Chicago Sky (2-8) welcome the Indiana Fever (5-6) for a Father’s Day showdown in Rosemont Sunday with tip set for 5:00 CDT. This is the first of three matchups between these Eastern Conference teams. Indiana has yet to earn a road win this year.
This will be Indiana head coach Pokey Chatman’s first return to Chicago since leaving last season after six years as head coach and general manager. The Fever boast a few other familiar Sky faces: Candice Dupree’s name dots the record book from her 2006 – 2009 seasons in Chicago. Dupree sits second in all-time Sky history with 980 total rebounds and fourth in total points with 2,100. Current Sky forward Tamera Young needs to collect 69 more rebounds to pass Dupree in the record book. She is on pace to accomplish this feat in 2017.
The Sky have a quick turnaround after a 78 – 86 loss Friday against the Phoenix Mercury. Guard Allie Quigley charged the scoring effort for the Sky, pouring in 19 points. Forward Jessica Breland followed close behind with 18 points, and guard Cappie Pondexter contributed 13. Center Imani Boyette was one point away from her first double-double of the season with nine points and 10 rebounds. Phoenix won the turnover battle by a 9 – 15 margin. Diana Taurasi, on her quest to become the WNBA’s all-time leading scorer, swished 15 points, while teammate Brittney Griner led the way with 27.
The Fever earned their fifth win of the season Thursday by a score of 85 – 74 against the visiting Atlanta Dream.Indiana’s stingy defense held the Dream to shoot just 37 percent. Guard Erica Wheeler’s 20 points and seven assists allowed the Dream to shoot a season-high 54 percent from the field. Guard Tiffany Mitchell sparked the bench scoring with 14 points. The Fever shot a hot 46.2 percent from beyond the arc, way surpassing the 29.2 percent shot by the Dream.
The Sky won the 2016 series 2 – 1 in dramatic fashion. Chicago’s 100 – 95 win on July 10, 2016 featured the highest scoring output for the Sky that season. Nine days later, the two teams met again and the game came down to the last 0.2 seconds. Breland’s put-back with less than a second in the game pushed the Sky to win their second straight game, 79 – 77. Griner and Pondexter were ejected late in the game after a controversial collision.
The Sky hit the road to take on the Atlanta Dream Friday, June 23, before returning to Allstate Arena for back-to-back home games. Chicago hosts the Washington Mystics Sunday, June 25 and then squares off again against the Indiana Fever Wednesday, June 28. There is only a ten-day difference between the two Fever competitions.
Tickets start as low as $18. Call 866.SKY.WNBA or visit CHICAGOSKY.NET to purchase tickets today. You can also watch the Sky on The U Too or WNBA League Pass. For live updates, download the Sky mobile app from the App Store or on Google Play.