In their first game back from the All-Star break, the Chicago Sky pulled out a hard-fought 94-88 come-from-behind victory against the Connecticut Sun, overcoming a 14-point deficit. The Sky’s two largest comeback victories of the season are both against the Sun at home. With the win, the Sky are now 10-18 on the season and 5.5 games back of the playoffs.

Trailing 49-40 at halftime, Chicago used a decisive 16-6 run to seal the win in the final four and a half minutes of the fourth quarter.

Along with the victory was DiJonai Carrington’s highly anticipated season debut. In her 17 minutes, she contributed nine points, three rebounds and a block. Five of her nine points came in the final minutes of the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach.

Kamilla Cardoso led the charge for the Sky with a team-high 26 points, shooting an efficient 66.7% from the field. Cardoso did the heavy lifting during a crucial fourth-quarter push, cementing her status as one of only 10 players this season to notch at least 26 points on 65-plus percent shooting from the field and 90-plus percent from the free-throw line after nailing 10 of her 11 free-throw attempts.

Cardoso recorded a whopping 16 points in the fourth quarter, and her 11 free-throw attempts were a season high. In the Sky’s last 12 games, she’s averaging 16.6 points, 8.3 rebounds and a ridiculous 2.4 stocks. In those games, the Sky are 6-6 and a plus-50.

In the backcourt, Sydney Taylor continued her standout All-Rookie campaign with 14 points, two rebounds, and a career-high six assists while shooting 50% from the field in 30 minutes of play. Taylor is averaging 19.8 points over her last five games, which leads all rookies in that span.

Taylor averages more points than No. 1 overall pick Azzi Fudd. She is at 14.2 on the season, behind Olivia Miles’ 19.8. However, Taylor received under 19 minutes in seven games this season. In the 19 games since she joined the regular rotation, she is averaging 18.1 points, just 1.7 behind a player in the MVP race.

Natasha Cloud added 11 points, five assists, and two steals for her 13th double-digit scoring game of the year.

The victory was a true team effort with every active Sky player scoring, as the Sky bench outscored the Sun bench 34-15. Chloe Bibby provided an efficient eight points, while Jacy Sheldon added seven points and shot a flawless 100% from the line.

Despite strong efforts from Connecticut, including a 21-point, 7-rebound night from Aneesah Morrow and a double-double from Olivia Nelson-Ododa, the Sky’s late surge in the fourth sealed the win.

The Sky will look to build on this win out of the break, taking on the Las Vegas Aces Saturday, Aug. 1, in their second matchup of their five-game homestand. In the previous two games, the Sky barely lost. On the road in their most recent tilt, the Sky dragged the Aces into overtime. The Sky will look to close the last game of the season between the two teams with a victory when they tip off at noon CST inside Wintrust Arena.