After their west coast road trip the Chicago Sky will return home on Friday, August 21 to host the Washington Mystics for a tip-off at 7:30 pm CT. The game marks the fourth matchup of these teams this season. Chicago leads the season series 2-1 and looks to retain the lead Friday night.

In the Sky and Mystics’ most recent matchup on August 2, Chicago’s stat sheet featured double-digits across the board. Elena Delle Donne led all scorers with 22 points and tallied 8 rebounds. Cappie Pondexter and Jessica Breland added 12 points apiece for the Sky. Courtney Vandersloot dished out 10 of the team’s 19 assists. Finally, Erika de Souza grabbed 10 rebounds and recorded 4 points in her first start for the Sky.

Ivory Latta led Washington with 19 points and 2 assists. Stefanie Dolson and LaToya Sanders each grabbed nine boards for the Mystics. Dolson was responsible for the jumper with 28.4 seconds left of the game that put the Mystics up 68-67. Nevertheless, Delle Donne hit a layup with 19.4 seconds left allowing the Sky to take back the lead. With 3.4 seconds remaining, Breland sank two free throws to secure the Sky’s 71-68 victory.

Similar to the rest of the season, defense will be the key to Chicago’s defeat of Washington on Friday.

“I feel extremely confident in this group. We need to focus on the defensive end of the floor and make our opponents feel uncomfortable out on the court,” said Head Coach Pokey Chatman after the team’s game on Sunday, August 16 against Los Angeles.

Following the direction of their head Coach, the Sky will look to secure a victory over the Mystics on Friday. With only eight games left of the regular season these final contests are crucial. The Sky will travel to Washington and Atlanta before returning home on August 30 to host the Connecticut Sun. To join the Sky in the arena for all the action, call 866.SKY.WNBA to purchase tickets.