On Sunday July 12^th the Chicago Sky will take on the Connecticut Sun in the third meeting of the season between the two teams.  This time the matchup will occur at Allstate Arena with tipoff set for 5:00 pm CT.  The season series between the Sky and Sun is deadlocked at 1-1, with both games having been played in Connecticut.

Sunday’s match will mark the second of a three home game stretch for Chicago.   The Sky is coming off a 90-83 victory over the Minnesota Lynx.  Elena Delle Donne and Cappie Pondexter rallied to combine for 48 points. This ended Minnesota’s 3-0 winning streak over Chicago.  Connecticut enters Sunday’s game with a record of 7-3.  The team has not played a game since falling to the Sky on July 2^nd.

In the most recent meeting between the two teams, Allie Quigley made her sixth start of the season and led the Sky with 19 points.  Quigley was responsible for the go-ahead free throws that lifted the Sky to a 77-74 victory over the Sun.  Courtney Vandersloot also added 16 points.  Connecticut’s Alex Bentley led all scorers with a career-high 25 points.  Nevertheless, Chicago held her scoreless in the fourth quarter.  It was one of the best defensive performances from the Sky this season.  Chicago contested Connecticut to only 40.5% shooting from the field.

In order to pull out a second win over Connecticut, Chicago must continue this defensive momentum and use it to fuel its offense.  After the July 2^nd game between the Sky and Sun, Chicago Head Coach and General Manager Pokey Chatman said, “It was nice to come out of halftime and get five consecutive stops, but what we didn’t do was marry it to buckets on the other end.”

Finding an offensive and defensive balance will be critical in the Sky’s ability to secure a victory.   Last time the Sun held Player of the Month Elena Delle Donne to a season-low 12 points, but as that game showed, there are other players on the Sky roster who can rack up points.  The Sky must continue to play “to, through, and off” Delle Donne to collect more wins.

Sky fans can catch all the action on WNBA Live Access or The U Too.  To join the team at Allstate Arena, call 866.SKY.WNBA for tickets.  Chicago will host the Washington Mystics on Wednesday, July 15^th for its second “Camp Day” game.