Guest Contributor Article by Daulton Cooper
The Chicago Sky seem to be going through what any team has to and that’s growing pains. Their most recent matchup on Tuesday night saw them relinquish a 12 point halftime lead to the Washington Mystics. In recent weeks, Angel Reese has come under fire for not performing, but she came out with a fury this game. The Sky started strong and built a 15 point lead in the first quarter spearheaded by the duo of Reese and Kamilla Cardoso. Both women finished with double-doubles: Cardoso (18 points, 10 rebounds) and Reese (17 points, 10 rebounds).
Then the third quarter happened, and unfortunately it seems to be a trend for the Sky this year to struggle in the 3rd quarter this season. Through 11 games this season the Sky are a league worst at scoring in the 3rd quarter this season averaging 17.7 points and shooting a league low 37.9% from the field. Whether it is a lack of adjustments made or a dip in energy the Sky have to reverse this trend in order to get where they would like to go.
The Mystics were powered by a 20-4 run in that third quarter, aided by Chicago’s 9 turnovers. Brittany Sykes began to take the game over as she had 20 of her 32 total points in the second half including a 9 point 3rd quarter. The 32 point effort from Skyes was a career best and propelled the Mystics to a 79-72 victory over the Sky. The Mystics are now 5-7 on the season and the Sky fall to 3-8 and 1-4 now in Commissioner’s Cup games.
The Sky’s next game will be Saturday June 21st @ 12 PM CST on ABC.
DAC