Two days after hosting the WNBA All-Star Game, the Chicago Sky will be back in Wintrust Arena on Tuesday night to take on the Atlanta Dream.
For most of the season, Chicago (16-6) has trailed the Las Vegas Aces in the standings, but not anymore. The defending champs have won nine of their last 11 to move a game ahead of the Aces, who have split their last 10 games.
Last Thursday, the Sky defeated the Indiana Fever 93-84, securing home-court advantage for the Commissioner’s Cup on July 26 against the Aces. Four players scored in double digits against the Fever as Chicago shot 54.8 percent from the field.
“We know it’s a marathon, not a sprint,” Chicago coach James Wade said. “But we wanted to make sure we’re taking care of business in the meantime.”
After finishing 8-24 a season ago, Atlanta (10-12) is making great headway, a lot of which has to do with the arrival of rookie Rhyne Howard from Kentucky. The No. 1 overall pick in April’s draft made the All-Star Game and is averaging a team-high 15.1 points per game.
The Dream had a two-game winning streak snapped their last time out, falling 85-66 at home to the Washington Mystics last Wednesday. Four Atlanta players scored 10 points apiece, but the team finished 0 for 12 from 3-point distance and got outscored 27-12 in the fourth quarter.
Over the weekend, Chicago guard Allie Quigley won the WNBA All-Star 3-point shooting contest for the fourth time in her career. No NBA or WNBA player had ever won the contest four times.
Her total will remain at four, as she plans to call it quits moving forward.
“Retired in my hometown,” Quigley said. “It’s a good storybook ending, I’d say. … This is it. You won’t see me again.”
