The Chicago Sky and Seattle Storm roll into a highly anticipated matinee matchup.
Each looks for a fifth consecutive victory when the visiting Storm face the Sky on Wednesday.
Currently atop the WNBA standings, Chicago (19-6) has won nine of the last 10 and seven straight at home, where it’s 9-2. Meanwhile, Seattle (17-8) is amid its third four-game winning streak this season and is 12-3 since sitting 5-5 in early June.
On Saturday at Dallas, the Sky played without star guard Courtney Vandersloot (concussion), whose status appears uncertain for this contest. However, they outscored the Wings 30-16 in the fourth quarter for an 89-81 victory.
“Everybody’s on the same page of thinking, ‘I’m going to sacrifice to make this team better,'” Chicago coach James Wade said.
Kahleah Copper (14.7 points per game) had 23 points with a career-high 14 rebounds, while Emma Meeseman (12.7 ppg) also scored 23 for the Sky on Saturday. Chicago has scored at least 89 points three times while winning the last four by an average margin of 11.0 points.
Copper posted at least 20 in three of the last five games. She didn’t play during Chicago’s 74-71 loss at Seattle on May 18. The Sky held Storm star Breanna Stewart to 13 points in that matchup, but teammate Ezi Magbegor scored 21.
Stewart, though, remains the league’s top scorer at 21.0 points per contest. She recorded 25 in the Storm’s 81-65 home win over Indiana on Sunday. Among the league’s best defensive teams, Seattle has allowed an average of 70.3 points, while scoring 91.3 per game, over the last four.
“Look at our lineup in general; it’s a lot … It’s a lot of greatness,” Stewart told The Seattle Times.
Part of that greatness is 33-year-old Tina Charles, who has averaged 14.3 points and 6.5 rebounds during Seattle’s four-game run. The Storm are 6-1 since they acquired Charles after she left Phoenix last month.
Looking for a third straight road victory, Seattle has dropped its last three games played in Chicago.
