Three Ways Sky Can Upset Aces
The Chicago Sky (10-32) have a tall order to face when they play the Las Vegas Aces (28-14). With the Sky already eliminated from the WNBA Playoffs, the Aces look to advance their positioning by improving their seeding.
Since Las Vegas lost 111-58 at home against the Minnesota Lynx, the playoff-bound Aces have not lost. It's hard to imagine that the Sky's opponent was also below .500 earlier in the season.
Yet, there's hope out there that Chicago can end Las Vegas's 14-game win streak and hold the Aces back from earning one of the top four seeds in the postseason. How do the Sky pull this off?
Sky must avoid the early first quarter deficit.
A recurring theme is poor starts in games by Chicago. For instance, the Sky were outscored 24-15 in the first quarter on Sunday against the Aces.
It was even worse in the game before that against the Indiana Fever. The Sky were pummeled 31-15 in the opening period last Friday. Chicago ended up losing 97-77 to Indiana.
According to Data Skrive with ESPN.com, the only player listed out for the Sky is veteran guard Courtney Vandersloot. That means that Chicago should have both Angel Reese and Ariel Atkins back in the starting lineup. Reese and Atkins have been two of the Sky's top scorers all season.
The Sky must contain Aces' star center A'ja Wilson.
With season averages of 23.8 points and 10.2 rebounds a game, the Aces' starting center A'ja Wilson is easily one of the biggest threats to the Chicago Sky's defense. Reese, Kamilla Cardoso, and Elizabeth Williams will have their hands full covering the All-Star player.
Wilson has scored at least 30 points in four of her last five games. The one game in that span was against the Sky at Wintrust Arena earlier this month. In fact, it was also one of two games in Wilson's last nine games that she was held under 20 points.
If the Sky allow Wilson to make more than 45% of her shots, the Aces' center could off for another 30-point double-double performance. If that were to happen, Chicago will drop a third game this season to their head coach Tyler Marsh's former team. He was an assistant coach in Las Vegas before joining the Sky's sidelines.
Chicago can't rely on the deep ball.
The Sky have not been scoring much from their deep shot. After going cold from behind the arc on Friday (2-for-11) against the Fever, Chicago struggled again (6-for-20) on Sunday against the Aces.
With a season average of 33% from three-point range, the Sky rank ninth out of 13 teams in the WNBA. In the first meeting against Las Vegas, Chicago made just five of their 18 shots from deep (27.8%).
Efficiency on shot selection and consistency in making buckets can help the Sky avoid a 33rd loss and earn their 11th win of the season instead. After all, Marsh would love a win against his former team.
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My name is Scott Conrad and I am a Contributor for the Chicago Sky with Sports Illustrated.com. I am also a Contributor with FanSided on NinerNoise, as well as Da Windy City. In addition, I am the Site Editor/Expert for The View from Avalon. I spent two seasons (2015 & 2016) with the Tampa Bay Times as a Correspondent covering high school football. I am a two-time published author with more work to come. In my teenage years, I started watching both MLS and WNBA start in 1996 and grow to be the juggernauts they are in their respective sports. Much love to the career on and off the court for fellow-Napervillian and former Sky forward Candace Parker. Outside of the sports journalism world, I am a travel volleyball coach. I accepted the Head Coach position with Greater Cincinnati Volleyball Club for their U13-2 team. In terms of active sports, I play volleyball, soccer, softball, kickball and train in mixed martial arts.