Two Takeaways From Sky’s Win Over Mystics
The Chicago Sky finally did it.
After not earning a win in almost a month, the Sky finally ended their lengthy slide with a 78-64 victory over the Washington Mystics on Tuesday. Center Elizabeth Williams led Chicago with 18 points under heavy minutes as she continued to find her groove from inside. The rookie duo of Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen continued to take point for the Mystics as they combined for 23 points.
Still, the Sky can't take their foot off the gas just yet.
While Chicago showed some signs of hope on its home court, it will need to keep its momentum going as it faces a number of its Eastern Conference opponents in the Atlanta Dream, Indiana Fever and Connecticut Sun in its next few matchups. All three games could determine the fate of the rest of its season as it sits at 6.5 games behind the eighth-ranked Golden State Valkyries after 29 matchups, meaning it'll have a tough hill to climb if it wants to get back into postseason contention.
Is it time to hop on the Sky bandwagon for good? Will they have enough in the tank to spark a much-needed winning streak when they take on the Dream on Thursday?
Ariel Atkins, Sky contributors provide big-time boost
Just when the Sky needed her most, Atkins returned.
The veteran guard dropped 15 points on her former squad as she seemingly couldn't miss from the left side. She turned into a scoring machine after a few missed shots by sinking her final six tries in the last two quarters. Forward Michaela Onyenwere added 12 with confident drives in transition and catch-and-shoot tries from the right side. Guard Sevgi Uzun, a more recent signee for the Sky, ended with a perfect mark from the floor and five assists as she served up pinpoint passes to rolling and cutting bigs in the paint.
It'll be up to every one of the Sky's more notable contributors to step up during what could be a defining stretch of games for the Windy City squad.
Can the Sky continue to live through the paint?
Is it time for the Sky to prioritize the paint on offense?
Center Kamilla Cardoso continued to shine as she earned her seventh-straight double-double and led the squad with four offensive rebounds. The former top-3 draft pick dominated with her back to the basket and after quick passes inside, which led to 16 points on the night. Chicago as a whole would earn its keep on the interior with 52 points in the paint, a much-needed contrast from games past as both guards and bigs alike slashed and cut their way to victory.
The Sky are averaging just over 35 points in the paint per game during their 2025 campaign, good enough for eighth place in the WNBA. Getting easy looks on the inside will be crucial in winning their next three matchups, which feature teams that are in the bottom half of the league in opponent paint points per game.
The Sky will face off against the Dream at 7 p.m. CDT on Thursday in Wintrust Arena. The game will be broadcast on The U.
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Alex Sabri began contributing to the BIGPLAY Network in September 2025. He also contributes to Chicago Sky on SI and FanSided's High Post Hoops. The Purdue and Cleveland State graduate has over two years of journalism experience in collegiate and professional sports, as well as local journalism, and a few more years of sports blogging experience. Though he specializes in covering Ohio sports for BIGPLAY, his interests include the NBA, WNBA, NFL, Cleveland Guardians and college football and basketball.