The Chicago Sky (4-7) earned their second-straight win against the Indiana Fever (1-11), 83-79, having the beat the Fever on June 9. The victory solidifies the Sky’s second place position in the Eastern Conference Commissioner’s Cup standings, with four games left to play for the Sky. Candace Parker recorded her first career double-double with Chicago, going for 20 points and 14 rebounds in just her third game played for the team.
The game was mostly nip and tuck. The Sky did manage to open up a seven-point lead at the half, 56-49, but the Fever closed within one point entering the final period of play. Indiana did take a brief two point lead, 73-71 with just under five minutes to play and Chicago would tie the game after a pair of made free throws by Parker.
For Indiana, two baskets by Kelsey Mitchell would see the Fever tie the game on two separate occasions, to include tying the game at 77 apiece with just under two minutes to play. Mitchell finished with 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting.
Allie Quigley scored the Sky’s final six points, starting with a 3-point shot just seconds after Mitchell tied the game. A 1-of-2 outing at the charity stripe by Quigley put the Sky up by four points with 90 seconds left in the game. Teaira McCowan would pull the Fever back within two points but a final basket from 12 feet out by Quigley sealed the game for the Sky. Quigley scored a season-high 16 points in 21 minutes of play off the bench. Kahleah Copper and Stefanie Dolson contributed 14 and 11 points, respectively, as starters.
For Indiana, Teaira McCowan was the high-scorer with a season-high 20 points and 13 rebounds, which was her sixth double-double of the season. McCowan played 33 minutes despite not being in the starting lineup. Tiffany Mitchell contributed 10 points and Lindsay Allen came off the bench to score 12.
The Fever shot 48.2 percent from the field but were just 4-of-11 on 3-point shots and were just 15-of-22 from the free throw line. The Sky overcame a 42.9 percent shooting performance by shooting 8-of-18 from beyond the arc and 21-of-25 on free throws.
For their next game, the Sky will look to keep the turnaround going against the Minnesota Lynx in Minneapolis at 9 p.m. ET on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Indiana Fever welcome the league-leading Seattle Storm on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET.
Other action
Minnesota Lynx (4-5) over Los Angeles Sparks (4-5), 80-64
The Lynx bounced back with a win over the Sparks after the Washington Mystics ended their three-game winning streak. This makes back-to-back losses for the Sparks. Crystal Dangerfield was the high-scorer for the Lynx with 16 points while she made a season-high four 3-pointers.
With the exception of a brief 9-8 lead for the Sparks, the Lynx never trailed in the game. They built a 49-35 halftime lead that would completely evaporate as the fourth quarter started. The Sparks outscored the Lynx 22-8 in the third quarter and the game was tied at 57 points apiece. The Lynx returned the favor and won the final quarter, 23-7.
Sylvia Fowles scored seven of her 15 points in the fourth quarter and contributed nine rebounds, five steals and four blocks. Rachel Banham was 4-of-4 from beyond the arc and finished with 12 points.
For Los Angeles, Te’a Cooper scored a career-high 17 points and increased her double-figure scoring streak to five games. Kristi Toliver scored 13 points but was just of 5-of-18 from the floor, recording just her fourth game in double-figure scoring. Amanda Zahui B. scored 15 points in a season-high 36 minutes of play.
The Lynx won in spite of committing 22 turnovers, thanks to 50 percent shooting from beyond the arc (11-of-22) and shooting 19-of-21 from the charity line. The Lynx held the Sparks to 32.9 shooting from the floor, including 3-of-17 in the fourth quarter.
As mentioned, the Lynx face the Sky at home in their next game. The Sparks will return home to play the Phoenix Mercury on Wednesday at 10:30 p.m. ET.