WNBA round-up: Chicago Sky clinch play-off berth with win over Las Vegas Aces
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Monday 6 September 2021 10:35, UK
Allie Quigley broke out of a recent shooting slump on Sunday, scoring 22 points as the Chicago Sky clinched WNBA play- off spot with a 92-84 win over the Las Vegas Aces.
Las Vegas Aces 84 - 92 Chicago Sky
Diamond DeShields came off the bench to add 17, while Kahleah Copper put up 14 points. Candace Parker almost notched a triple-double with 12 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists as the Sky improved to 15-14 for the season.
Chicago shot 50.7 percent from the field and displayed outstanding ball movement throughout the game, drawing assists on all but four of its 34 field goals. The Sky committed just seven turnovers.
Kelsey Plum scored a game-high 23 points in a reserve role for Las Vegas (20-8), leading five players in double figures. A'ja Wilson added 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Riquna Williams went for 14 points. Jackie Young netted 12 and Chelsea Gray contributed 10.
The Aces played without center Liz Cambage (COVID-19 protocol) and sixth woman Dearica Hamby (ankle) for the second straight game. The starting five played roughly 80 percent of the minutes, which might have led to fatigue down the stretch. Las Vegas hit just 41 percent from the field.
Chicago set a quick pace right away in a high-scoring first quarter, seeking to take advantage of Las Vegas' limited depth. The Sky led 32-24 after Stefanie Dolson canned a 3-pointer with 3.2 seconds left in the period.
The lead reached 12 points after Parker converted a 3-point play with 5:44 remaining in the half. While the Aces closed within 49-46 on Young's 3-point play, Chicago took a 54-46 cushion to the half following Quigley's two foul shots with 6.6 seconds on the clock.
Las Vegas got the game even at 61 and 63 in the third quarter as they were able to string together multiple stops on defense, but the Sky responded. A driving layup by DeShields with 21.4 seconds left gave them a 70-67 edge going into the fourth.
Atlanta Dream 69 - 64 Dallas Wings
Tiffany Hayes poured in 22 points and Courtney Williams added 17, including a big basket in the final minute, as the visiting Atlanta Dream defeated the Dallas Wings 69-64 in the second of a two-game mini-series between the teams in Arlington, Texas.
The Dream never trailed in the fourth quarter, pushing their lead to six points after a Williams jumper with 43.5 seconds to play.
Dallas got a 3-pointer from Arike Ogunbowale to close to within 65-62, but Atlanta (7-20) finished the game with free throws from Hayes and Williams and snapped an 11-game losing streak, dating back to June 29.
Monique Billings added 12 points and 14 rebounds for the Dream, with Elizabeth Williams scoring 10 points and blocking 4 shots in the win. Atlanta won despite getting just 2 points from their four reserves.
Ogunbowale led the Wings (12-16) with 21 points while Allisha Gray added 10 points and took 14 rebounds. The Wings are 3-4 since the WNBA's five-week Olympic break and remain in seventh place in the league standings with four games to play.
The Dream led 16-12 at the end of the first quarter on the strength of a 10-0 run in the middle of the period. Dallas trailed by as many as nine and shot just 27.8 percent in the period, but stayed close thanks to a late 3-pointer and layup by Ogunbowale.
Dallas came back to tie the raggedly played game 32-32 at halftime behind Ogunbowale's 10 first-half points.
Hayes led all scorers with 11 points in the half, including eight straight points for the Dream in the first three minutes of the second period. Atlanta outshot the Wings 40.5 percent to 28.6 percent in the half, while Dallas owned a 26-22 advantage on the boards. Dallas were 5 of 15 from behind the arc; the Dream were 0 for 2 on 3-pointers.
Little could separate the two teams in the third quarter, with four lead changes (no lead of more than three points) and six ties in the period, with Hayes' putback layup with 0.1 seconds remaining sending the game to the final quarter knotted at 48.
The Wings played without forward Isabelle Harrison, who tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday and was in quarantine.
