Saturday night wins for Seattle Storm and Minnesota Lynx
Sunday 2 August 2020 07:58, UK
Gabby Williams and Cheyenne Parker each scored 16 points as the Chicago Sky ended the Washington Mystics's unbeaten start to the season.
Gabby Williams and Cheyenne Parker each scored 16 points and Courtney Vandersloot grabbed a vital late steal as the Chicago Sky beat the Washington Mystics 88-86 on Saturday night.
Allie Quigley added 15 points, Kahleah Copper scored 14 and Diamond DeShields - who has seen limited action as she recovers from a knee injury - had a season-high 10 points for Chicago (3-1).
Washington's Aerial Powers made 1-of-2 free throws to make it 84-all with 43.2 seconds left before Parker made a lay-up and Ariel Atkins hit two foul shots. Parker was fouled as she made a short jumper but missed the And 1 and the Sky led 88-86 with 5.9 to play.
After the Mystics called a timeout, Vandersloot stole a pass from Emma Meesseman to seal the win.
Atkins scored 24 points and Powers added 20 for the Mystics (3-1). Myisha Hines-Allen had 13 points, 12 rebounds and three steals.
Washington came into the game the lone undefeated team in the WNBA.
The Sky opened the fourth quarter with an 11-2 run to take a nine-point lead when Parker made a jumper with 6:43 remaining. Washington answered with a 12-4 spurt to trim the deficit to 79-76 nearly four minutes later.
Williams hit a three-pointer but after Hines-Allen made two free throws Atkins nailed a triple and then two foul shots for Washington to make it 83-82 with 1:14 left.
Breanna Stewart had 21 points, nine rebounds, five assists and four steals and the Seattle Storm never trailed in their 81-75 win over the Los Angeles Sparks.
Jewell Loyd added 17 points, Jordin Canada - starting in place of Sue Bird (rest) - scored a season-high 16 and rookie Ezi Magbegor had a career-high 12 points for Seattle as the Storm (3-1) bounced back from an 89-71 loss to the Washington Mystics on Thursday.
Candace Parker had 19 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Sparks (2-2). Riquna Williams hit 4-of-7 from three-point range and finished with 16 points and Nneka Ogwumike scored 14.
Canada's short jumper midway through the fourth quarter ended the Storm's drought of nearly eight minutes without a field goal and Loyd followed with a three-pointer to make it 73-65 with 4:19 to go.
Parker and Ogwumike made baskets 13 seconds apart to make it a four-point game with two minutes remaining but neither team scored again until Canada made two free throws with 35.5 seconds to play that made it 79-73. Chelsea Gray made a put-back of a missed three-pointer by Brittney Sykes but Magbegor answered with a lay-up less than two seconds later to cap the scoring.
Sylvia Fowles had 21 points and 13 rebounds and Napheesa Collier supplied 17 points, nine rebounds and four blocks as the Minnesota Lynx beat the Connecticut Sun 78-69.
Collier made all seven of her shots from the field and had four assists. Rookie Crystal Dangerfield had a season-high 17 points for the Lynx (3-1), who trailed by as many as 10 points late in the first half.
Jasmine Thomas hit a three-pointer to pull Connecticut (0-4) even at 65-all with 6:50 to play but Minnesota scored the next 11 points as the Sun went scoreless for five-plus minutes. Damiris Dantas scored all five of her points during that stretch and finished with eight rebounds and two steals.
DeWanna Bonner led the Sun with 28 points, including five three-pointers, and Brionna Jones had a season-high 15 points. Bonner, acquired from the Phoenix Mercury this offseason in exchange for three first-round draft picks, is averaging a career-best 27.5 points per game this season.
Connecticut shot just 34.9 per cent (22-of-63) from the field and were outrebounded 40-27.
