Chicago Sky vs. New York Liberty Preview, Prediction and Odds - 6/22/21
A pair of Eastern Conference teams take the floor in WNBA action in the Big Apple. The surging Chicago Sky are on the road as they travel to face the New York Liberty Tuesday night. Chicago comes in off a 91-81 win over Connecticut at home Saturday to sweep a two-game series from the Sun. New York picked up a 76-73 road win over Los Angeles Sunday afternoon in their most recent game to get back in the win column. In the first meeting this season, the Liberty picked up a 93-85 road win on May 23. That gave New York back-to-back wins in the series after Chicago had won the four previous matchups.
Chicago Sky Seeking Sixth Straight Win
Chicago has been a streaky team this season as they won their first two games, dropped seven straight and now have won five in a row after sweeping the Sun at home. The Sky improved to 7-7 on the year and enter this game holding the fifth seed in the WNBA playoff picture. Chicago trailed by nine after the opening quarter and by as many as 11 early in the second quarter before regrouping to lead by six at the half. The roller coaster contest continued as the Sky trailed by seven in the third quarter before taking a two-point lead at the end of three. Chicago extended to an eight-point lead early in the fourth quarter but found themselves tied at 76 with 3:46 to play. The Sky regrouped, finishing the game on a 15-5 run to earn the victory. Chicago shot an even 50% from the floor, including seven of 18 from three-point range, and hit 20 of 21 free throw attempts in the win. Courtney Vandersloot led the Sky with 18 points and 11 assists in the victory.
The Sky is 7th in the league in scoring offense as they muster 81.1 points per contest this season. Chicago is fourth in rebounding (36.6 boards a night) and fourth in assists by dishing out 19.9 dimes a game. The Sky is good on defense as they are third in the league by allowing an average of 78.8 points a contest. Kahleah Copper is one of six players averaging in double figures for the team with 14.1 points plus 4.8 rebounds a night this season. Candace Parker (11.5 points, eight boards), Astou Ndour-Fall (10.1 points, 7.6 rebounds) and Ruthy Hebard (9.1 points, 6.1 rebounds) are solid secondary options. The Sky can also look to Diamond DeShields (12.6 points), Courtney Vandersloot (12.1 points, 8.5 assists), Allie Quigley (12 points), Stefanie Dolson, Brittany Boyd-Jones, Azura Stevens, Natasha Mack and Stephanie Watts to contribute for coach James Wade. Chicago is 9th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 41.5% as a team. The Sky are near the bottom of the pack in threes per game as they are 9th with 6.6 per contest: they are 7th in three-point shooting at 34.1%. Chicago comes in first at the free throw line this season as they are shooting 86.6% at the stripe. Ndour-Fall is out currently as she is playing for Spain in EuroBasket and likely won’t be back until late June.
New York Liberty Looking to Earn Second Straight Victory
New York had dropped two straight and five of their previous six games but managed to hold off Los Angeles in a defensive struggle Sunday afternoon. The Liberty comes into this contest holding the fourth seed in the WNBA playoff picture, 4.5 games behind the league-leading Storm. New York led by three after the opening quarter and by eight at the half against the Sparks. The Liberty held a 14-point lead with 7:14 to play in the third quarter only to get outscored 19-5 the rest of the stanza to leave the game even after three quarters. New York trailed 67-63 with 6:20 to play and 71-70 with 2:28 to go before scoring the next four points to take the lead for good. The Liberty shot 42.1% from the field, including 10 of 38 from three-point range, and won the rebounding battle 38-27 to help offset turning the ball over a staggering 30 times. Rebecca Allen led New York with 19 points in the victory.
The Liberty comes into this contest 8th in the league in scoring offense with an average of 80.8 points per game. New York is 11th in rebounding (33.6 boards a night) and third with 20.4 assists per contest. The Liberty ranks 10th in the league in scoring defense by allowing 86.3 points per game. Betnijah Laney leads the Liberty with 19.9 points plus 5.3 assists a night this season. Sabrina Ionescu (12.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 6.3 assists) and Michaela Onyenwere (9.6 points) are also capable scoring options. Sami Whitcomb (11 points, 5.5 boards), Natasha Howard (14.5 points), Kylee Shook, Rebecca Allen, Jazmine Jones, Reshanda Gray and DiDi Richards are key contributors for coach Walt Hopkins. New York is 6th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 42.6% from the floor as a team. The Liberty is leading the league in made threes per game (10.9) while ranking second in three-point shooting at 37.6%. New York is 7th in free throw percentage as they cash in 80.4% of their chances at the stripe. Howard is expected to miss four to six weeks with a sprained MCL sustained May 24 against Dallas. Kiah Stokes is out for the time being as she is representing Turkey in EuroBasket.
Pick: Chicago Sky
Chicago comes in with five straight wins as the team has played much better once Parker and Quigley returned to their rotation. We just saw them drop the Sun twice and they also beat the Lynx during this stretch. Meanwhile, New York has dropped five of seven coming in with their two wins in that stretch coming over the shorthanded Sparks and the inconsistent Mercury, who is without Diana Taurasi. They were drubbed three times by the Aces while also falling to the Sun and the Dream. The Liberty is only 3-2 at home on the year and with the Sky firing on all cylinders right now, you have to give them the advantage in this contest.
Total: Over
Chicago’s offense has been firing on all cylinders of late as they have a lot of depth to work with in the scoring department. The Sky is good on the defensive end but their offense has carried them of late. We’ve seen Chicago hit over the mark in all five games in this win streak, which has pushed them to going over the mark in eight of their 14 games on the year. New York is an offensively minded team with major issues defensively as they are 10th in the league in scoring defense. The Liberty has seen the over hit in nine of their 13 games this season. These two teams have seen the over hit in each of their last 10 matchups. With the way Chicago is going offensively and the Liberty’s defensive shortcomings, this one ends up over the mark.
