Connecticut Sun vs. Chicago Sky Prediction and Odds - 6/19/21
A pair of Eastern Conference teams take the floor in WNBA action in the Windy City. The Connecticut Sun are on the road as they travel to face the Chicago Sky Saturday afternoon in the second game of a two-game series. In the opening game of the series Thursday night, it was the Sky rallying for an 81-75 victory at home to ensure no worse than a split in this set. Coming into this one, the teams have split the last 10 meetings dating back to 2018. Will the Sun find a way to get back in the win column and split the two-game series or will the Sky maintain their recent momentum and earn another victory?
Connecticut Sun Hoping to Bounce Back
Connecticut suffered their second straight game as they were knocked off on the road in the opening game of this two-game set Thursday night. The Sun entered Friday 8-4 on the year and held the third seed in the WNBA playoff picture, three games behind the league-leading Storm. Against Chicago, Connecticut led by three after the first quarter, by five at the half and by nine early in the third quarter only to see the Sky rally. The Sun found themselves outscored 28-19 in the third quarter to trail by four after three quarters and never got back to even again. Connecticut shot 40.3% from the field, including four of 13 from three-point range, and lost the rebounding battle 38-34. Jasmine Thomas led the Sun with 20 points in the loss.
The Sun is ninth in the league in scoring offense as they put up an average of 79.6 points per game so far this season. Connecticut is third in the league in rebounding (36.7 boards a night) while they stand 10th by dishing out 17.8 assists a game on the year. The Sun have been good defensively as they are first in scoring defense by allowing an average of 74.6 points per game. DeWanna Bonner is second on the Sun with 15.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists a game. Jonquel Jones (team-high 21.6 points, 10.4 rebounds), Natisha Hiedeman (9.4 points) and Brionna Jones (12.3 points, 6.3 rebounds) each are valuable contributors. Jasmine Thomas (11.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.7 assists), Briann January, Beatrice Mompreier, Stephanie Jones, DiJonai Carrington and Kaila Charles are important pieces for coach Curt Miller. Connecticut is fourth in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 43.5% as a team. The Sun are sixth in three-pointers per game (7.7) and third in three-point percentage (37.2%) on the year. Connecticut has sputtered at the charity stripe as they convert on 78.2% of their attempts, which is 8th in the league. Alyssa Thomas is questionable as she recovers from offseason surgery for a torn Achilles. Jones is out for most of June as she is representing Bosnia and Herzegovina in EuroBasket. Coach Curt Miller left the team Tuesday to deal with a family medical emergency: Brandi Poole was named acting head coach in his absence.
Chicago Sky Looking to Maintain Momentum
Chicago won their fourth straight game after a seven-game slide and look to get back to the .500 mark with a win here. The Sky improved to 6-7 on the season and left them sixth in the WNBA playoff picture, 5.5 games behind the league-leading Storm. Against Connecticut, Chicago trailed by three after the opening quarter, by five at the half and by nine after three quarters before rallying. The Sky held a two-point lead in the final minute of the third quarter before going on an 8-0 run spanning the third and fourth quarters to take a 65-55 edge with 7:57 to play in the game. Chicago didn’t let Connecticut closer than six after that as they weren’t seriously challenged. The Sky shot 41.2% from the field, including five of 23 from three-point range, and drained 20 of 24 free throws in the game. Kahleah Copper led Chicago with 18 points and eight rebounds in the win.
The Sky is 8th in the league in scoring offense as they muster 80.3 points per contest this season. Chicago is third in rebounding (37.2 boards a night) and fifth in assists by dishing out 19.6 dimes a game. The Sky is good on defense as they are third in the league by allowing an average of 78.6 points a contest. Kahleah Copper is one of six players averaging in double figures for the team with 14.6 points plus 4.5 rebounds a night this season. Candace Parker (13.2 points, 8.4 boards), Astou Ndour-Fall (10.1 points, 7.6 rebounds) and Ruthy Hebard (8.8 points, 6.5 rebounds) are solid secondary options. The Sky can also look to Diamond DeShields (12.5 points), Courtney Vandersloot (11.6 points, 8.3 assists), Allie Quigley (11.9 points), Stefanie Dolson, Brittany Boyd-Jones, Azura Stevens, Natasha Mack and Stephanie Watts to contribute for coach James Wade. Chicago is 10th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 40.9% as a team. The Sky are near the bottom of the pack in threes per game as they are 9th with 6.5 per contest: they are 9th in three-point shooting at 33.4%. Chicago comes in first at the free throw line this season as they are shooting 85.9% 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.
Pick: Chicago Sky
Connecticut is 0-2 with Jonquel Jones and her absence has been felt in both contests. The Sun was blitzed by Seattle in the first loss while they were unable to maintain their advantage in the second half against the Sky as they simply wore down under Chicago’s attack. When you lose any quality starter, it’s a blow but Jones was a frontrunner for MVP in the first month of the season before leaving for EuroBasket. Chicago is healthy and has a variety of scoring options that can step up on any given night to hurt an opposing team. Having Quigley and Parker back in the mix has done wonders for the Sky. Chicago is rolling right now and they make it five straight victories by prevailing here.
Total: Under
While six of the last seven meetings have gone over the total, including Thursday’s game that edged over by half a point, one can’t expect an offensive bonanza from these teams. Both teams are below average on the offensive end of the floor and they are two of the top three defensive teams in the league this season. That narrow hit on the over marked just the fourth time in 12 games that the Sun has gone over the mark this season. Chicago has seen the over hit in seven of their 13 games this season after the contest Thursday night. Going over by a half-point doesn’t inspire a ton of confidence. Look for the defenses to carry the way here and keep this one under the total.
