Dallas Wings vs. Chicago Sky Prediction and Odds - 8/17/21
It’s an interconference clash on the parquet floor in WNBA action from the Windy City. The Dallas Wings are on the road as they make the trip to face the Chicago Sky Tuesday night. Dallas was clobbered 80-59 at home by Connecticut in their first game out of the Olympic break Sunday afternoon. Chicago earned an 87-85 overtime win at home over Seattle in their most recent game Sunday afternoon. The Sky have taken seven of the last 10 meetings between the teams though they’ve split a pair of matchups this season. It was Chicago earning a 91-81 road win on June 30 before Dallas claimed the most recent meeting 100-91 at home on July 2.
Dallas Wings Hoping to Regroup After Beating
Dallas was flattened by Connecticut in their first game coming out of the Olympic break as they were handled with relative ease. The Wings enter this game 9-13 on the year and stand ninth in the league standings, half a game behind the Mystics for the final playoff spot in the WNBA. Dallas gave up a 7-0 run in the opening quarter to trail by nine and never made a serious run after that. The Wings trailed by 10 after the first quarter and couldn’t get closer than that the rest of the way as they took the loss. Dallas shot 46.2% from the floor, including seven of 16 from three-point range, though they lost the rebounding battle 34-22 and turned the ball over 19 times. Arike Ogunbowale led the Wings with 20 points and five assists in the loss.
The Wings come into this one third in the league in scoring with 84 points per game this season. Dallas is sixth in rebounding (36.2 boards per contest) but rank 10th in the league in assists with 17.9 per game. The Wings are struggling defensively, ranking 8th by allowing 83.5 points per contest. Arike Ogunbowale (19 points, 3.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists) is one of four players scoring in double figures for the Wings this season. Allisha Gray (11.5 points), Marina Mabrey (13.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists), Isabelle Harrison (9.3 points, 5.4 rebounds) and Kayla Thornton (8.4 points, 5.5 rebounds) are all capable scoring options as well. Charli Collier, Tyasha Harris, Chelsea Dungee, Awak Kuier, Moriah Jefferson, Satou Sabally (12.4 points, 6.3 boards), Dana Evans and Bella Alarie all can be looked to for minutes for coach Vickie Johnson. The Wings are eighth in the league in field goal percentage as they hit 42.6% as a team. Dallas is fourth in three-pointers per game (8.5) and stand second in the league in three-point shooting as they hit 36.3% from long range. The Wings are second in free throw shooting as they convert 84% of their chances at the stripe.
Chicago Sky Seeking to Build Off OT Win
Chicago had dropped three of their previous four heading into the Olympic break but came up with a win over Seattle in their first game back. The Sky improved to 11-10 on the season and hold the fifth seed in the WNBA playoff picture, 4.5 games behind the Aces and Storm for the top seed. On Sunday, Chicago trailed by as many as 11 midway through the first quarter only to lead by three at the half. The Sky trailed by two after three quarters, forced overtime and hung on for the win despite going scoreless for the final 1:06 of the contest. Chicago shot 42.9% from the floor, including nine of 24 from three-point range, and held Seattle to 34.5% shooting in the game. Kahleah Copper led the Sky with 19 points in the win.
The Sky is 6th in the league in scoring offense as they muster 82.4 points per contest this season. Chicago is fourth in rebounding (36.5 boards a night) and second in assists by dishing out 21.5 dimes a game. The Sky is good on defense as they are third in the league by allowing an average of 79.6 points a contest. Kahleah Copper is one of five players averaging in double figures for the team with 14 points plus 4.8 rebounds a night this season. Candace Parker (13.2 points, 8.8 boards), Astou Ndour-Fall (8.3 points, 5.6 rebounds) and Ruthy Hebard (eight points, 5.7 rebounds) are solid secondary options. The Sky can also look to Diamond DeShields (12 points), Courtney Vandersloot (11 points, 9.1 assists), Allie Quigley (12.5 points), Stefanie Dolson, Brittany Boyd-Jones, Azura Stevens, Natasha Mack and Stephanie Watts to contribute for coach James Wade. Chicago is 7th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 42.9% as a team. The Sky are near the bottom of the pack in threes per game as they are tied for 8th with 6.9 per contest: they are 7th in three-point shooting at 33.6%. Chicago comes in first at the free throw line this season as they are shooting 85.8% at the stripe.
Pick: Chicago Sky
Chicago struggled heading into the Olympic break but they came up with the win in their first game back by downing the Storm. Sure, Seattle rested Breanna Stewart and Sue Bird for the contest but the fact remains that the Sky made the plays down the stretch that they needed to get the victory. Dallas was clobbered by Connecticut as they were held to a season-low in points. Now they have to contend with a Chicago team that is near the top of the rankings when it comes to playing on the defensive end of the floor. The Sky is at home here and that works in their favor as Chicago comes up with the victory to take the edge in the season series.
Total: Over
We know that both teams can put up big point totals when given half a chance. One needs to look no further than the first two meetings this season where the teams combined for 172 and 191 points, respectively. That’s part of an ongoing trend when these two teams take the floor against one another. The over has hit in each of the last three meetings. In addition, five of the previous six and seven of the last 10 matchups between these teams have wound up over the total. Dallas is going to be better offensively here than they were against Connecticut and Chicago takes advantage of Dallas’ defensive issues. That combines to push this one over the mark.
