Desperate for a win, Sky prevail over Wings

Arlington, TX -- The Dallas Wings welcomed reigning MVP Elena Delle Donne and the Chicago Sky to Arlington on Sunday for a Memorial Day weekend matinee to wrap up their three-game home stand. Both teams looked to get back in the win column after the Wings fell to the Atlanta Dream and the Sky came up one point short against the San Antonio Stars both on Friday.

Jamierra Faulkner got Chicago on the board first with a layup after the Sky blocked Dallas‘ first shot of the game. Both teams were back and forth throughout the majority of the first quarter. The Wings knocked down early threes from Odyssey Sims, Erin Phillips, and Karima Christmas while Della Donne also charted one for the Sky.

Passing was a prevalent theme for both teams throughout the first quarter, however, points in the paint proved to be a difference maker for Chicago outscoring Dallas 12-2. Cappie Pondexter led the Sky with eight points, and four turnovers by the Wings helped contribute to a 28-20 Chicago lead at the end of the quarter.

The Sky went on a 9-0 run to open the second quarter, forcing Dallas to take an early timeout. They continued to widen their lead at the beginning of the quarter as the Wings were struggling to get anything to fall. Chicago led by as many as 18 in the quarter, but Sims would help Dallas narrow their deficit.

After going 2-13 from the field against the Dream on Friday, Sims came alive and picked up 14 points in the second quarter. Courtney Paris also came up with two rebounds before heading to the bench with two fouls. The Sky continued to lead the Wings 56-47 at the half, but Dallas picked up momentum heading into halftime.

Sims brought the energy from her hot second quarter with her into the second half starting the scoring off for Dallas. She scored four quick points cutting the Chicago's lead to five, which brought the crowd to their feet and forced the Sky to call and early timeout.

Pondexter and Ali Quigley picked up a few points to help extend Chicago's lead. Della Donne went scoreless in the third, but grabbed three rebounds for the Sky. Late points by Christmas kept the Wings close, but Chicago still entered the final quarter with a 69-63 lead.

With the crowd into the game, Chicago looked for a way to quiet them early, and they did so by scoring the first six points of the final quarter. Dallas kept it close, but Chicago always had an answer. The Sky stretched their lead to 86-71 with over 3:00 minutes to go, and they wouldn't let go of it.

Jordan Hooper added to the Wings score by draining two threes in the quarter, and Dallas came within five but ran out of time. Wings Head Coach Fred Williams said, "We had opportunities to make shots and pull into the game, and we just didn't get the shots down."

Dallas couldn't dig themselves out of an early hole, and the dominant defense game the Sky displayed was too much for Dallas to overcome. The Sky beat the Wings with a final score of 92-87.

Delle Donne on Chicago's defensive effort: "It's been our focus all season long, and when it's clicking it makes everything else flow really well, so it was great to see that and see how effective it is when we're all locked in doing it."

The Wings look to bounce back after dropping the final two games of their homestand on Saturday against the Minnesota Lynx on the road, while the Sky look to add onto their win today against the Washington Mystics in Washington on Wednesday.