Chicago Sky vs. Los Angeles Sparks Preview, Prediction and Odds - 6/5/21
A pair of teams looking to get things going in a positive direction take the floor in WNBA action in the City of Angels. The Chicago Sky are on the road as they travel to face the Los Angeles Sparks Saturday afternoon. Chicago was edged 77-74 in overtime on the road by the Mercury as they were swept in a home-and-home set Thursday night. Los Angeles cruised to an easy 98-63 home victory over Indiana Thursday night in their most recent game. The Sparks won the first two meetings between the teams this season, taking a 76-61 road victory on May 28 and following up with an 82-79 overtime win on May 30.
Chicago Sky Trying to Snap Slide at Six
Chicago started the season with back-to-back wins but they enter this game losers of six straight as they were upended in overtime on the road against Phoenix. The Sky entered Friday 2-6 on the year and sat 11th in the WNBA playoff picture, one game behind the Wings for the final playoff spot. Chicago jumped to a 6-0 lead out of the gate only to trail by two after the first quarter and by eight at the half. The Sky outscored the Mercury 25-9 in the third quarter to lead by eight and extended to a 13-point edge with 7:42 to play before getting outscored 19-6 the rest of regulation. In overtime, Chicago held a five-point edge with 2:59 to play but they were outscored 10-2 the rest of the way to end up with the loss. The Sky shot 34.6% from the field, including eight of 31 from three-point range, and held a 39-38 edge on the glass. Kahleah Copper led Chicago with 14 points and eight rebounds in the loss.
The Sky is ninth in the league in scoring offense as they muster 77.5 points per contest this season. Chicago is second in rebounding (38 boards a night) and sixth in assists by dishing out 18.9 dimes a game. The Sky is good on defense as they are fourth in the league by allowing an average of 79.4 points a contest. Kahleah Copper is one of six players averaging in double figures for the team with 14.5 points plus 4.5 rebounds a night this season. Candace Parker (16 points, eight boards), Astou Ndour-Fall (10.9 points, 7.6 rebounds) and Ruthy Hebard (10.5 points, 7.4 rebounds) are solid secondary options. The Sky can also look to Diamond DeShields (13.6 points), Courtney Vandersloot (12.3 points, 8.3 assists), Allie Quigley, Stefanie Dolson, Brittany Boyd-Jones, Azura Stevens, Natasha Mack and Stephanie Watts to contribute for coach James Wade. Chicago is 11th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 38.8% as a team. The Sky are near the bottom of the pack in threes per game as they are tied for 9th with 5.8 per contest: they are ninth in three-point shooting at 31.9%. Chicago comes in first at the free throw line this season as they are shooting 88.8% at the stripe. Parker (ankle) is questionable after missing the last seven games.
Los Angeles Sparks Hoping to Maintain Momentum Despite Missing Pieces
Los Angeles won for the third time in four games as they took care of business against lowly Indiana Thursday night at home. The Sparks evened their record at 3-3 on the year and entered Friday holding the seventh seed in the WNBA playoff picture. Against Indiana, Los Angeles trailed by two with six minutes to play in the first quarter before reeling off a 15-0 run to take command. The Sparks led by 11 after one quarter, by 23 at the half and by as many as 38 in the second half en route to the win. Los Angeles shot 56.1% from the field, including 14 of 28 from three-point range, and forced 18 Indiana turnovers. Kristi Toliver led the Sparks with 22 points in the win as one of five players in double figures.
On the season, Los Angeles is 10th in the league in scoring offense as they average 77.5 points per game. The Sparks are last in rebounding (27.8 boards per game) and 12th in assists (15.8) this season. Los Angeles is 3rd in scoring defense as they give up an average of 78.8 points a night. Nneka Ogwumike leads the team with 16.4 points plus seven rebounds a game this season. Chiney Ogwumike (nine points, 5.7 boards) and Kristi Tolliver (10.2 points) are solid secondary scoring options. Derek Fisher hopes to get more from role players like Brittney Sykes, Nia Coffey (10.5 points), Erica Wheeler (9.8 points, 3.2 assists), Te’a Cooper, Amanda Zahui B (10.5 points, five boards), Arella Guirantes and Bria Holmes. Los Angeles is eighth in field goal percentage on the season as they shoot 40.9% from the field as a team on the year. The Lakers are fifth in three-pointers per game (8.8) and 4th in three-point shooting as they convert 37.9% from beyond the arc this season. Los Angeles is 10th in success at the charity stripe as they cash in 77.3% of their attempts on the year. Jasmine Walker was lost for the season with a torn ACL that she suffered against Las Vegas May 21. Chiney Ogwumike missed the last three games with a knee injury and is questionable here. Nneka Ogwumike is expected to miss four to six weeks with a knee sprain sustained against the Wings June 1.
Pick: Chicago Sky +1.5
While the Sparks have won three of their last four coming into this one while the Sky have dropped six straight, injuries are piling up for Los Angeles. Both Ogwumikes are out of the mix for the Sparks, which is going to put a major dent in the rotation for Fisher. While Los Angeles shot the ball extremely well Thursday night without them, it was against an Indiana team that has just one win on the year. Chicago, despite their skid, has hung tough in games: two of their losses in the stretch were in overtime and another was on a half-court three-pointer at the buzzer. The Sky got Quigley and Dolson back this week and that puts them in better health than the Sparks. Give Chicago the edge as they scratch out a win here.
Total: Under 157.5
Both teams have been pretty solid on the defensive end of the floor, making things interesting here. Throw in that both the Ogwumikes are out for the Sparks and one has to wonder where their offensive production will come from in this one. That means Tolliver and Zahui B, among others, are going to have to step up and contribute. Chicago is sound defensively despite their lousy record and they should be able to slow a Sparks team with so many missing pieces. The Sky has seen the under hit in five of their eight games while the Sparks have seen it come in for five of their six contests. This one ends up falling short of the total.
