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The Chicago Sky season took another twist Friday. Courtney Vandersloot’s right ankle to be precise. She twisted it in pregame warmups and subsequently missed the first game in her WNBA career. More painful than the ankle for Vandersloot was watching an 82-77 loss to the Indiana Fever at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill.
Indiana Fever guard Briann January had a career-high 23 points Friday against the Chicago Sky.
Not that having Vandersloot necessarily would have extended the Sky’s six-game winning streak. The Sky (21-9) has lost three of four games with the Fever (14-16) this season. And the only Sky victory against the Fever this season came with all-star out with an injury., forward Karima Chrismas 11.
Catchings had a subpar night shooting (1-for-13 from the field but had 10 points as all five Fever starters scored in double figures. Guard Briann January had a career-high 23 points on 8-of-16 shooting — 5-of-7 from three-point range. Guard Shavonte Zelous added 14 points, center Eriana Larkins 13 and guard Karima Christmas 11.
Center Sylvia Fowles led the Sky with 23 points, guard Epiphanny Prince 19, rookie forward Elena Delle Donne 14 and forward Swin Cash 13. If there was any consolation in the Sky’s performance, it was Prince’s offensive output (14 of her points came in the fourth quarter on 6-of-8 shooting, including 2-of-2 three-pointers).
Cash reached 1,000 career assists becoming the 17th WNBA player to reach that total. She is the second player to reach 4,500 points, 2,000 rebounds & 1,000 assists. Catchings was the first.
With the defending champion Fever looming as a possible first-round playoff matchup, the Sky could be in for an early postseason exit. Not that the players or coach Pokey Chatman are thinking that far down the road. Among other things, there is a game Sunday on the road against the Washington Mystics.
“I like the fight thawe showed at the end of this game, and that’s something we’re going to have to show for 40 minutes playing against a team like this,” said Delle Donne, who set a team rookie record 471. The previous record was 468 by Candice Dupree in 2006. “You can’t get down against them as much as we did because they’re too good to come back on so basically 40 minutes and throw the first punch.”
“We definitely have a chance to see them in the playoffs,” said Fowles, who recorded her 1,000th career field goal. “It’s going to take some serious film, looking as a team and as an individual and what you can bring to the table and correct that.”
Some postgame video (because of circumstances beyond out control — meaning a really slow internet connection), more video will be posted later Saturday because it is approaching 6 a.m. in Chicago and sleep beckons). OK, after a reasonably decent night’s (more like morning and early afternoon) rest, we have updated with more video:
Here is where to go for a daily dose of non-gratuitous video (thanks to the tireless efforts of the editorial and video departments at elliottharris.com and their broad definition of “gratuitous”):
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