What happens now? Observations from the Chicago Sky falling flat vs. Fever at the United Center
FOX 32's Tina Nguyen goes 1-on-1 with Sky's Ariel Atkins
Fresh off her season-high 26 PTS vs Dallas Wings, Chicago Sky's Ariel Atkins catches up with FOX 32's Tina Nguyen.
The Chicago Sky firmly took over the Madhouse on Madison.
However, the Sky struggled to translate that to the basketball court against a high-octane Indiana Fever offense coupled with a devastating injury to a franchise icon.
The Fever handily dispatched the Sky 79-52 in a game that was well in hand by the end of the third quarter for Indiana.
Here are our observations from Saturday’s game at the United Center.
Vandersloot’s absence loomed the largest
Saturday’s game was a historic night for Chicago and the WNBA.
For the first time, there was a WNBA game playing in the United Center. The crowd reflected the moment, too.
Much was made about Clark’s absence from Saturday’s game, but there was still a massive crowd that showed out to see the two teams in action. The excitement was palpable.
Then, Courtney Vandersloot went down with an apparent knee injury.
The beloved franchise point guard’s injury sucked the air out of the UC. The immediate concern grew for the guard who came back to Chicago after winning a title with New York.
The team reflected the absence, too. The Sky’s offense struggled with direction. They settled for too many shots and struggled to space with any effectiveness.
The attention will soon turn to Vandersloot’s status. If she’s out for an extended period, maybe the rest of the season, then the Sky need to figure out who will man the point. The team needs to see if it can trust rookie Hailey Van Lith with the full-time point guard responsibilities.
Everyone in Chicago, and WNBA fans everywhere, just hope the scene of Vandersloot being helped off the court isn’t one of the final images of what’s been a historic career in the league.
Sky offense just can’t keep up with Fever
Without Vandersloot, keeping the Sky at the No. 1-rated offensive pace in the WNBA was going to be a struggle. Keeping up with the Fever was a different story altogether.
The Fever moved the ball and passed the ball with intention. Indiana is very good at moving the ball into mismatches for its offense. This was the opposite of how the Sky’s offense ran for most of the game.
They were able to get the Sky to switch a guard onto Natasha Howard and Aliyah Boston. By the time anyone realized, the ball was already in the post. That forced overcorrections from the Sky defense, which meant the Fever had open shooters to kick out to.
Kelsey Mitchell continues to be an underrated part of the Fever’s operation. She was in double figures and led the charge, literally. She was an offensive catalyst, as was reserve guard Aari McDonald who hit multiple 3-pointers off the bench for Indiana.
The Fever kept the pace. By the end of the third quarter, the game was firmly in hand with a 26-point lead. Without Vandersloot, there was no chance of keeping up.
Sky eyes turn to what’s next
After two straight wins, the Sky fall flat after almost a week off. They could use another week to figure out what’s next for the team.
If Vandersloot misses the rest of the season, then the team needs to figure out who runs the point.
Vandersloot was the player getting most of the Sky’s offensive weapons into place. Without her direction, the offense could go by the wayside quickly.
This is where head coach Tyler Marsh needs to get creative in his thinking.
It might be time to shift the lineup to better suit the team. Rebecca Allen has been a revelation off the bench, oftentimes acting as a second-line catalyst who picked up the offense. That might mean shifting Ariel Atkins into Allen’s role, which would give her time to look at opposing defenses and find a spot to attack right away as opposed to trying to find it at the start of the game.
The team doesn’t have that much time. They travel to New York to take on the imposing Liberty on Tuesday.