Quick Three: Sun 82 Sky 80
Chicago loses in heartbreaking fashion despite standout second half and more strong play from Allen and Cardoso.
The Sky were clearly the better team in a second half they won by 8 points tonight, but a disastrous second quarter and more crunch time difficulties kept Teresa Weatherspoon’s team from picking up their 12th win of the season on Friday night at Mohegan Sun Arena. Connecticut, second in the W standings, proved why they once again look set for a deep playoff run with a brilliant defensive showing in the final 5 minutes, and a hefty advantage at the free throw line (+7 makes, +14 attempts). Let’s dive into where it went wrong for the Sky, the positives in their second half fightback and what must change from their putrid first half before Las Vegas visits Wintrust Arena on Sunday.
1. Closing confusion dooms offense.
After scoring just 35 points in the first half, Chicago racked up 41 points in the opening fifteen minutes of the second half—culminating with a Kamilla Cardoso lay-in that gave them a 76-73 lead with 4:55 to go in the fourth. From that point on, things changed drastically as the Sky made just 1 of their final 6 FG. That their defense gave them multiple chances to win the game even while scoring just 4 points in 5 minutes is a huge positive, but it’s hard to look past the fatal offensive struggles. And while this is nothing new for the Sky who are 8-11 in clutch games and shoot just 37.6% in clutch situations, the circumstances tonight felt different. Reason being? The Sky’s best offensive line-up, for once, didn’t include Chennedy Carter. While Carter had moments of brilliance and finished as the team’s leading scorer with 19 points, she was also considerably below her typical efficiency (7/18 FG) and didn’t make a single field goal in the final 16-and-a-half minutes of the game. Instead, a group composed of Lindsay Allen, Rachel Banham, Michaela Onyenwere, Angel Reese and Cardoso had much of the Sky’s success—with four of those five registering a positive plus-minus even in defeat.
But where that alternate line-up hurt the Sky was down the stretch where, traditionally, Carter has been the team’s go-to player. Allen had manipulated the Sun defense with ease throughout the second half, but, instead of continuing on with their veteran point guard running the show, the Sky went back to Carter on the game’s key possessions. Having been in and out of the game and not scoring a single point in the fourth, Carter was clearly out of rhythm—missing all three of her field goals in the final five minutes before committing a key offensive foul with 42 seconds remaining. At that point, the game was tied at 80 and, after a timeout, Chicago decided to switch course and go back to Allen for what could have been the game winning shot. Allen had made 5 of her last 7 shots and was in firm control of the game, but also hadn’t taken a shot for nearly 3 minutes as Carter took on her usual closing role.
And in total, I don’t think the Sky did anything wrong in handling tonight’s end game sequence. More often than not, you should go back to your regular closer with the game on the line. The Sky’s NBA neighbors provided a perfect example on several occasions last season where, despite a brilliant game from Coby White, DeMar DeRozan was leaned on (and performed) in the clutch. Carter, similarly, has been exceptional in big moments this season. And when it was clear Carter didn’t have it, the Sky wisely went back to the player who was in rhythm. Perhaps, Weatherspoon and her staff will want to think about how they’d approach a situation like tonight differently in the future (rolling with the five that was working and leaving Carter behind, perhaps, could’ve been one solution), but I’m not sure they’d settle on doing a whole lot differently. The Sky have cost themselves many times in the clutch this season, but tonight was much more an example of unfortunate luck than poor decision-making.
2. Halftime changes correct horrid opening half.
Though the first quarter was tight and the Sky built a solid lead before Marina Mabrey’s shooting spree, the first half as a whole was a disaster for Chicago. They committed 12 turnovers (just 0.5 fewer than their season average per game), allowed 17 points off of those turnovers (2 points more than their season average per game) and conceded 28 (!!) second quarter points. In total, the Sun managed 45 points in the opening twenty minutes—keeping opponents’ first-half scoring average at an absurd 48.3 PPG since the Olympic break. Given the Sky average just 78.8 PPG this season, giving up over 60% of that scoring to the other team in the first half of the game puts the Sky behind the eight ball time and time again. And tonight was really no different. The Sky scored 29 points in the third quarter, no doubt one of their finest offensive quarters of the season so far, but they went to the fourth ahead by just a single point. If they’re not down 10 at half, that third quarter effort feels even more impactful and, perhaps, they’re able to survive their late game struggles.
In any case, it’s important to recognize the changes which prompted the Sky’s much improved second half. First and foremost, their defensive intensity changed drastically after the break. Because while the Sun shot 35% in the first half, that was much more down to their misses than the Sky’s defensive energy. The Sun produced a number of open looks as a result of a lack of defensive organization and miscommunications between Sky players. In the second half, the Sky, to a player, picked up the Sun with a lot more intensity and forced them to make more quick decisions—resulting in a continued struggle to score with efficiency (the Sun shot 39% after HT) even as some of Connecticut’s key players started to find their touch. On offense, the Sky were also more protective of the ball and committed fewer careless turnovers—though 7 giveaways and 10 points allowed off of those in a half is still too much for any head coach’s liking.
Lastly, Weatherspoon and the Sky’s veterans kept Reese’s head in the game after a scoreless first half. As Chicago looks ahead to its final 12 games of the 2024 season, it’s critical that Reese continues to attack even when she’s not scoring. She may not be efficient (3/12 FG tonight, 19/55 in August), but her offensive impact is still needed. In the first half, she was far too passive and often lingered around the 3-point line. While that can help to space the floor for Cardoso (who was brilliant offensively once again) at times, Reese being aggressive creates chances for her to get on the offensive glass (which usually leads to a higher quality look afterwards) and to get to the line (where she was 7/8 tonight). Both are sources of offense that this Sky team simply cannot live without.
3. Weatherspoon learns valuable rotational lessons.
Besides learning that the Allen-Banham-Onyenwere-Reese-Cardoso line-up is, perhaps, her most dynamic group thanks to its unique blend of defensive size, shooting, playmaking and rebounding, I think Weatherspoon may have started to get a hold of how best to manage her rotation over the final 12 games in the second half tonight. Namely, after three up-and-down games last week and a challenging first half tonight, Weatherspoon seemed to figure out that trying to play all of her guards (no matter how talented) simply doesn’t help the team to be successful. Dana Evans (6:11), Diamond DeShields (6:01) and Moriah Jefferson (3:27) all saw time in the first half, but none of the three was super effective in the slim playing time they did see. At present, none has made any semblance of a lasting impression over the last 4 games. Thus, the conundrum is to continue with one as the team’s fourth guard (after Allen, Carter and Banham) despite a lack of production or to play all three in a bit part role—with a hope that at least one catches fire each night and plays their way into a bigger role. In the second half, Weatherspoon decided to do neither—leaving all three players on the bench throughout the second half. The offense was more effective, Banham provided efficiency (3/5 3PT) that the others can’t match, and there was no one left trying to make an impression in 2-3 minutes and inadvertently compromising the rest of the team in the process.
Of course, the Sky may not be able to survive the final twelve games of the season with just three guards (and 6 rotational players in total as even Isabelle Harrison didn’t appear in the second half) playing all of the minutes, but the lesson should be clear regardless: the rotation needs to be shortened to produce more effective play. Whether it’s a seven player rotation (with Harrison likely to spell Cardoso and Reese at some points) or an eight player group with one of the guards (I wouldn’t envy Weatherspoon trying to figure out which of Jefferson, Evans or DeShields is the fourth guard) added into the mix, the Sky need to jump into playoff mode now—with every game now season-defining as Atlanta sits just one game behind 8th. Sunday’s game against Vegas will provide another chance to tinker and Weatherspoon may return to playing as many as 10 or 11, but I think the rookie coach deserves a load of plaudits for her brave decision to cut out the players who, for one reason or another, weren’t helping the team win.