Kahleah Copper had 19 points, Candace Parker added 14 with 10 rebounds and Julie Allemand recorded 11 of her 13 points in the fourth quarter as the Chicago Sky won their season-high sixth straight, 89-83 over the visiting Dallas Wings on Friday night.
Playing a third consecutive game without All-Star point guard Courtney Vandersloot (concussion), Chicago (21-6) also got 13 points from Emma Meesseman and 10 from Allie Quigley. The Sky shot 50.7 percent to win for the 11th time in 12 games.
Meanwhile Arike Ogunbowale scored 28 points, Isabelle Harrison had 18 points off the bench and Teaira McCowan added 15 for Dallas (11-15), which shot 51.5 percent overall but 26.7 percent from 3-point range while losing for the sixth time in eight games.
Down by as many as 14 in the first half and 72-65 after three quarters, Dallas scored 10 of the first 12 points in the fourth to take its first lead of the game, 75-74, on Tyasha Harris’ basket with 6:57 remaining.
An Ogunbowale 3 gave Dallas an 80-79 lead with 4:10 to go, but Allemand followed with a 3 and layup. Another Ogunbowale 3 got the Wings within 84-83, but Parker’s layup and three Allemand free throws sent the Sky to a ninth straight home win.
Dallas trailed 50-39 at halftime and by 12 early in the third after a Copper 3. However, Ogunbowale’s personal 7-0 run got the Wings back into the game. Dallas, which scored 26 points in the third, eventually got within 62-60 on Harrison’s bucket with 3:13 left, but a deep 3 from Dana Evans and Copper’s five points down the stretch left Chicago up seven after the third.
Meesseman had eight points, four rebounds and three assists during the first quarter. Parker, meanwhile, scored seven in the period for the Sky, who shot 11-of-19 in the first.
An Ogunbowale basket got the Wings within 37-32 late in the first half. However, Chicago scored the next six points as part of a 13-4 surge, pushing its edge to 50-36 before taking an 11-point lead into the break.
Second-year Dallas forward Awak Kuier was helped off the floor during the second quarter with an apparent leg injury.
–Field Level Media