Chicago City Wire

The Chicago Sky were defeated by the Seattle Storm 57-95 at Wintrust Arena in their first meeting of the season. The Storm established an early lead, beginning the game with a 15–6 run that included three-pointers from Erica Wheeler and Skylar Diggins.

Chicago played without two key players: Ariel Atkins, who missed her fourth straight game due to a lower leg injury, and Angel Reese, sidelined by a back injury. Despite these absences, Kamilla Cardoso and Rachel Banham contributed early points for the Sky in the first quarter.

Seattle's Dominique Malonga made an impact off the bench with six points in her initial six minutes on the court. Cardoso achieved a double-double in the first half with nine points and ten rebounds, but Chicago trailed 26-39 at halftime after committing eleven turnovers.

The second half began poorly for Chicago, as three consecutive turnovers led to six quick transition points for Seattle. Although Banham ended a 13-1 Storm run with a three-pointer, Diggins responded immediately with another three for Seattle.

In the third quarter, Chicago managed to score 17 points but struggled defensively, conceding 31 to Seattle. By the end of the period, four of Seattle’s five starters had scored in double figures and Chicago was behind 43–70.

Marquesha Davis entered play early in the second quarter for Chicago and finished with two points over thirteen minutes. Without Reese and Atkins, Chicago could not find momentum during the game and finished with only fourteen assists compared to Seattle’s twenty-five. Banham and Cardoso led all Sky scorers with thirteen points each.

Skylar Diggins scored twenty-one points on fifty percent shooting while Malonga posted a career-high fourteen points as Seattle secured a decisive win.

Head coach Tyler Marsh said: “It’s not a talent thing right now… we’re looking for a fight, we’re looking for competitors, and we have that in the lock room.”

Guard Rachel Banham added: “At the end of the day, we’ve still got a lot of games left, and we’re not going to give up. We just need to bounce back and keep getting better.”