Sky suffers fourth straight loss

Crystal Kelly scored 13 points and Adrian Williams-Strong 11 to help the host Sacramento Monarchs beat the Chicago Sky 82-70 on Sunday night. Both Ticha Penicheiro and Kara Lawson had 10 points for the Monarchs (6-6). The victory, the 200th win in franchise history, snapped a two-game losing streak.

Jia Perkins scored 12 of her 22 points in the fourth quarter, and Candice Dupree had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Sky (3-8) in their fourth straight loss. Chasity Melvin had 10 points for the Sky, and Armintie Price, who had 22 points in an earlier win against the Monarchs, contributed just 6.

Lawson's 3-pointer gave the Monarchs their biggest advantage of the game, stretching the lead to 65-50 with 6:15 left. The Sky eventually cut it to 71-67 on Perkins' 3-poiner with 1:58 remaining, yet could get no closer.

Led by Kelly, Sacramento's backups outscored the Sky's reserves 36-18 to help avoid a fourth straight loss at home, something that hadn't occurred since mid-July in 1998. That season, its second in the WNBA, Sacramento posted the franchise's only losing record at home. This year the Monarchs are 3-3 at home.

The Sky's lack of success hasn't been helped by the loss of Sylvia Fowles, the second overall pick in the 2008 draft. She has been out the past six games with a sprained left knee. Fowles averaged nearly 11 points and 8 rebounds in the season's first five games prior to the injury.