Sky snaps 4-game losing streak against Sun
UNCASVILLE, Conn. - The Chicago Sky overcame trouble when Sylvia Fowles went to the bench with foul trouble Tuesday night.
The Sky (5-8) used a 13-4 run in the fourth quarter with leading scorer Fowles with 5 fouls, and the Sky snapped a four-game losing streak with an 86-77 victory over the Connecticut Sun.
Epiphanny Prince scored 19 points for the Sky (5-8). Erin Thorn scored a season-high 18 points, including a pair of 3-pointers during the 13-4 run. Dominique Canty added 14 points.
"I don't want to say this was a must-win, but it kind of was," Sky coach Stephen Key said. "I think we're a better team than our record."
"I just wanted to create for my teammates and myself," Prince said. "Be able to get to the paint and take advantage of the mismatches we had when they were switching the post players onto the guards. Trying to take them off the dribble and trying to find our way for me to score if not then look for the open net.
"We were hitting open shots today."
Fowles, averaging 19.5 points, committed her fifth foul with 7:57 remaining and the Sky trailing 63-62.
"We went to a zone and with all their big players out there, we knew that if we could get some stops, we could create some mismatches," Key said.
Connecticut (8-4) cut an 8-point deficit to 70-67 with 4:20 left, but Thorn made a 3-pointer and Prince made a layup to make it 75-67. Connecticut got no closer than 5 the rest of the way.
It was the Sun's first home loss of the season. The Sun hadn't lost a home game since Aug. 25.
"It's winning on the road where we've had a little losing streak going on," Thorn said.
Fowles scored 12 points and Jia Perkins had 11 for the Sky, who trailed by 8 in the third quarter.
"I think this definitely was a momentum builder," Prince said. "I think this showed we can play with anybody."
"It's huge," Thorn said of the victory. "It's a conference win, so that's a bonus. We've been coming out in the second half and giving up five minutes of the game and then having to fight back.
"So for us it was huge to play an entire 40-minute game, and I think that's the reason we came out on top."
Tina Charles had 14 points and 16 rebounds for the Sun, while Sandrine Gruda and Anete Jekabsone-Zogota had 13 apiece. Renee Montgomery scored 12 points, and Tan White had 11.
"We played bad basketball that I've been worried about for two days," Sun coach Mike Thibault said. "Chicago played a great second half. They defended and we didn't."
The Sun shot 6-for-24 from 3-point range, while the Sky made 6 of 8.