Quigley leads team effort as Chicago Sky down Liberty

A defining moment in Sunday's Sky home opener most likely went unheard and unseen by most.

But Sky point guard Jamierra Faulkner heard what New York center Tina Charles had to say, and she knew it meant trouble for the Liberty.

The Sky, using a deep rotation of 10 players, and sometimes, employing wholesale substitutions, wore down New York in an 80-76 victory in its 2018 home opener and its first game on its new homecourt, Wintrust Arena.

The Sky, which got points from all 10 players who entered the game and between 13 and 26 minutes from each one of them, is now 2-0 on the season after its win on the road in the season opener Saturday against the Indiana Fever.

"Tina was like, 'you've got a whole new five (coming in)?'" said Faulkner, relaying Charles' reaction when the Sky again subbed in a fresh five players. "We have fresh legs. (The other teams are worn out sometimes)."

Faulkner, who is back in the fold after missing all of last season with a knee injury, is loving the Sky's new look. She finished with 14 points off the bench, although she could just as easily find herself in a starting role, depending on the situation or the opponent.

"I bought into the system. At first ... it's different. It's something I wasn't used to. But to see it take place in a game ... it's actually working for us."

The Sky also got a game-high 22 points from former DePaul star Allie Quigley and 12 points from Gabby Williams, a rookie out of Connecticut.

Speaking of newbies, the Sky is young with four rookies on the roster, and only four players with four or more years of experience.

And yet, head coach Amber Stocks believes depth with be her team's greatest advantage this season.

"Depth and togetherness," Stocks said, noting the common denominator in both the Indiana and New York win. "The chemistry, the depth, everybody working together, playing together, these guys are doing a great job of staying together and using our depth to our advantage."

The Sky out-rebounded New York 43-30 and outshot New York 48 percent to 36 percent, which helped to offset a 15-turnover effort by the Sky.

The Liberty was paced by Charles, who finished with 19 points. Kia Nurse, another rookie out of Connecticut, added 17 points and Amanda Zahui B had 15 points for New York.