By Cameron Williams –
The New York Liberty opened up their WNBA season last Saturday with a win over the Aces. They set out to play against the Chicago Sky, led by star Angel Reese Thursday night.
Liberty outscored the Sky in every quarter, they really separated from Angel Reese and the Sky in the second quarter when they outscored them 25-9. Going into halftime, Liberty was up 53 to 32 over the Sky. It was going to be for the Sky to march themselves back into this game.
Natasha Cloud (G) of the NY Liberty was the leading scorer in the game with 18 points and also leading with assists at 8, Kennedy Burke was right there with her with 17 points. Jonquel Jones (C) led the team with seven rebounds.
The Sky will look to hone in on their abilities and roles as the season progresses. They hope that Angel Reese will begin to mold herself into the college player that she was. Last night Reese struggled with scoring, only making one basket. But she held her own in the paint with 12 rebounds leading the team. Rachel Banham was the leading scorer for the Sky with 15 points.
The Liberty handled the Sky with ease and it almost seemed effortless. They were passing the ball around and creating open spaces for easy shots. They struggled slightly in the paint versus Angel Reese but that didn’t hinder their offensive abilities. Theft continued to move the ball around the court and create open lanes for easier shots. The Sky was trying to chase the entirety of the game, and that hindered their ability. Lots of rushed shots that led to breakaways and chewing the clock.
NY Liberty will go on to face the Indiana Fever, headed by arguably the best WNBA player Caitlin Clark tomorrow (May 24, 1:00pm EST). Clark opened up the season with a triple double, she will be very hard to defend but if the Liberty can continue to hammer the offensive side of the ball they should be able to win this game. Applying pressure and creating open lanes will be Liberty’s key to success.
The Chicago Sky will go on to face the Los Angeles Sparks (May 25, 6:00pm EST). The Sparks are 1-2 and have lost some close games. Sky’s keys to success will be hammering the offensive scheme and honing in on their defensive zones. They need to step up and not allow for easy open lanes to the basket. If they clean these up, the Sky should have no problem securing their first win of the season.