Two teams with postseason aspirations will resume their quests to reach the postseason when the Atlanta Dream visit the Chicago Sky on Friday at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill.
Atlanta (13-12) is second in the WNBA's Eastern Conference, 4 1/2 games behind the first-place New York Liberty. The Dream won two of their past three and posted a 93-88 victory over the Dallas Wings on July 22 in their last game before the month-long Olympic break.
Chicago (11-13) is fourth in the Eastern Conference, 1 1/2 games behind Atlanta and six games behind New York. The Sky had won three in a row and four of five before losing 94-89 to the Connecticut Sun in the last game before the break.
Atlanta and Chicago have already met twice this season. The Dream prevailed in close contests each time.
Angel McCoughtry scored 21 points while Layshia Clarendon added 15 points and eight rebounds in an 87-81 victory over the Sky on May 22 at Phillips Arena in Atlanta. Cappie Pondexter led Chicago with 17 points. Sky star Elena Delle Donne had 16 points and seven rebounds.
McCoughtry scored 22 points, Elizabeth Williams had 20 points and nine rebounds, and Clarendon added 19 points in a 101-97 overtime victory over the Sky on June 17 in Atlanta. Delle Donne had 26 points for Chicago. The Sky led 95-91 in overtime, but the Dream mounted an 8-0 run over the final three minutes.
McCoughtry is seventh in the WNBA in scoring and 17th in rebounding, averaging 18.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Williams averages 11.6 points and ranks eighth in the WNBA with 7.6 rebounds per contest.
Delle Donne is second in the league in scoring and ninth in rebounding, averaging 21.1 points and 7.2 boards. Chicago is one of the top shooting teams in the WNBA, ranking second in 3-point percentage (.387), third in field-goal percentage (.461) and third in free-throw percentage (.828).
