The Chicago Sky have a chance to move into a tie for second place in the WNBA's Eastern Conference when they entertain the Seattle Storm on Friday night at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill.
Chicago (13-13) is third in the Eastern Conference, a half game behind the second-place Atlanta Dream and 5 1/2 games in back the first-place New York Liberty. Seattle (11-16) is fourth in the Western Conference, two games behind the third-place Phoenix Mercury.
Chicago is coming off a 92-85 victory over the Dallas Wings while the Sky beat Atlanta 90-82 in the first game after the month-long Olympic break. Elena Delle Donne erupted for 34 points in the win over Atlanta after helping the United States win a gold medal at the Summer Games. She had 18 points and nine rebounds in the win over Dallas.
Chicago will play its next two contests at home before going on a road trip that will include games against Washington, Indiana and Connecticut. The Sky will play two of their last three regular-season games at home, but those contests will be against Minnesota and New York, two of the top teams in the league.
Seattle split its first two games following the break. The Storm suffered a 92-80 loss to Minnesota and beat Dallas 78-66. Jewell Lloyd scored 23 points in the win over Dallas. Breanna Stewart had 17 points and 12 rebounds.
With the win, Seattle moved into eighth place in the WNBA playoff standings. The Storm now embarks on a four-game road trip with stops in Chicago, Atlanta, New York and Washington before playing two of their final three regular-season games at home.
Chicago and Seattle have only met once so far this season. The Sky prevailed in a 91-88 thriller after Delle Donne made a 3-pointer with one second remaining July 17 in Seattle. Delle Donne finished with 35 points and 11 rebounds in that game.
Sue Bird scored 24 points and Stewart had 22 points, eight rebounds, six assists and five blocked shots for Seattle.
The Sky and Storm will meet again in the final game of the regular season Sept. 18 in Seattle.
