Cambage may miss Wings' meeting with Sky (Jul 02, 2018)
The Dallas Wings host the Chicago Sky on Tuesday with the uncertainty of the playing status of star center Liz Cambage.
Cambage twice exited Sunday's 76-72 loss at home to the Minnesota Lynx.
She first left the game in the first quarter when Sylvia Fowles' hand accidentally struck her on the face. She later returned in the quarter to reach the 1,000-point mark in her career.
She took another hit late in the second quarter and suffered concussion-like symptoms. She did not return in the second half and is questionable to play against the Sky (6-10).
The Wings (7-8) still managed to rally from a 15-point deficit in the second half without Cambage. They took a 72-70 lead with 2:12 left on an Allisha Gray layup before Maya Moore scored the last six points for Minnesota.
They fell into the 15-point hole in the third quarter looking listless after halftime without Cambage. That's when Dallas coach Fred Williams called timeout and "let them have it," he said.
"Getting that energy, sometimes you have to snap that out of them, say a few words that you can't repeat publicly. It helps to wake people up," Williams said.
Dallas improved its defensive intensity while guard Skylar Diggins-Smith engineered the offensive execution with 16 points and seven assists.
Glory Johnson, who replaced Cambage in the second half, played respectably on defense and on the boards against Fowles, finishing with eight rebounds and three blocked shots.
"Glo definitely was a spark with Liz going down," Gray said. "Glo just came in and does what she does and was a big boost for us off the bench."
Chicago had its three-game winning streak snapped with a 97-94 overtime loss at home against the New York Liberty on Sunday.
The Sky have scored 90 points in four consecutive games. They had significant individual performances by Courtney Vandersloot (20 points, six rebounds and five assists), Allie Quigley (28 points including 5-of-10 shooting from 3-point range) and Stefanie Dolson (first double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds).
Chicago had lost nine out of 10 games before winning three straight games.
"It's difficult," Sky coach Amber Stocks said after the loss to the Liberty. "We're all competitive, we're all here and focused on one thing, and that's winning games.
"It's difficult emotionally, these guys are out here busting it, laying it all out on the line -- emotionally, physically, and mentally."
