Sky could be without Parker against Dream (Aug 4, 2017)
The injury-plagued Chicago Sky lost another player on Friday -- at least temporarily.
Forward Cheyenne Parker suffered a right ankle sprain this week and did not make the trip to Indiana on Friday. Whether she's available for Saturday's home game against the Atlanta Dream at Allstate Arena has not been determined.
But Parker's presence wasn't needed on Friday night as the Sky beat Indiana 81-70 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse behind 18 points from Courtney Vandersloot and 15 from Allie Quigley. Candace Dupree led a balanced Fever attack with 18 points.
Chicago used a 14-0 run in the fourth quarter to open a 72-58 lead with 5:46 left in regulation. Indiana got no closer than six points the rest of the way.
Fever coach Pokey Chatman, whose team dropped to 8-17, said defensive lapses made the difference.
"We talked a lot about sustaining our defense, sustaining our intensity and ball pressure and not letting ourselves get affected by tough shots that go in or spurts of momentum," Chatman said. "During the second and fourth quarters, we obviously didn't do a very good job of that."
The loss was the fifth straight for Indiana and 10th in 11 games.
Chicago (9-16) made a flurry of transactions in recent days as they seek to climb into playoff contention down the stretch.
On Friday, they announced the signing of Bashaara Graves to a seven-day contract. Graves, a 6-foot-2 forward from Tennessee, was a 2016 second-round draft pick by the Minnesota Lynx. She averaged 3.4 points during 12 games with the Lynx.
On Monday, Chicago bid farewell to Tamera Young, Imani Boyette and a second-round draft pick in exchange for Atlanta Dream forward Jordan Hooper, a 6-2 forward from Nebraska.
"Hooper is a versatile shooter who is skilled at both forward positions," Fire general manager and coach Amber Stocks said. "Gaining an additional first-round pick to our already talent-rich 2018 roster further strengthens our impact."
A nine-year veteran with the Sky, Young was the longest tenured Sky player. He appeared in 250 games with 153 starts and averaged 29 minutes and 10.2 points per game.
Boyette, in her second year with the Sky, was selected with the 10th overall pick in the first-round of the 2016 WNBA Draft and is averaging 15.5 minutes and 4.6 points in 53 games.
Chicago was also without Keisha Hampton, who experienced left knee soreness earlier this week and did not play Friday.
