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The No. 3 Connecticut Sun will face the No. 2 Chicago Sky at Wintrust Arena today at 8:00 p.m. ET in Game 1 of the WNBA semifinals. ESPN2 will broadcast the Sunday night matchup.
The Sun beat the Dallas Wings in Game 3 to close out the first round of the playoffs on Wednesday, and will now travel to Chicago to face the reigning WNBA champions in a best-of-5 series.
The Sun (25-11) and the Sky (26-10) faced off in the semifinals last year, when Chicago was the underdog and Connecticut held the league’s best record. It’s reversed this year, with the Sky getting home court advantage in Game 1.
Connecticut has tallied up 33 playoff wins in franchise history but has never won a championship. This year’s tough defense could make that difference. While Chicago swept the Sun in regular season games, 4-0, three of the four games were decided by four points or less, which tells us we can expect an evenly-matched series this week.
Chicago, who defeated the New York Liberty in three to reach the semifinals, is led by Courtney Vandersloot and Candace Parker. The 2022 Sky have the most assists per game in league history (24.3) as well as the most points in the paint per game of any team (42.2) in WNBA history except for the 2020 Aces. Connecticut will need to tap into their defensive strength to have a shot in this series, as the Sky are four-point favorites heading into tonight per DraftKings Sportsbook odds.
Sun vs. Sky
Date: August 28, 2022
Tip time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Channel: ESPN2
Live stream: WatchESPN,
Odds, picks & predictions
Point spread: Chicago Sky -4
Total: Over/under 165.5
Moneyline odds: Connecticut Sun +155, Chicago Sky -180
Best bet: Chicago Sky to cover (-110)
Connecticut struggled against the Wings in the first half earlier this week, and the Sky just always seem to find a way to win against the Sun, even when it’s a tight game. Chicago absolutely dominated their last two games against New York despite a slow Game 1. Their team’s distributed scoring strength and lack of reliance on a single shooter gives them an advantage against the Sun’s defense, and if they can keep up the percentage in the paint, they should be able to take care of tonight’s game and be one win closer to a repeat title.
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