Just a single game in the WNBA tonight, as the Washington Mystics (7-10) visit the Chicago Sky (10-9) in the final game before the Olympic break for both teams.
Washington at Chicago Betting Odds
The Sky are favored by 9 and the total on the game has moved from 166.5 to 166, so not a whole lot of line movement in this one.
Washington Mystics
The Mystics come into this one with a 7-10 record and will be a much-better team after everybody returns from the break, as Elena Delle Donne should be back in action. She’s missed more time than was expected, but an extra month should give her enough time to be ready.
Tina Charles has picked up the slack offensively and is on pace to establish an all-time record for scoring, as she’s averaging 25.8 points per game, a number that will likely diminish a bit when Del Donne returns. Ariel Atkins is scoring 17.0 points per game and Myisha Hines-Allen, who is third with 14.0 points per game, is expected to miss the game.
.
Chicago Sky
After a 2-7 start to the year while dealing with injuries and players’ national team commitments, the Chicago Sky have been playing the way people expected them to all season. The return of Candace Parker has been big and while the Mystics have been a one-person show for much of the season, the Sky have been the opposite, with five players scoring between 11.4 and 13.9 points per game.
Chicago focused on defense when they were short-handed and still have managed to keep the defensive pressure on, the last game against Dallas notwithstanding, as the Sky turned in their worst defensive game of the season.
Washington at Chicago Pick
I have the Sky winning 89-80 and will take a shot on the Sky in this one, as the injury to Hines-Allen could be big, as the Mystics are also going to be without Leilani Mitchell, who averages 27 minutes a game. If the Sky are focused, which you always have to worry about in the last game before an extended break, they should win by double digits.