Phoenix Mercury vs Chicago Sky Prediction, 6/1/2021 WNBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Phoenix Mercury vs Chicago Sky

Date: Tuesday, June 1, 2021

Location: Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL

TV: ESPN

The Chicago Sky (2-3) host the Phoenix Mercury (3-3) at Wintrust Arena on Tuesday.

The Phoenix Mercury faced the Dallas Wings and took home the win by a score of 89-85 in their last game. Phoenix walked away from the contest having earned a 50.0% field goal percentage (31 of 62) and converted 8 of their 22 shots from beyond the perimeter. From the free throw line, the Mercury converted 19 of 26 shots for a percentage of 73.1%. Concerning pulling down boards, they earned a total of 44 with 11 of them being offensive. They also dished out 22 assists in addition to forcing the other team into 4 turnovers, but wasn't able to put a steal in the stat sheet. When discussing defense, Phoenix allowed the other team to shoot 37.2% from the floor on 29 out of 78 shooting. Dallas earned 10 dimes and had 7 steals for this contest. On top of that, Dallas totaled 30 rebounds (10 offensive, 20 defensive) and had 1 block. Dallas finished the contest at 81.8% from the free throw line by knocking down 18 of 22 attempts. They knocked down 9 out of their 23 tries from 3-point land.

Skylar Diggins-Smith is a player who was a major contributor in this game. She notched 21 points on 4 of 11 shooting. She saw the court for 36:00 minutes played and also collected 6 rebounds. Diggins-Smith walked away from this one shooting 36.4% from the floor and also earned 7 dimes. One more player that was a major factor in this game for the Mercury was Brittney Griner. She grabbed 16 rebounds in her 35:14 minutes on the basketball court. She finished the game at 75.0% from the floor in the game by shooting 12-of-16 (27 points). Overall, Griner collected 4 assists.

Phoenix will play this contest with a record of 3-3 on the year. They are averaging 80.2 points per outing (7th in the league) on 44.1% from the floor. The Mercury are hitting 31.1% on shots from beyond the arc (41 of 132) and 76.3% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Phoenix is grabbing 36.7 boards per game and has tallied 120 assists on the campaign, which is 6th in the WNBA in terms of passing the rock. They lose possession via turnover 12.3 times per contest and as a unit they commit 18.0 fouls on a nightly basis. When they are on defense, the Mercury are able to force 10.2 turnovers per contest while drawing 18.5 fouls. They surrender 32.5% from beyond the arc and they rank 5th in the WNBA in opponents PPG (80.8). The Mercury defense is giving up a field goal percentage of 39.8% (61 of 111) and they surrender 36.3 boards per game as a unit. They currently rank 4th in the league in giving up assists with 100 surrendered on the campaign.

When they last stepped on the court, the Chicago Sky took a loss by a final score of 76-61 when they played the Los Angeles Sparks. The Sky snagged 28 defensive rebounds and 5 offensive boards totaling 33 in the game. They coughed up the ball 27 times, while getting 7 steals for the contest. The Sparks committed 18 fouls for this contest which got the Sky to the free throw line for a total of 14 shots. They were able to knock down 13 of the free throw attempts for a clip of 92.9%. In relation to 3-pointers, Chicago buried 6 out of their 19 attempts (31.6%). When the game finished, the Sky shot 21 for 51 from the field which had them at 41.2%. The Sky allowed the Sparks to make 26 out of their 66 tries from the floor which had them at 39.4% in the matchup. They wrapped up this game 47.4% from three-point range via 9 of 19 and finished the contest at 15 out of 18 at the free throw line (83.3%). When it comes to attacking the glass, Chicago permitted Los Angeles to grab 30 in total (9 on the offensive glass).

Kahleah Copper was important for the Sky in the matchup. She made 5 of 11 in the game for a rate of 45.5%, and had 3 rebounds. Copper racked up 11 points in her 37:41 mins on the court and had 2 dimes for this game. One more player that ended being a contributor for Chicago was Ruthy Hebard. She left the arena with 1 assist in 35:13 minutes played, and she put in 5 out of 7 from the field. Hebard ended up shooting 71.4% from the field in addition to collecting 12 points and 8 boards.

Chicago has a record of 2-3 this season. When it comes to executing on offense, the Sky are hitting on 39.8% from the field, which ranks them 10th in the league. Chicago has totaled 384 points for the campaign (76.8 per contest) and they pull in 38.4 rebounds per game. Their rate of earning assists is at 19.0 times per contest (6th in the WNBA) and they are giving up possession 19.6 times per game. The Sky have committed 20.6 fouls per contest and they shoot 86.8% from the charity stripe. The Sky on the defensive side of the court are 2nd in the league in PPG given up with 78.4. The Chicago defense allows 36.4% on shots from behind the 3-point line (40 of 110) and their opposition makes 72.9% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have surrendered 17.0 assists and 36.2 rebounds on a nightly basis, which has them ranked 4th and 5th in the league. They are able to force 16.6 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 39.0% from the floor (1st in the league).

Who will win tonight's WNBA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Phoenix

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