Chicago Sky vs Phoenix Mercury Prediction, 7/20/2023 WNBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Chicago Sky vs Phoenix Mercury

Date: Thursday, July 20, 2023

Location: Footprint Center in Phoenix, AZ

TV: WNBA League Pass

The Chicago Sky (8-12) are headed to Footprint Center on Thursday where they'll take on the Phoenix Mercury (5-15).

The Chicago Sky faced the Connecticut Sun and went home with a loss by a final score of 84-72 in their last contest. Chicago walked away from the game with a 40.3% FG percentage (25 out of 62) and buried 8 of their 20 shots from beyond the arc. From the free throw line, the Sky buried 14 of 18 tries for a percentage of 77.8%. Concerning grabbing rebounds, they earned 31 with 7 of them being of the offensive variety. They also recorded 19 assists in this contest as well as forcing 10 turnovers and getting 6 steals. When discussing defending, Chicago allowed the other team to shoot 49.3% from the floor on 34 out of 69 shooting. Connecticut earned 8 assists and had 7 steals in the game. Additionally, Connecticut snagged 30 rebounds (8 offensive, 22 defensive) and had 1 block. Connecticut ended up going 58.8% from the charity stripe by knocking down 10 of 17 attempts. They made 6 of their 20 attempts from beyond the perimeter.

Kahleah Copper is a player who was a major factor for this contest. She left the arena with 22 points on 8 out of 19 shooting. She was on the court for 37 minutes and also totaled 3 rebounds. Copper went 42.1% from the field and also distributed 4 assists.

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Chicago steps onto the hardwood with a record of 8-12 for the year. The Sky are shooting 35.5% on shots from distance (148 of 417) and 72.0% from the free throw line. They have an average of 77.7 points per game (11th in the league) while shooting 43.3% from the field. They are giving up possession 13.9 times per contest and as a basketball team they commit 17.3 fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Chicago is pulling down 33.5 rebounds per game and is sitting with 402 dimes so far this year, which ranks 4th in the league in terms of passing. On the defensive end, the Sky are able to force 13.0 turnovers per contest while drawing 16.5 personal fouls. The Sky defense is giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 45.0% (259 of 330) and they surrender 34.9 boards per game as a group. They are 6th in the WNBA in allowing assists with 396 relinquished for the year. They are conceding 32.3% on 3-point attempts and they rank 5th in the league in points per game allowed (81.8).

When they last played, the Phoenix Mercury walked away with a victory by a final of 72-66 when they faced the Connecticut Sun. The Mercury collected 28 defensive boards and 5 offensive rebounds for a total of 33 in this contest. They also turned it over 13 times, while getting 5 steals for the contest. The Sun were called for 15 personal fouls in this matchup which took the Mercury to the free throw line for a total of 10 shots. They were able to knock down 9 of those for a percentage of 90.0%. When it comes to shots from 3-point land, Phoenix knocked down 11 out of their 26 tries (42.3%). When the game finished, the Mercury shot 26 out of 62 from the field which gave them a rate of 41.9%. The Mercury allowed the Sun to convert 22 of 61 tries from the field which had them sitting at 36.1% in this matchup. They finished 37.5% from three-point range via 6 of 16 and finished the contest at 16 of 21 from the free throw line (76.2%). With respect to team rebounding, Phoenix permitted Connecticut to get 32 overall (6 offensive).

Sophie Cunningham ended up being important for the Mercury for this contest. She knocked down 6 of 15 in this game for a field goal rate of 40.0%, and accounted for 6 rebounds. Cunningham recorded 17 points in her 32 minutes of playing time and tallied 1 assist for this contest.

Phoenix has a mark of 5-15 this year. Phoenix has accumulated 1,530 points for the year (76.5 per game) and they collect 30.2 boards per contest. The Mercury have committed 20.4 fouls per game and they go 80.2% from the free throw line. As an offense, the Mercury are hitting on 44.5% from the field, which has them ranked 4th in the league. They are dishing out assists 19.7 times per game (5th in the WNBA) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 15.8 times per game. The Mercury defensively are ranked 8th in the league in points per game surrendered with 84.9. They relinquish 20.4 dimes and 34.4 boards on a nightly basis, which has them ranked 10th and 5th in the league. The Phoenix defense gives up 35.1% on 3-pointers (156 of 445) and opponents are converting on 81.9% of their foul shots. They are forcing their opponents into 12.1 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 43.8% from the field (7th in the league).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Chicago

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