Sky top Mercury for WNBA crown
Parker returns, brings title to Chicago
CHICAGO — Candace Parker returned home to bring Chicago a championship. She did just that on Sunday, leading the Sky to the franchise’s first WNBA title.
Allie Quigley scored 26 points, and Parker added 16 points, 13 rebounds and five assists as Chicago beat the Phoenix Mercury 80-74, giving the Sky the best-of-five series in four games.
Courtney Vandersloot added 10 points and 15 assists for the Sky, who rallied from a 72-65 deficit with 4:42 left. Chicago scored the next nine points to take a two-point lead on Stefanie Dolson’s layup. She then added another basket to make it 76-72 with 45.8 seconds left.
Diana Taurasi was fouled on the next possession shooting a 3-pointer and made the first two free throws but missed the third.
Vandersloot then scored in the lane to seal the victory, setting off the celebration. As the final buzzer sounded, Parker sprinted to the corner of the court and hugged her family with tears in her eyes.
“We were down nine, down 11, and we stayed with it,” Parker said. “So proud of this group. Sloot doing what she does all year. Allie is amazing.”
Quigley, who also hails from Illinois, got the decisive run started, and Parker tied the game with a 3-pointer before Dolson’s baskets.
It was a full-circle moment for Parker, who triumphantly returned home to Chicago this season after spending 13 years with Los Angeles.
She continually had been called the Sky’s missing piece throughout the playoffs, a label she proved accurate many times during Chicago’s stunning run, winning the title as a six seed.
“It feels amazing. My high school coach is here,” Parker said. “I know Pat’s (Summitt) watching. Got the whole city here. We got the whole city here. We are champions for life now.”
Brittney Griner was a focal point of Phoenix’s offense early. The seven-time Allstar center finished with 28 points, 18 of which came in the first half. Griner and ALL-WNBA point guard Skylar Diggins-smith helped lead a 9-0 run to finish the second quarter and give Phoenix a 44-37 edge at halftime.
“Their defense went to another level trapping
BG,” Phoenix coach Sandy Brondello said of Chicago’s smothering of Griner. “We got some good looks, layups. We missed them, and they made them. Allie really changed the momentum of the game there.”
Parker initially had trouble getting into a rhythm offensively, shooting 1-for-6 with just four points by the end of the first half.
Kahleah Copper, who had been a force in the first four games of the Finals, was voted MVP of the series after averaging 17 points.