Neither of the top two WNBA draft picks was in it at the end.
The game billed Tuesday night as the duel between overall top draft pick Candace Parker, a Naperville native with the Los Angeles Sparks, and Sylvia Fowles, the Sky’s No. 2 overall pick, lacked the showdown but none of the drama in the Sparks’ 81-77 overtime victory.
The Sky wound up with more to worry about than a third straight loss.
Fowles is expected to recover from a left knee injury that caused her to leave the game in the third quarter when she crashed into the basket’s post.
“I think she was more scared and nervous,” coach Steven Key said, noting Fowles was able to put pressure on the leg while walking toward the tunnel.
Fowles was helped off the court after hitting her leg during one of her three blocks and taken to UIC Medical Center with a knee strain. The 6-foot-6-inch center finished with only four points and one rebound, taking the Sky’s main inside presence that could contend with Parker and 6-5 Lisa Leslie with her.
Parker was also missing later in the game.
Parker, who helped draw a sellout crowd of 6,304 to the UIC Pavilion for a Sky franchise record, contributed to the overtime period but missed all of it after fouling out with 6.6 seconds remaining in regulation.
After the Sky charged back from a 14-point deficit, the Sparks clung to a 68-67 lead late in the fourth quarter.
Parker, who finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, made the first and missed the second of her free throws with 18.7 seconds remaining. Candice Dupree (22 points) grabbed the rebound and dished it to Dominique Canty, who drew Parker’s sixth foul.
Canty sank both free throws to tie the game at 69-69 and send it in overtime.
“Of course,” Parker said of being anxious on the bench. “But my team did a good job of finishing it out.”
The Sparks took a quick overtime lead with five straight points by DeLisha Milton-Jones, who finished with a game-high 24 points. The Sky connected on 2 of 5 free throws in OT, while the Sparks made 8 of 9.
Key said he is growing tired of searching for moral victories, as the Sky’s record fell to 1-4.
“We can’t wait to turn it off and on,” he said. “We have to know before the game that we’re good enough to play anyone.”
The Pavilion may as well have been Parker’s living room it was so friendly at the opening. Fans wore orange Tennessee T-shirts and yellow shirts bearing Parker’s portrait.
“I think I knew half the people there,” she said.
“I don’t think I forced things. I just let the game come to me.”
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sryan@tribune.com
