With record crowd watching, Sky get blown out by Fever in first WNBA game at United Center
CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Sky coach Tyler Marsh recalled working the 2020 NBA All-Star game at the United Center when he was an assistant with the Toronto Raptors.
He mentioned that his first experience at a WNBA All-Star game was also in Chicago — two years later at Wintrust Arena.
'It's been cool moments,' Marsh said.
There was another big one on Saturday night. Though the Sky got blown out by Indiana 79-52, it was the first WNBA game at the United Center.
'It's an incredible moment for this league,' said Marsh, in his first season coaching the Sky. 'It's an incredible moment for our team and our staff and our city, really. I think that's the cool part about it is we get to represent our city in this building on a historic night. It's not lost among us how important and significant it is — and for myself to be part of that and to represent the W in that capacity, to represent the Sky in that capacity, is something that I don't take for granted.'
A matchup that got moved from the smaller Wintrust Arena and was supposed to feature two of the league's brightest young stars in Chicago's Angel Reese and Indiana's Caitlin Clark didn't play out as envisioned.
The Fever rolled over the Sky for the second time this season. And they did it without the injured Clark.
The 2024 Rookie of the Year missed her fourth straight game because of a quad issue and watched the primetime, nationally televised game from the sideline. That had to be a bummer for the fans who showed up wearing Clark jerseys.
The enthusiastic crowd of 19,496 surpassed Chicago's previous high of 16,444 in 2016 at Allstate Arena in suburban Rosemont, though tickets weren't hard to find. They were listed on StubHub for as little as $9 a few hours before tipoff.
By comparison, when Clark and Reese played their first game in Chicago last season, courtside seats at Wintrust Arena were going for $5,000 on Ticketmaster an hour before tipoff. That game drew the celebrities, with Chicago native Chance The Rapper, comedian Jason Sudeikis and New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson in the sellout crowd along with Pro Basketball Hall of Famer Cheryl Swoopes.
Even so, this was a big night. And the significance of playing at the United Center wasn't lost on the players and coaches. The Sky and Fever will meet again at the home of the NBA's Bulls and NHL's Blackhawks on July 27.
'We just continue to make milestones for women,' Reese said. 'Women belong here. I think this is gonna be the first of many. Obviously, we have two here this year. But we could continue to see this — and all our games at NBA arenas.'
Reese and Clark have helped carry the league to new heights in popularity after taking their rivalry from LSU and Iowa to the pros. They brought the style and swagger that captivated the nation when they were going at it in college and spurring debates about sport and society.
But the night wasn't just about them.
'It just shows how much women's basketball is growing, and it's amazing to see it,' said Sky center Kamilla Cardoso, another young star.
For Fever assistant Austin Kelly, who was filling in with coach Stephanie White missing the game for personal reasons, playing at the United Center brought back memories of watching the Bulls during the Michael Jordan-Scottie Pippen dynasty.
'I was born in '89,' he said. 'I played AAU basketball. We were on the road, me and my teammates were crammed into hotels — the Days Inn or whatever it was — watching them in June. A lot of memories of watching Jordan, watching the Bulls growing up. I think they were everyone's favorite team, especially youngsters like us growing up in the '90s.'
Marsh said Sky player-development coach Aaron Johnson, who's from Chicago, had this game circled on his proverbial calendar.
'Since it got announced that we would be playing this game, it was something that he really got emotional about. Not to put him on Front Street, but this is a building that he grew up idolizing and sitting in the nosebleeds, and going from that to being able to step on the floor, those are the types of moments that you can't really put a price on,' Marsh said. You take those experiences for what it is and it comes with the moment, but also, you're extremely excited for our players to be a part of that as well.'
___
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
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