WNBA Chicago Sky

Chicago Sky Announce 2009 Schedule

Published on December 18, 2008 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Chicago Sky News Release


CHICAGO, December 18, 2008 - The WNBA Chicago Sky announced its 2009 schedule today. The Sky will play 34 regular season games from June through September.

The team opens the 2009 season on the road on Saturday, June 6, against the Minnesota Lynx. Minnesota finished the 2008 season with a 16-18 record and has the 4th pick in the 2009 WNBA draft. The Sky's home opener is on Friday, June 12 against the Atlanta Dream at UIC Pavilion. The 2008 season was the inaugural season for the Dream who finished with a 4-30 record.

The Sky's regular season includes 22 games against Eastern Conference teams, and 12 games against Western Conference teams. With the folding of the Houston Comet, the WNBA moves to a 13-team schedule.

The 2009 WNBA season will mark the first year of a new eight-year deal that allows ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 to televise games through the 2016 season. The agreement, officially announced in July 2007, will see the league receive a rights fee, a first for a U.S. professional women's team sports league. It also extends the WNBA's relationship with ESPN, which began with the league's inaugural season in 1997, to 20 seasons.

For the fourth consecutive year, ESPN2 will feature "WNBA Tuesdays" as the appointment viewing destination for WNBA fans. With games available in high definition, ESPN2 will televise "WNBA Tuesdays" throughout the 2009 regular season

Additional schedule highlights include:

-The Sky will begin the season on the road against Minnesota, returning home to play the next three games at UIC Pavilion.

-The Sky will face off against the 2008 WNBA Rookie of the Year and Naperville native, Candace Parker, and the Los Angeles Sparks Wednesday, July 29th at UIC Pavilion.

-The Sky will have 11 weekend home games throughout the season.

-The Sky will meet the defending WNBA Champion Detroit Shock on Sunday, August 9 in Detroit and at home the following Saturday August 22.

The Sky is one of six independently-owned teams in the WNBA, the longest-running women's professional sports league in the world. The Sky finished the 2008 season with a 12-22 record led by two-time WNBA All-Star Candice Dupree and veteran guard Jia Perkins. Rookie center Sylvia Fowles led the USA Women's Basketball team in both scoring and rebounding as they returned home with an Olympic Gold Medal from the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. The team will have the number three pick in the 2009 WNBA Draft.

Check out the Chicago Sky Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Women's National Basketball Association Stories from December 18, 2008


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central