Sky Fall Short to Wings, 89-99, in Home Opener
Published on May 21, 2026 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Chicago Sky News Release
The Chicago Sky lost to the Dallas Wings 89-99 inside Wintrust Arena on Wednesday, May 20. The Sky are now 3-2 on the season, 0-1 at home, 3-2 against the Western Conference and 31-27 against the Wings all time.
Kamilla Cardoso put together one of her best performances of the season thus far, finishing with a season-high 24 points to go along with her 11 rebounds and five assists. Twelve of her 24 arrived in the second half, the same window in which she snared seven rebounds.
Tonight's performance marked the fifth consecutive game Cardoso secured at least seven rebounds and the third where she finished with at least 10. Through five regular season contests, she's averaging a double-double with 14.4 points and 10.4 rebounds per game.
Veteran Natasha Cloud walked off the hardwood with her most impressive output as a member of the Sky, finishing with a season-high 21 points, eight rebounds and five assists in a team-leading 35 minutes. She made six of her 12 field goal attempts and drilled all eight of her looks from the free-throw line.
Following her 20-point, eight-rebound night against Minnesota, rookie Gabriela Jaquez showed out once more against Dallas. The former Bruin scored 12 points in the loss and accounted for eight of Chicago's 16 points in the second quarter. Skylar Diggins returned to the fold with 15 points and four assists, and Rachel Banham rounded out the box score with 10 points off the bench, her second straight game in double figures.
The Wings saw four players in double figures in tonight's matchup. Second-year guard Paige Bueckers captained the scoring charge with 24 points alongside her four assists, while teammate Arike Ogunbowale dropped a season-best 23 points, five assists and a pair of rebounds. Forward Jessica Shepard tallied her second career triple-double with 18 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists, and rookie Azzi Fudd added 12 points and an assist in 28 minutes off the bench.
Other highlights include:
Kamilla Cardoso is the first player in Sky history to record 20 points, 10 rebounds and five assists with zero turnovers
Cardoso is the fastest Sky player since 2014 to record 50 points and 50 rebounds in a season
Kamilla Cardoso (233) surpassed Jessica Breland (231) for sixth on the Sky's all-time offensive rebounds list
Rachel Banham recorded 500 career assists
Gabriela Jaquez has the third-most points through five games of any Sky player
Shepard's triple-double is the 50th in WNBA history. She is the 22nd unique player in league history to accomplish the feat
Shepard has two triple-doubles in her career that came while shooting over 85.0%. No other player in league history has ever accomplished this feat
NEXT UP: The Sky stay at home to play the Minnesota Lynx for the second time this season inside Wintrust Arena on Saturday, May 23. Chicago is 1-0 against Minnesota this season and 19-29 against the Lynx all-time.
In the latest matchup between the teams, rookie Gabriela Jaquez recorded a career-high 20 points and eight rebounds. She shot 6 for 11 from the field and added one steal and one assist in 32 minutes. Jaquez scored a clutch three-pointer in the final minutes of the fourth quarter to extend the Sky's lead over Minnesota.
Natasha Cloud stuffed the stat sheet, scoring 11 points, seven assists and six rebounds. Kamilla Cardoso recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds and also led the team with three blocks.
Kayla McBride led Minnesota recording 20 points and seven rebounds. She's averaging 16.3 points, 1.8 steals and 1.8 assists per game. Rookie Olivia Miles is the second leading scorer for the Lynx averaging 15.5 points, 5.8 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Miles recorded 13 points, six rebounds and four steals against the Sky.
The game between the Sky and the Lynx tips off at 12 p.m. CT and will be broadcast locally on The U.
KEY RUNS:
The Sky went on a 9-0 run from 3:41 to 2:04 in the first quarter
The Wings went on a 15-6 run from 6:32 to 0:43 in the second quarter
Dallas went on a 13-5 run from 9:06 to 6:11 in the third quarter
The Wings went on a 13-5 run from 1:31 in the third quarter to 9:42 in the fourth quarter
KEY STATS:
The Sky recorded three blocks in the second quarter
The Wings scored 34 points in the third quarter
Both teams combined for 66 rebounds
Dallas's largest lead was 12 points
The Sky outscored the Wings in points in paint 48-38
The Wings bench outscored the Sky 23-15
Chicago scored 15 points on Dallas's eight turnovers
There were four lead changes and six ties
CHICAGO NOTES:
Skylar Diggins accounted for nine of Chicago's 22 points in the first quarter (three points, six points created from assists)
Gabriela Jaquez accounted for eight of Sky's 16 points in the second quarter (six points, two points created from assists)
Natasha Cloud accounted for six of Chicago's 26 points in the third quarter (four points, two points created from assists)
Kamilla Cardoso accounted for 13 of the Sky's 25 points in the fourth quarter (five points, eight points created from assists)
Elizabeth Williams posted two blocks in 1:09 off the bench in the second quarter
DALLAS NOTES:
Jessica Shepard accounted for six of Dallas's 16 points in the first quarter (four points, two points created from assists)
Shepard accounted for 13 of the Wings' 34 points in the third quarter (six points, nine points created from assists)
Paige Bueckers accounted for 14 of Dallas's 28 points in the fourth quarter (eight points, six points created from assists)
Shepard notched her second career triple-double (18 points, 12 assists, 10 rebounds)
Women's National Basketball Association Stories from May 21, 2026
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- Game Preview: Valkyries vs. Connecticut Sun - 5/25/26 - Golden State Valkyries
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- Connecticut Sun at Seattle Storm Preview - Connecticut Sun
- Valkyries Sign Forward Ashten Prechtel to Player Development Contract - Golden State Valkyries
- Indiana Fever Waive Shatori Walker-Kimbrough - Indiana Fever
- Tempo Convert Milić - Toronto Tempo
- Fever Close out Homestand by Hosting Valkyries - Indiana Fever
- Sky Fall Short to Wings, 89-99, in Home Opener - Chicago Sky
- Sun Pick up First Win of the Season in Late-Game Thriller against Storm - Connecticut Sun
- Seattle Storm Postgame Notes 5.20.26 - Seattle Storm
- Shepard, Bueckers Propel Wings over Chicago - Dallas Wings
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