Reese pads 20-rebound streak; Wilson lifts Aces
-
Michael Voepel, ESPN Senior Writer
Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese on Sunday had her third consecutive game with at least 20 rebounds, while also tying the WNBA mark for most double-doubles by a rookie with 22.
Reese had 11 points and 22 rebounds, but the Sky lost 77-75 to the two-time defending champion Las Vegas Aces on MVP front-runner A’ja Wilson‘s basket at the buzzer.
Reese on Friday had become the first WNBA player to have back-to-back 20-rebound games.
The last NBA player to hit the 20-rebound mark for three straight games was Ben Wallace with the Detroit Pistons in 2003. The last NBA player before Wallace to hit that mark (or longer) was Wilt Chamberlain, who had several such streaks in 1973 with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Reese’s 22 double-doubles match the rookie total set by Tina Charles in 2010, when she was with Connecticut. The overall WNBA double-double record for a season is 28 by Connecticut’s Alyssa Thomas, set last season.
Reese just missed tying Charles’ single-game rookie rebound record of 23. The Sky tied the single-game season high this year with 47 rebounds; the Aces had 44.
Reese was 4-of-16 from the field Sunday as neither team shot the ball well: 38.3% for the Aces, 36.6% for the Sky. Wilson missed a career-high 20 shots (8-of-28), but she hit the one that won the game — off an inbounds pass from Chelsea Gray.
Wilson reached the 4,500-point career mark Sunday, doing so in 217 games. That ties her with New York’s Breanna Stewart for the fastest in WNBA history to reach that milestone. The league’s all-time leading scorer, Phoenix’s Diana Taurasi, hit the 4,500 mark in 219 games.
Wilson’s game-winner came just after Sky guard Chennedy Carter made a 3-pointer to tie the game. Carter finished with a game-high 25 points.
The Aces moved to 18-11 with the win. The Sky dropped to 11-18; they have lost three in a row and four of five since the WNBA resumed play after the Olympic break. The Sky are 4-10 at home this season.
Chicago now holds a half-game lead over Atlanta (10-18) for the eighth and final playoff spot.
