Introduction to a Historic Night
The Chicago Sky coach, Tyler Marsh, recalled his experiences working at the 2020 NBA All-Star game at the United Center and his first WNBA All-Star game in Chicago two years later. These moments were significant, but another big one occurred on Saturday night when the Sky played their first WNBA game at the United Center.
The Game
Though the Sky got blown out by Indiana 79-52, the night was still historic. Marsh stated, "It’s an incredible moment for this league… It’s an incredible moment for our team and our staff and our city, really." The game was supposed to feature two of the league’s brightest young stars, Chicago’s Angel Reese and Indiana’s Caitlin Clark, but Clark missed her fourth straight game due to a quad issue.
A Record Crowd
The enthusiastic crowd of 19,496 surpassed Chicago’s previous high of 16,444 in 2016 at Allstate Arena. The tickets were listed on StubHub for as little as $9 a few hours before tipoff. This was a significant increase from the previous game between Clark and Reese, where courtside seats were going for $5,000 on Ticketmaster.
Significance of the Game
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. Reese said, "We just continue to make milestones for women… Women belong here. I think this is gonna be the first of many."
Players’ Perspectives
Reese and Clark have helped carry the league to new heights in popularity. Sky center Kamilla Cardoso said, "It just shows how much women’s basketball is growing, and it’s amazing to see it." Fever assistant Austin Kelly, who was filling in for coach Stephanie White, mentioned that playing at the United Center brought back memories of watching the Bulls during the Michael Jordan-Scottie Pippen dynasty.
Coaching Staff’s Thoughts
Marsh said Sky player-development coach Aaron Johnson 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… 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.
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.
