If there was ever an interesting matchup, it would be 6-foot-7 Chicago Sky rookie Kamilla Cardoso taking on 6-foot-9 Phoenix Mercury great Brittney Griner. Both are a strong presence in the paint, as Griner herself has noticed. One represents the present and the other represents the future. The time came for them to meet for the first time on Thursday in Chicago.
After a month-long hiatus due to the Olympic Games, the Sky were back in action as they took on the Mercury. It was clear from the start they needed to get back into a routine. Plus, they were without starting guard Chennedy Carter, who was out with a non-COVID illness. It was also the first game without Marina Mabrey after she was traded to the Connecticut Sun
The first quarter set the tone as the Mercury outscored the Sky 30-12. It turned out to be all the cushion Phoenix needed as their lead remained in double figures as Chicago struggled to stay competitive. The end result was a 85-65 loss.
Cardoso finished with 10 points and five rebounds. She shot 62.5 percent from the field, the highest field goal percentage of anyone on the Sky. Griner finished with 23 points and nine rebounds while shooting 83 percent from the field. Despite Griner’s dominating performance, Cardoso was able to hold it together as…
