Phoenix Mercury dominates Sky despite Angel Reese double-double

The WNBA returned last night, and fans of the Phoenix Mercury were immediately blessed with a huge win against the Chicago Sky. The team won 85-65, even with rookie Angel Reese having another double-double night. It was an onslaught of three-pointers and paint-pounding that got the job done. The Sky should be on high alert as the Atlanta Dream are only three games behind their playoff spot.

Gold medalists surge for Phoenix

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The Olympics may be over, but that doesn't mean Kahleah Copper and Brittney Griner are done playing. Copper came out swinging with 29 points. There's a reason she leads this team in scoring with 23.4 points per game. She was playing bully ball down low and ended the game 12-19 from the field and 305 from three.

The domination continued with Griner putting up 23 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and five big blocks. The star center even got herself two steals this game. It's safe to say she wasn't feeling the jetlag anymore. She was 10-12 from the field and even knocked down a three-pointer.

With these two playing like machines, the game was over from the first quarter. The first ended with a 30-12 lead, silencing the home crowd. It didn't help that every player who shot a three for the Mercury made at least one and that the first half alone consisted of six made threes for the team.

Angel Reese's stats aren't pretty

The former LSU big has become a rebounding machine in the league. However, if you move the focus to her scoring abilities, things change. She was just 4-14 from the field and 3-8 from the free throw line. Yes, she had a double-double, but look what it took to get her there. She gets a lot of her own rebounds and just tosses it back up for second-chance points. Reese can become an elite scorer, but things need to change.

Enough of the huck it at the backboard and say a prayer style. Reese needs to learn to control herself when putting it back up. She was able to do it in college, but it just looks sloppy and rushed now. This isn't to discredit her as a player. It's clear that she just needs to get more comfortable in the game.

If Reese just took a bit more time to gather and gain some control, she'd be a much more consistent scorer down low. She has some solid defense skills, and she ended the game with a block and two steals. What would really benefit her is if she added a mid-range jumper to her arsenal.

The Mercury are a defensive nightmare

Outside of Reese, the highest scorer of the night for Chicago was Dana Evans, off the bench with 14. Top scorer Chennedy Carter was out this game with illness, and the rest of the roster disappeared. One of the reasons for this struggle is that Phoenix was playing very good defense.

Any time Reese got down low, she was met with 6'9" Griner, who made everyone else in the paint look tiny. The guards are also a pain to deal with for offenses, as Natasha Cloud and Kahleah Copper both play a fast-paced, locked-down style of defense. The only teams that become a real problem for them are the ones on top, like the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx.

The Sky has a desert full of landmines to walk through now as they take on heavy hitter after heavy hitter, including another round against Phoenix. We could see them slip out of playoff contention in the coming week.

Article originally written by Elizabeth Della Piana