Sky host Storm in must-win situation

The Chicago Sky had little time to rest after an exhausting double-overtime loss Friday to the reigning WNBA champion the Los Angeles Sparks.

They'll jump right back into action late Sunday afternoon as they host the Seattle Storm at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill., in a must-win situation involving the league's eight- and nine-place teams.

Friday's 115-106 setback left the Sky (11-17) in ninth place -- 1 1/2 games behind Seattle for the final playoff spot.

"We just can't take any steps backward now," Chicago guard Allie Quigley said. "There's not enough time left in the season, so we have to take this as a positive and keep moving forward. If we keep playing like that for the rest of the season, then we'll go 6-0."

Chicago rallied from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to force overtime. Los Angeles opened the second overtime with a 7-0 run and never looked back.

Quigley continues to lead the Sky in scoring with a 17.3 point average, Courtney Vandersloot is tops in assists (eight per game) while Jessica Breland is leading rebounder with a 6.4 average.

Seattle (13-16) is one-half game behind seventh-place Dallas. The Storm have won three straight -- including Wednesday's 62-61 victory over league-leading Minnesota -- since a four-game losing streak.

On Friday, Seattle rallied from an 11-point deficit to top San Antonio 79-78, forcing 17 turnovers that resulted in 21 points.

"(Interim coach Gary Kloppenburg) is known for his defense, and we've been doing a lot of different things on the defensive end to try to get us going," Storm guard Sue Bird told reporters. "It's not always going to work, but if you stay with it, eventually you'll get some steals, which turned into some easy baskets."

Bird has 2,580 career assists and needs 20 more to become the WNBA's all-time leader.

Seattle is 3-0 since Kloppenburg was named interim coach on Aug. 10 after the Storm fired Jenny Boucek, a 14-year WNBA coaching veteran.

Forward Breanna Stewart tops Seattle in scoring (20.2 points) and rebounding (8.6) while Bird leads in assists at 6.5.

Seattle hosts Atlanta on Wednesday while Chicago is back in action on Friday at Connecticut.