Throughout the Sky’s five-game losing streak, they knew exactly what they needed to fix.
They knew that, injuries and all, they had enough talent and experience to beat the teams they kept losing to.
They knew they had to shoot better from deep, where their 25.7% is still last in the league.
They knew they had to stop fouling on defense, too often spoiling an otherwise solid possession in the final three seconds of the shot clock.
They knew they had to crash the glass better, too often surrendering a rebound after playing good defense for 29 seconds then letting it all go for naught.
Players and coaches have been saying all of this through the slump.
But it’s tactical mumbo jumbo until they find their mojo again.
“We’ve got to start playing more desperate,” guard Rachel Banham said after practice Thursday. “We haven’t gotten a win yet in front of our fans, and that’s something we need to do.”
They finally did Friday night, beating the Sun 85-80.
The Sky’s transition game revved back up, and they got solid production from all their key players. Skylar Diggins led the team with 24 points, while Natasha Cloud and Elizabeth Williams added 13 and 10 off the bench, respectively.
“We had five players in double figures,” Diggins said after the game. “That was a big deal for us, getting to the line, just trying to be aggressive and impose my will.”
Williams added of the losing streak, “We just couldn’t take it anymore, to be honest. You lose that many games in a row, especially at home, something has to flip.”
Not that any of this means the season is saved.
The Sky are still 4-6, and you always have to temper your excitement about beating a bottom-of-the-barrel team. But the Sky showed a little of the fight they were known for at the start of the season.
The start of the season — when they beat three of the league’s top eight teams — doesn’t that feel like light years ago?
Back then, the Sky played tough enough to absorb runs. They were never out of a game. They didn’t sink into their mistakes.
“When things weren’t going well, we didn’t show it. We still had our heads held high,” Banham said. “We were like, ‘All right, next possession, get it back.’ We haven’t had that the last few weeks.
“We’re definitely hanging our heads more. But there’s nothing to feel sorry about. Teams are going to go on runs. We need to be able to handle that adversity the way we did in the first four games.”
The first test came early Friday night. Sun forward Diamond Miller scored 15 points before halftime as Connecticut jumped out to a 14-point lead. It looked like the Sky would fold.
Instead, Diggins steadied them. She played like the star the Sky signed her to be, crossing up her defenders, finishing in the paint and getting the crowd involved.
“The game [plan] was for me to play [bleeping] better,” Diggins said.
The second test came in the third quarter, after the Sky had built a seven-point lead. They started fouling again, putting the Sun on the line. The Sun cut it to two.
Again, they could have folded.
Instead, Cloud hit a big three-pointer. The Sky kept attacking the paint and getting back to the line.
The final test was a back-and-forth fourth quarter. The Sun wouldn’t go away, but the Sky hung on by a thread. After a little run from Sun center Brittney Griner, another timely three-pointer from Cloud put the Sky up 77-72. Diggins then answered another pair of Sun buckets with an and-one of her own. Williams sealed the deal with back-to-back post moves.
None of these small moments right the ship on their own.
But the Sky needed a step toward regaining their mojo. They took it.
Notes
Rookie Gabriela Jaquez missed her fourth consecutive game with a knee injury.
• Developmental player Aicha Coulibaly was not activated.