Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese didn’t play for the entirety of Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Aces — for two different reasons.
The Sky suspended Reese for the first half for “statements detrimental to the team” that she made Tuesday in an interview with the Tribune. Reese sat on the bench while serving the suspension.
Shortly before the second half began, the Sky ruled out Reese for the remainder of the game with a back injury. She wasn’t listed on the injury report in the lead-up to Sunday’s game and participated in the shootaround. She wore a compression wrap on her back during pregame warmups at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The Sky lost 80-66 as the Aces extended their franchise-record winning streak to 14 games. A’ja Wilson had 31 points and 11 rebounds for the Aces (28-14).
Rachel Banham and Michaela Onyenwere scored 12 points apiece to lead the Sky (10-32). Kamilla Cardoso had 10 points and 15 rebounds for the Sky, who also were missing Ariel Atkins (back).
Sky coach Tyler Marsh said after the game that Reese informed the coaching staff she was experiencing back discomfort during pregame. After consulting with the medical staff, the Sky opted to hold out Reese “to be as cautious as possible.”
Marsh said the team is uncertain whether Reese will be available for the final two games of the season Tuesday in Las Vegas and Thursday at Wintrust Arena against the New York Liberty.
“We’ve got to gauge it day by day,” Marsh said. “I know Angel wants to be out there, so we’ll continue working with her and our medical team to see what the best method of approach is moving forward.”
Sunday’s game was the 11th that Reese has missed because of the back injury, which initially surfaced after the All-Star break in July. The Sky went 1-9 during her initial streak of absences, which kept her off the court for nearly three weeks.
Reese was sidelined for an additional game Friday after accumulating an eighth technical foul for the season in Wednesday’s win over the Connecticut Sun, resulting in an automatic one-game suspension by the league.
Associated Press contributed.