Jackson injures – Rickea Jackson went down with 5:25 left in the second quarter, holding her knee, as the Sky pushed through to an 86-79 victory over the Lynx. Natasha Cloud publicly criticized what she viewed as officials failing to protect Jackson, while Minnesota battled bac
MINNEAPOLIS — Rickea Jackson was starting to look like the next face of the franchise for the Sky, and then everything changed.
Jackson crumpled to the floor with 5:25 left in the second quarter, grabbing her knee and screaming in obvious pain.. She was helped off the court, and there was no official diagnosis immediately provided after the game.. Coach Tyler Marsh said the Sky’s medical team was still evaluating what happened.
The moment landed hard because Jackson had been doing everything the Sky needed early. Over the first three games, she averaged 22 points, 6 rebounds and 2.7 assists. On Sunday, she opened with familiar moves: attacking off the bounce, hitting a turnaround, and finishing with an emphatic block.
When Jackson went down, veteran point guard Natasha Cloud was assessed a technical foul. Cloud used the moment to speak sharply about what she believed should have happened.
“I told the three refs….that their ultimate job is to control and protect the players in this game, and I think that this group today failed to do so,” Cloud said. “They failed to protect Rickea. They failed to control the game.“
Cloud also described frustration with how the game had been trending right before the injury.
“Immediately right before that, I told the refs ‘the game’s getting a little out of control. ‘‘We need to control it.’ And the next possession we have hands all over Rickea, a push all over her back. We don’t know what’s going on, but truthfully, I think it’s bulls–.”
With Jackson leaving the game, the Sky had every reason to tighten up emotionally and settle for damage control. Instead, they decided the win mattered for her. They built a 10-point advantage in the third quarter, got contributions across the lineup, and held their footing as the Lynx pushed back.
Center Kamilla Cardoso snapped out of a mini-slump with 11 points, 12 rebounds and 3 blocks. Rookie Gabriela Jaquez led the Sky with 20 points on 54.5% shooting, adding 8 rebounds, and continued the early-season pattern of being in the right place at the right time.
Cloud later pointed that out to Jaquez. “You not no rookie,” Cloud said. “She was leading half of our huddles tonight. Reminding us of what we’re in defensively. It’s a testament to who she is.”
Minnesota didn’t go away quietly. The Lynx were at their best to open the fourth quarter, forcing turnovers and turning them into points that cut the deficit to two.
The Sky responded quickly. Buckets from Cardoso, Jaquez and Rachel Banham pushed the lead back to 10, and they stayed there to secure an 86-79 win.
The night validated the identity the Sky have been trying to build: tough, resilient, defense-minded basketball. They return home for their home opener at 3-1.
“This organization, this is what they envisioned,” Jaquez said.
Still, the victory came with a harsh aftertaste, because it may mark another long detour.
There may not have been a worse way to end a road trip for Jackson, who had been on the cusp of a breakout season, with Cloud predicting her first All-Star appearance. If the knee injury is what it appeared to be, the Sky could be without a key piece for the rest of the season.
It also echoed last year.. In the Sky’s seventh game of 2025, Courtney Vandersloot tore her ACL.. After that injury, the Sky finished 10-34.. The roster this season is described as more talented and tougher, and Sunday’s win did make that feel real.. But the list of injuries now stretching beyond Jackson raises the stakes.
DiJonai Carrington, Azurá Stevens and Vandersloot are all out with medium- to long-term injuries.. If Jackson did in fact tear her ACL. the Sky could face the prospect of signing a player to a hardship contract.. The larger worry is what Jackson meant to the franchise—she was the player the Sky wanted to build around. and now the answers may have to wait another year.
A pattern runs through the Sky’s recent injuries and outcomes: Vandersloot’s ACL tear in the seventh game of 2025 preceded a 10-34 finish. and Sunday’s setback comes as Carrington. Stevens and Vandersloot are already sidelined—setting up another period where the team may be forced to adjust quickly before the season can settle.
Rickea Jackson Sky Lynx Natasha Cloud Kamilla Cardoso Gabriela Jaquez Rachel Banham Tyler Marsh ACL injury WNBA