CHICAGO — Team Spoon beat Team Coop 129-122 at the United Center on Saturday night in front of 19,783 fans. The league listed the game as a sellout. No WNBA All-Star Game has drawn more.
The record it replaced had held since July 15, 2007. That afternoon in Washington, 19,487 filled Verizon Center for a 103-99 East win, and the 2002 game in the same building drew the identical number. Indianapolis sold out Gainbridge Fieldhouse last July at 16,988. The last All-Star Game in Chicago was played four years ago at 10,387-seat Wintrust Arena and drew 9,572.
Get-in price on the secondary market reached $233 ahead of tip-off. A year ago in Indianapolis it was $71.
Jones’ Twenty-Two Minutes
Jonquel Jones won the MVP award. She played 22 minutes, scored 22 points, and finished with 13 rebounds and 8 assists. Eleven of the rebounds were defensive. Her line read 8-of-17 from the floor, 4-of-11 from three, and 2-of-2 at the line.
Jones spoke in the interview room afterward.
“Cheryl Reeve came over before I checked back in and told me I needed three more assists. We tried to run a few plays to get it done, but it didn’t happen. That’s okay.”
Her aunt’s memorial service was held Saturday, hours before tip-off.
“I talked with my family first and got their blessing,” Jones said. “She wanted to be cremated, and her ashes will be spread later, so I knew I’d be able to be there for that. That’s why I decided to come and play in the All-Star Game tonight.”
Jonquel Jones is the 2026 WNBA All-Star MVP
She joins Lisa Leslie, Candace Parker and Maya Moore as the only players in WNBA history to win an MVP, Finals MVP, and All-Star Game MVP! pic.twitter.com/7taLI8zQvS
— ESPN (@espn) July 26, 2026
The Second Quarter
Spoon led 35-34 after one. In the second quarter, it outscored Coop 46-30 and carried an 81-64 lead into halftime. The margin reached 18. Coop’s largest lead was 1, and all 12 lead changes came before the break.
Team Spoon scored 38 fast-break points. Team Coop scored 11.
Coop won the third quarter 29-24 and the fourth by the same score. It got no closer than seven after halftime. For the game, Coop shot 50-of-118 and 21-of-66 from three.
Kelsey Mitchell scored 28 on 11-of-19 shooting, more than anyone else on the floor. She also had 5 steals.
Most of Marina Mabrey‘s 23 points arrived early. Through the first quarter, she had made 6 of 7 shots, 5 of them threes, for 17.
Allisha Gray finished with 19 points on 7-of-14. Gabby Williams had 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists.
Caitlin Clark took 15 threes and made 5. She scored 17 points, 11 of them in the opening 10 minutes, and had 4 rebounds, 5 assists, and 5 turnovers.
Olivia Miles was the only rookie in the game. She made all 5 of her shots and finished with 11 points, 12 rebounds, and 8 assists.
At the 5:03 mark of the first quarter, both teams substituted a full second unit.
Clark did not play in last year’s game in Indianapolis.
“It was just really fun. It was a great celebration of the WNBA’s 30th season and everything we’ve been able to accomplish. The crowd tonight was incredible; we set an attendance record, and anytime you get to play in the United Center, that’s really special too.”
Ogwumike Passes Maya Moore
Nneka Ogwumike moved past Maya Moore for the most career points in WNBA All-Star Game history. She scored 11 on Saturday with 9 rebounds and 3 assists. Her first All-Star Game was in 2013 at Mohegan Sun.
Under the collective bargaining agreement signed in March, every All-Star receives the same bonus regardless of which team wins. Ogwumike is president of the players association.
“We had to get creative with the All-Star bonuses and bonuses in general. We had a lot of different conversations, and we thought it was important that every All-Star receive that bonus, while individual awards could still be something players compete for.”
The Dunk and the Block
With 6:24 left in the second quarter, Dominique Malonga took a pass from Angel Reese and dunked. Malonga finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Jones dunked in the 2017 All-Star Game.
Paige Bueckers was on the floor for it. She had 12 points and 7 assists.
“She makes it look easy. Thankfully she was on my team, so I got to see it up close and personal.”
About a minute before the dunk, A’ja Wilson blocked a Reese drive. Wilson met with reporters after the game.
“Angel was not supposed to do that. I was trying to get out of the way. I do not like to block shots during All-Star games because, what am I doing?”
Wilson played 13:32 and scored 12. In the third quarter, Team Spoon challenged a Clark out-of-bounds turnover, and officials confirmed the call.
Who Played and Who Didn’t
Coop was without Kelsey Plum, listed inactive with a lower left leg injury. Reese played 9:16 and did not score, finishing with 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Aliyah Boston played 4:57, all of it in the first quarter.
Breanna Stewart’s 13 rebounds tied Jones and Malonga for the game high. She added 6 points and 7 assists. Jessica Shepard did not miss a shot. She took 3 and made 3 for 7 points, and she had 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
Cynthia Cooper and Teresa Weatherspoon served as general managers and drafted the rosters, a format the league introduced for its 30th season. Players came from 12 of the league’s 15 teams. The Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun, and Portland Fire had none.
Roy Gulbeyan, Clare Simmons, and Charles Watson officiated. The game took 1 hour, 41 minutes.
Clark said she was flying home Saturday night and on to Seattle on Sunday. The Indiana Fever last played Wednesday.
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