PHOENIX — The job isn’t done yet, but the Chicago Sky are two wins from securing their first championship after thwarting the Phoenix Mercury in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals.

After stealing home-court advantage, the Sky have an opportunity to go back to Wintrust Arena with 2-0 lead and end the series on their home floor.

Here are three storylines to look out for heading into Game 2 on Wednesday night.

1. Kahleah Copper has emerged as a three-level scorer: Her teammates have been saying it all postseason: The Sky will go as far as Kahleah Copper takes them.

Copper, who made her first All-Star team in 2021, is averaging 18.6 points in the playoffs. If the season ended today, that would be the highest average of any Sky player during a playoff run in franchise history (minimum of four games).

After leading the Sky in scoring this season, Copper has shown flashes of her potential as a three-level scorer in the postseason. She shot 30.4% from 3-point range on 2.7 attempts per game in the regular season but has seen her numbers jump to 36% on 3.6 attempts per game in seven playoff games.

Copper has made a name for herself as a relentless finisher with an explosive first step. When she is hitting from beyond the arc at the clip that she has this postseason, the Mercury will have to pick their poison with what opportunities they are willing to give her in Game 2.

“It’s frustrating for opponents when you get blown by all night because there’s no one in the world who can stay in front of her,” Sky point guard Courtney Vandersloot said. “When she is shooting the ball that way, she is almost unstoppable. We are going to look to her to continue to do that.”

2. Sophie Cunningham is back, but will it be enough for the Mercury? The Mercury played Game 1 of the finals less than 48 hours after they beat the Las Vegas Aces in Game 5 of the semifinals. They outscored the Sky 25-20 in the first quarter before fatigue and a lack of bench production doomed them the rest of the way.

Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said before Game 1 that guard Sophie Cunningham would be ready to go for Game 2. Cunningham played the sixth-most minutes for the Mercury in the regular season and shot 41% from 3-point range on 2.7 attempts per game. She will give them a needed boost on the perimeter, but it might not be enough to swing the series.

In Game 1, Brondello relied on her starters for the majority of the minutes and didn’t get much contribution from her second unit. The bench went 3 of 15 from the field while Kia Vaughn and Bria Hartley combined for a minus-18 plus/minus rating. The team’s depth took a hit this postseason when Kia Nurse tore an ACL in the semifinals. Brondello said Hartley needs “a couple more months” to be at 100% health after tearing an ACL in August 2020.

Even with Cunningham back, this team will struggle to counter a Sky defense that has held opponents to 77.6 points per game on 41.9% field-goal shooting. After an up-and-down first quarter, the Sky settled in defensively and never looked back in Game 1.

“In the first quarter, we had some jitters and we were moving a little too fast and weren’t in the right place or communicating,” Sky coach James Wade said. “We didn’t panic and by the time we got to the end of the first quarter, I thought we were executing the game plan at a better rate.”

Getting Cunningham back will provide some relief, but the Mercury have to find an answer for the Sky’s defense if they have any shot at making this a series.

3. The Sky have another level to go up to offensively. The offense found life this postseason after the Sky struggled to score in the half-court for the majority of the season. Even after scoring 91 points on a 62% true shooting percentage in Game 1, Candace Parker thinks the Sky have yet to play their best basketball.

“I don’t think everything is clicking,” Parker said. “We have found ways to win and have been good in spurts, but I am really still in search of that game where all of us are really clicking. We had 18 turnovers (in Game 1)? If we take away five or six of those, our shots on goal and our percentages are good. So I am still in search of (that game) honestly.”

Parker, admittedly a perfectionist, isn’t wrong.

Allie Quigley had a rare performance in Game 1 in which her shot wasn’t falling at her usual rate. She missed a few open 3-point opportunities (she ended the game 3 of 11 from beyond the arc), but Quigley became the fourth player in WNBA history to shoot 45% or higher from 3-point range on 4.5 or more attempts per game. The Mercury shouldn’t expect the same performance from her in Game 2.

The bench also has the potential to pop off at any moment. Stefanie Dolson provided 14 points in Game 1 after averaging 3.3 points in the first three rounds of the playoffs, while former All Star Diamond DeShields didn’t get going offensively in the series opener. DeShields has had moments this postseason when she has carried the Sky’s second unit, and she adds another dimension to the offense when she finds her stride on that end of the floor.