Arike Ogunbowale scored a game-high 25 points and Teaira McCowan and Natasha Howard both notched double-doubles to lift the host Dallas Wings past the Chicago Sky 87-79 on Wednesday night in Arlington, Texas, in the WNBA season opener for both teams.
Marina Mabrey scored 19 points to lead five Sky players in double figures.
Dallas grabbed a five-point lead — then its largest of the night – when Maddie Siegrist drilled a trey with 1:56 to go. Chicago went ahead 75-73 on a pair of Mabrey free throws with 3:16 remaining but managed only two field goals the rest of the way.
The Wings scored 14 straight points down the stretch to pull away, capping the run with a long Ogunbuwale trey with 31.2 seconds left.
Dallas outscored Chicago 60-42 in the paint while winning the rebounding battle 42-36.
McCowan (18 points) and Howard (15) both snagged 13 boards. Siegrist had 13 points and Ogunbowale added seven assists.
Diamond DeShields scored 14 points for Chicago. Angel Reese and Elizabeth Williams had 12 each and Dana Evans added 10.
Reese, the No. 7 overall draft pick, missed each of her three attempts from the field in the first half before an 11-point effort after the break. She registered the first points of her career when she split a pair of free throws with 1:27 remaining in the second quarter.
Chicago led 43-40 at the break, rolling behind a balanced attack led by Mabrey (13 points), DeShields (10), and Evans (eight). It was enough to offset a big effort from McCowan, who amassed 16 points and 10 rebounds in the first 20 minutes.
The Sky led by as many as 10 points in the first half, but a plus-14 edge in points in the paint allowed Dallas to rally back.
Both teams were missing post presences. Wings forward Satou Sabally is out with a shoulder injury the team expects will keep her sidelined until the Olympic break. Sky forward Kamilla Cardoso, drafted third overall last month, suffered a shoulder injury in preseason and is out for 4-to-6 weeks.
The Wings will host the Sky again on Saturday night.
–Field Level Media
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