The Dallas Wings hope to solve their end-game issues and bounce back from a pair of close losses when they square off against the slumping Connecticut Sun on Sunday in Arlington, Texas.
The Wings (18-11) return home after an 81-75 loss in Washington D.C. to the Mystics on Friday in a game Dallas came back from 10 points down in the first half to tie it at 71 with two and a half minutes to play.
But, similar to a stunning loss at home to Atlanta on Wednesday, the Wings were outplayed in the final minutes and fell for the third time in their past four outings.
Paige Bueckers amassed 17 of her 23 points in the second half of Friday’s loss. Arike Ogunbowale added 20 points, and Alanna Smith had 11 points in 18 minutes for the Wings.
Dallas finished the month of July with seven wins in 10 games; the three losses were by a combined eight points and in each game, the Wings either led or were tied down the stretch.
“Teams just play really aggressive in the last three minutes, blitzing, trapping, being more aggressive that way, trying to get us out of our actions, playing to our personnel,” Bueckers said about Dallas’s recent struggle to finish games. “And (we need) to be aggressive, put in some new sets, execute better. I think that is the key.
“Some nights it doesn’t go your way, but we’ve got to force it to go our way, and also play better the first 35 minutes so it doesn’t come down to the last five every single game.”
The Sun (7-22) have dropped four straight games, most recently a 94-88 decision in Chicago on Thursday. All five starters scored in double figures for Connecticut in the loss and the Sun outrebounded Chicago by six but could not withstand a second half swoon that erased a nine-point halftime lead.
“The effort has to come from everyone on this team,” Connecticut coach Rachid Meziane said. “At the same time, we are very young and at times it’s hard for us to stay composed and try to stick to our game plan.”
Aneesah Morrow matched her career high with 21 points for Connecticut in defeat, while Olivia Nelson-Ododa posted a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds. Diamond Miller added 14 points for the Sun, Leila Lacan had 12 and Charlisse Leger-Walker finished with 10 points.
On Friday, Morrow was traded to Toronto for the rights to forward Maria Kliundikova and the Tempo’s 2028 second round pick.
Connecticut is expected to play without veteran center Brittney Griner, out for the fourth consecutive game as she continues to recover from a left knee injury.
Sunday’s game is the last of a six-game road trip for Connecticut that started with a win in Phoenix on July 17. The Sun are 3-7 over their last 10 contests and lost at home to Dallas 86-83 in the teams’ first meeting this year on July 2.
–Field Level Media
