The Dallas Wings (1-7) defended well enough against the Seattle Storm (4-4) on Tuesday to get a win, but without rookie point guard Paige Bueckers (concussion protocol) and her backup Tyasha Harris (left knee), the offensive playmaking and firepower just weren’t there in a 83-77 loss at Climate Pledge Arena.
Dallas held Seattle to just 54 points through three quarters and held Skylar Diggins to just one bucket before she got going in the fourth as the Storm stormed back for the win down the stretch. Seattle outscored the Wings 53-39 in the second half, which included an 18-2 stretch in the middle of the fourth quarter.
Bueckers has played just six games so far for the Dallas Wings, but one thing has become clear in the team’s last two. This team needs its Rookie of the Year candidate, especially on the offensive end.
Bueckers sat out her second game in a row in Tuesday’s loss after entering concussion protocol following Thursday’s 97-92 loss at the Chicago Sky. Through her first six games, Bueckers leads all [WNBA](https://www.swishappeal.com) rookies in scoring (14.7 points per game) and assists (6.7 per game). She’s already cemented herself as the Wings’ primary playmaker, and her absence created a void in Dallas’ offense to start the game on Tuesday.
The Wings made just 7-of-29 shots on offense and turned the ball over five times through the first 11 minutes of play in Seattle before waking up for an 18-5 run over the final eight-plus minutes of the first half.
Dallas held a 38-30 lead at the break. Luisa Geiselsöder nailed her second 3-pointer of the game at the halftime buzzer to cap the run and give Dallas a little breathing room.
Still, Dallas managed just 30.4% shooting from the field in the first half. They did themselves a favor with 11 offensive rebounds when the shots weren’t falling, though.
Bueckers will be re-evaluated before Friday’s game against the Los Angeles Sparks at College Park Center.
Another bad stretch of turnovers plagued the Wings’ offense in the third quarter. Seattle went on a 14-2 run late in the third to take a 50-49 lead on Erica Wheeler’s driving 3-point play with 2:47 left in the quarter. Dallas turned the ball over five more times in the first seven minutes of the frame to feed the Storm run.
DiJonai Carrington committed three of them, but her 22-point, seven-rebound performance on Tuesday gave her four straight games of at least 15. Dallas held onto a slim 55-54 lead headed into the fourth after trailing for most of the first three quarters of play.
It was another inexplicably slow night at the office for perennial Wings’ All-Star Arike Ogunbowale, who scored just eight points on 4-of-15 shooting in the loss. It was the third time this season Ogunbowale has been held to single-digit scoring a year after averaging 20.2 points per game. Azaiah James and NaLyssa Smith combined to shoot just 2-of-14. Gabby Williams fought through a twisted ankle after coming down on Carrington’s foot after a third-quarter jumper for a team-high 16 points and three steals for the Storm in the win.