Down 14 in the Fourth Didn’t Matter Wings Complete a 17 Point Comeback to Stun Chicago 93-92

This is the kind of game that makes you fall in love with this league all over again.

The Dallas Wings trailed by as many as 17 points in the fourth quarter down 71-57 with the Chicago Sky firmly in control and then exploded for 36 points in the final period to steal a 93-92 win at College Park Center. Li Yueru hit two free throws with 12.5 seconds left to give Dallas its first lead of the entire fourth quarter, and that’s the lead they kept. Sixth straight home win for Dallas. They are now 10-6.

Wings head coach Jose Fernandez said it best after the game: “We kept battling. Good teams find a way to win, right?”

Tonight, they absolutely did.

Jessica Shepard was a problem in the second half

Shepard finished with 21 points and 8 rebounds but the story is when she scored them. 17 of her 21 points came in the second half, as Dallas methodically clawed their way back into this game. Shepard has now recorded 10 double-doubles on the season, tied with Angel Reese for the most in the entire league, and she also has the league’s only two triple-doubles this year. When this team needed someone to take over down the stretch, Shepard delivered.

Paige Bueckers hit one of the biggest shots of her career

19 points, 8 assists, 7 rebounds, 2 steals and during the heart of the comeback she scored 10 of 11 points for Dallas in one stretch that completely flipped the momentum of this game. She capped it off with what her own beat writers are already calling a legendary four-point play in the final minutes. That’s the moment that will be replayed all season. Bueckers continues to prove she is exactly the player Dallas needed to build around.

The supporting cast showed up too

Azzi Fudd added 13 points as a rookie continuing to find her footing at this level. Arike Ogunbowale chipped in 12 and hit an early three-pointer that helped bail out a wobbly Dallas offense in the first quarter when nothing was going right. Maddy Siegrist scored on a tough drive through the Chicago defense that helped spark this team out of an early funk. This was a complete team effort once Dallas found their rhythm.

Kamilla Cardoso and the Sky made them work for it

Full credit to Chicago they played a complete game for three and a half quarters and were one stop away from a signature road win. Kamilla Cardoso went for 26 points one short of her career high and 9 rebounds, dominating the interior all night against a Dallas frontcourt that simply could not contain her early. Rookie Sydney Taylor had 18 points before fouling out. Skylar Diggins added 14 and Natasha Cloud chipped in 10.

The Sky built their lead the right way out working Dallas inside, getting to the offensive glass, and getting easy buckets in the paint. They led by 17 in the fourth quarter and could not hold on. That loss stings and it extends a brutal stretch for Chicago, who has now dropped five in a row.

The numbers tell the story of two different halves

Dallas shot 45 percent for the game and 40 percent from three numbers padded entirely by an explosive fourth quarter. Chicago shot 47 percent overall but their offense completely dried up late, managing just 21 points in the final period after putting up at least 22 in every other quarter. That’s the difference in this game right there who scored when it mattered most.

My take

A 17 point fourth quarter deficit. A 36 point final period. A four point play from Paige Bueckers. A game winning free throw from a backup center with 12.5 seconds left. This is the kind of game that defines a season the one where a team proves to itself that no deficit is too big and no moment is too pressured.

Dallas is 10-6 and winning at home in a way that should make every team in this league nervous about facing them at College Park Center. Chicago will look back on this one and wonder how a 17-point lead slipped away but that’s basketball, and tonight Dallas simply wanted it more in the fourth quarter.

These two teams meet one more time on July 12 in Chicago. Her Game Network will be watching that one closely after what just happened tonight.