ARLINGTON, TX – A narrow loss on the road to the New York Liberty has the Dallas Wings (3-7) hoping to bounce back on home court in a Sunday matinee against the Minnesota Lynx (6-5).
A 12-game losing streak should be enough motivation for Dallas to finally get a victory against Minnesota. Although the Wings dropped all three games last season, the losses were all by single digits. A strong finish in the final minutes today could be the difference maker.
Consistent shooting from the field has been a problem area for the Wings all season. Going into today’s matchup, Dallas is last in the league in field goal percentage (36.8) and from beyond (26.8). Poor shooting is what has kept Dallas from losing games they should’ve won.
Rookie Arike Ogunbowale had an unusual off night in her last contest against New York finishing 2 for 23. Dallas will need their star rookie to bring back that 27-point performance she had against Connecticut to have some competitive edge against a stacked Minnesota team.
It’s been a rocky season thus far for the Lynx. After winning four of their first five games there was high promise for a post Maya Moore and Lindsay Whalen era team. However, as quickly as Minnesota found success is as quickly as they fell losing four straight games. Adjustments had to be made and so far have paid off with back-to-back wins.
All-Star veteran Sylvia Fowles has been the rock for this team and is second in the WNBA in rebounds per game (9.9). Her paint presence has forced teams to think twice and shoot from outside. Dallas will have their hands full to say the least.
Another key component to the Lynx’s attack is guard Odyssey Sims who leads the team with 15.2 points per game and 4.9 assists per game. She collected 25 points in Minnesota’s comeback victory over Indiana but could soon face disciplinary consequences after an arrest of suspicion of drunk driving earlier this month.
KEYS TO A DALLAS VICTORY
Obviously strong shooting would make a meaningful difference for Dallas. Ogunbowale and other sharp shooters like Kayla Thornton and Theresa Plaisance will need to step up. Minnesota is third in the league in shooting from the floor (44.2) and will sink almost every open shot.
Defend from within. Containing Fowles is a tall task and will truly take all around team effort to limit the All-Star in any capacity. Also watch for the battle of the boards to determine today’s victor.
Tip-off is set for 3:00pm at the College Park Center in Arlington, TX.
