– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
Follow @Koiki_Sport Follow @ALOST_Official
WASHINGTON — After a few hiccups at the beginning of the month, the Dallas Wings have found their defensive sea legs once more towards the end of August, and continuing that form may be the biggest factor in how far the Wings will go as the calendar turns into the high stakes spectacle of September.
Arike Ogunbowale scored 17 points to lead six different players who tallied double figures in Dallas’ 97-84 victory over the Washington Mystics inside the Entertainment & Sports Arena in southeast D.C. on Sunday afternoon. Center Teaira McCowan had 15 points and 13 rebounds while Satou Sabally, who was the only starter to not score in double figures for the Wings (9 points), dished out 10 assists.
More important than the impressive offensive numbers today is the fact that the Wings held the Mystics to just 42.3 percent shooting from the field (30-for-71), the third consecutive game that Dallas has held its opponent to 45 percent shooting or less during its three-game winning streak These three wins on the spin comes after Dallas went on a three-game losing streak, allowing 104 points in each of the three losses while seeing those opponents — two games vs. the Chicago Sky and one against the Las Vegas Aces — shoot a combined 51.2 percent from the floor.
Dallas scored at least 27 points in each of the first three quarters of the game against the Mystics, opening up a 10-point lead at the break (56-46) before outscoring Washington 28-18 in the third quarter to seize control of the game.
The shorthanded Mystics, still without Elena Delle Done, Kristi Toliver and Shakira Sustin, saw their modest two-game winning streak snapped. Natasha Cloud led Washington with 22 points while Brittney Sykes, coming off back-to-back 30-point games during the Mystics’ wins against Chicago and Indiana, had 16 points.
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Sunday afternoon’s game, with all photos taken by DC-area photographer Clifford Ray Williams. After clicking on the first photo to enlarge the picture, make sure to press the left and right arrow buttons to scroll through the rest of the pictures. There are 24 pictures in total.
Follow @Koiki_Sport Follow @ALOST_Official
