SEATTLE — (AP) — Arike Ogunbowale had 26 points and six assists, Satou Sabally added 17 points, 10 rebounds and five assists and the Dallas Wings beat the Seattle Storm 95-91 Friday night.
Dallas is 2-0 for the first time since 2007, when the franchise was known as the Detroit Shock — two relocations ago (the organization moved to Tulsa from 2010-15).
“Yeah, I mean that's something. We'll take it. I just announced that to the team. First time the Dallas Wings started 2-0. We'll build off of that," Dallas Wings head coach Latricia Trammel said. "And that's something that's exciting. It's those little rewards along the way that I think will keep this team confident and excited to play.”
Crystal Dangerfield got her first start of the season and finished the night with 17 points on 6-9 shooting (66.7%) with three triples. Her three threes represent her most made since September 17, 2021 with Minnesota.
Natasha Howard recorded 17 points, nine rebounds and a team-leading five steals and four blocks. Through two games, Howard leads the league in steals, averaging 4.0 a game.
"You’ve got to think that she’s starting her 10th season in the league. I mean, she is that vet leadership. This is her. If you follow her on social media, she said this is her family. It feels right to her," Trammel said of Howard's leadership. "Even when she came off the court at one point just so I could give her a little break, I looked at her and I said this is your season. And she's embracing that. I haven't seen so many smiles on that young lady's face since she got here. She's a big factor in this team and a huge part of us winning."
Five of the six scorers for the Wings recorded double digits with Veronica Burton only a single point shy of the mark. Jasmine Dickey provided all 10 bench points, hitting double digits on 5-6 (83.3%) and doubling her previous career-high of five points from June 12, 2022. Dickey led the team with a +/- of 15.
Kia Nurse hit a 3-pointer, Jewell Loyd made back-to-back jumpers and Nurse added another 3 in a 10-2 run that trimmed Seattle’s deficit to 93-91 with 1:08 to play. Howard was called for an offensive foul a few seconds later but the Storm missed the only shot they attempted from there.
"That's obviously an area of growth," Trammel said of being outscored in the second half. "It's better in my opinion, that third quarter since we tied, than the first game. So, there's growth there. There's continued growth. We're thinking about this is only second game. So no, I'm not concerned, but I can't wait to get fully loaded. If that comes up sooner than later."
The Wings forced a shot-clock violation 29 seconds left and, after Dangerfield missed a 3-point shot on the other end, Sabally’s offensive rebound and putback made capped the scoring with 4.1 seconds left.
Loyd scored 30 points and Nurse added 20, including six 3-pointers, for the Storm (0-2). Ezi Magbegor had 15 points and 12 rebounds, the 6-foot-4, 24-year-old center's fourth career double-double.
Seattle scored the first eight points and took an 18-13 lead when Loyd made two free throws with 4:51 left in the first quarter, but the Wings scored the next 17 points to take the lead for good. The Storm went 0 for 8 from the field with two turnovers during a four-plus minute scoreless stretch and could never fully recover.
The Wings will head to Chicago to face the Sky on May 28 for a 5 p.m. CT tipoff.
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