Guru’s WNBA Report: Ogunbowale Rallies Dallas over Washington While Los Angeles Rallies to Stop Chicago and Seattle Handles Minnesota

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

Two years into her WNBA career and Arike Ogunbowale still has a flair for drama following her two buzzer-beaters in the NCAA Women’s Final Four that brought Notre Dame its second national title.

 

On Sunday afternoon after the defending champion Washington Mystics’ Emma Meesseman missed the first but made the second of two free throws, the Dallas Wings raced the other way and Ogunbowale popped a tying three-pointer at the end of the regulation to force overtime.

 

The former Irish sensation, who is one of the WNBA’s brighter newcomers, and Dallas took it from there in overtime to post a 101-94 win and finish with 39 points as the Texans completed a sweep of the Mystics at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., near Tampa/St. Petersburg.

 

The outcome held up a celebration looming all afternoon of Washington (5-13) in mild control that was to be had by the idle seventh-place Connecticut Sun (9-10), who would have become the seventh of eight teams qualifying for the postseason that begins at a date to be named next week following the completion Sunday of the coronavirus-shortened 22-game regular season.

 

The Sun need one win to officially make the field a year after extending Washington to the fourth quarter of a decisive Game 5 and have three remaining games to do it through the front door.

 

However, they are likely to back in, considering the next two on deck putting them in underdog status are back-to-back dates 48 hours apart with the fifth-place Phoenix Mercury (12-7), one of which is the only game on the WNBA card Monday at 6 p.m.

That game  on CBSSN is a makeup from the recent league-wide two-day postponements as players joined their NBA counterparts in protest of the recent police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis., and supporting the Black Lives Matter movement in general.

 

There were 0.7 seconds left when Ogunbowale forced the overtime and the shot came 48 hours after another former Notre Dame star Jewell Loyd fired a three at the buzzer to give the front running Seattle Storm (16-3) a 90-89 win over the Los Angeles Sparks to push back one of their two nearest pursuers.

 

Both Seattle and Los Angeles played Sunday in the other two games and the Storm kept the pressure on the nearby challengers by roughing up the Minnesota Lynx 103-88 to push the Midwesterners two games behind one of the two coveted double-bye seeds into the semifinals.

 

Los Angeles (14-5) in a tight one outlasted Chicago 86-80 to move a half-game behind idle Las Vegas (14-4) and leave the Sky (11-9) likely to finish sixth, unless caught by Connecticut, and a one-game bye into the one-game second-round knockout seed.

 

There’s a jam at both ends of the playoff chase as the WNBA begins its final week of the season Monday and finishing on Sunday with the three other makeup games from the recent postponements.

 

But first let’s look at the Dallas win over a Washington team that struggled all season but was mounting a move to turn things in its direction down the stretch.

 

Ogunbowale’s 39 points were a career-high and she had nine of Dallas’ 15 points in the overtime period. 

The team total for the bonus period were the most since the franchise moved from Tulsa to Texas several years ago, though before that, the franchise had previously been the Detroit Shock that won three WNBA crowns under Bill Laimbeer, who later returned to the league to coach the New York Liberty and now runs the show in Las Vegas.

 

Rookie Satou Sabally out of Oregon fired 19 points and grabbed six rebounds for Dallas, Allisha Gray scored 14, Marina Mabrey, yet another Notre Dame alum, scored 12.

 

Dallas is not yet out of the woods, having to face Seattle on Wednesday at 10 p.m. on CBSSN and then will finish by meeting Chicago at 8 Friday night on CBSSN, and the now-eliminated New York Liberty (2-16) at noon on Sunday on CBSSN.

 

Ariel Atkins had 22 points for Washington, her fourth this season and most in a season, while Myisha Hines-Allen had an impressive double double of 22 points and 13 rebounds, Meesseman, the first reserve to win playoffs MVP last season, had 16 points, and Leilani Mitchell scored 13.

 

“First of all, it doesn’t go to overtime unless Arike makes that play,” said Dallas coach Brian Agler, who has guided Seattle and Los Angeles to titles in the league and previously did likewise with the Columbus Quest in the defunct American Basketball League.

 

“And she made a lot of plays down the stretch. But I like how we kept our composure and kept fighting defensively. We got some stops and got a couple of turnovers. We made some plays, everybody made plays in the guts of the game at the offensive end,” Agler said.

 

“We are really fortunate to have won. Washington played better, they played a good game, they didn’t close the game out and sometimes that doesn’t happen. They missed a free throw, that’s the difference. Not saying Emma lost the game, that’s not the case, but that kind of stuff happens,” he continued.

 

“It’s unfortunate for them and we got lucky and took advantage of the opportunity.”

 

Both Washington losses to Dallas were in overtime giving the Wings the first tie-break if both finish tied for eighth next Sunday.

 

The Mystics are now 1.5 games behind Dallas — they would have flipped into eighth with the win, and right behind Washington tied for 10^th at 5-14 are the Indiana Fever and Atlanta Dream two games behind the Wings with three games each left to play.

 

In the low end of the race, on Tuesday, Washington meets Minnesota at 8 on ESPN 2, while Indiana faces Las Vegas at 10 on ESPN2, The other game has Los Angeles meeting New York at 7 on CBSSN.

 

On Thursday, Indiana meets New York at 7 on CBSSN, while Washington and Los Angeles play at 10 on CBSSN.

 

In the middle, Minnesota and Las Vegas meet at 8 on ESPN2.

 

Connecticut wraps up on Friday at 7 against Atlanta on Facebook, while the other Friday game has Seattle and Phoenix at 10 on CBSSN.

 

On Saturday, in what will be key games for seed or placement, depending what came before, but Washington and New York meet noon, followed by Los Angeles and Las Vegas at 3, perhaps both gunning for the second seed and double bye.

 

Minnesota and Indiana meet at 6.

 

Sunday is the one day extension to make up the three remaining postponed games to finish off the regular season as Las Vegas will come out of Saturday’s Los Angeles game playing Seattle at 3 on ABC after New York and Dallas meet, and then Atlanta and Washington play at 5, which, at this hour until something else changes, could involve the final qualifying slot depending on the previous results.

 

Los Angeles Tops Chicago

 

Bouncing back from Friday’s tough loss to Seattle, the Sparks outlasted Chicago 86-80 holding firm down the stretch as former Tennessee standout Candace Parker had another stellar outing with 24 points and 15 rebounds, while Chelsea Gray scored 20, grabbed six rebounds, and dealt seven assists, Brittany Sykes scored 11, Riquna Williams scored 10, and after missing three games with back soreness, Stanford grad and players union president Nneka Ogwumike returned and scored nine in 29 minutes.

 

However, during the game, the Sparks’ Sydney Wiese suffered a right foot sprain in the first quarter while Sykes took a knee to the stomach in the fourth — both leaving after their injuries. They will undergo medical evaluation prior to Los Angeles’ next game.

 

As for bouncing off Friday night’s tough loss, Los Angeles locked down Chicago to just 10 points in the final quarter, though earlier in the game Chicago led by as much as 13 before the Sparks narrowed it with a strong run to close out the first half.

 

Commenting on Ogwumike’s return afterwards, Los Angeles coach Derek Fisher said, “There are people that don’t like sleeping in the dark. Nneka is the night light that gives that feeling of comfort and security.

 

“You just feel better when she’s on and around. And I honestly did not anticipate being able to play her 25 minutes.”

 

Chicago’s Cheyenne Parker scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, Allie Quigley scored 22, of which 15 came off of five three-pointers, Rutgers grad Kahleah Copper had 14, and Courtney Vandersloot had nine points and dealt 15 assists.

 

By team, Los Angeles’ finish in the battle for the top two spots will have the Sparks meeting New York Tuesday at 7, Washington Thursday at 10, and Las Vegas at 3 on Saturday.

 

The Aces play Indiana Tuesday, Minnesota, Thursday, Los Angeles, Saturday, and Seattle Sunday.

 

Parker had her ninth double double, which leads the WNBA.

 

 Seattle Blasts Minnesota

 

In the other game Sunday, Seattle clinched minimally a top four slot beating Minnesota, 103-88, dropping the Lynx three behind the Storm, but 1.5 behind Las Vegas and a game behind Los Angeles.

 

By team, Seattle finishes playing Dallas Wednesday, Phoenix, Friday, and Las Vegas Sunday so it is not yet in the bag at the top for the Storm.

 

Minnesota faces Washington Tuesday, Las Vegas, Thursday, and Indiana Saturday.

 

In the Seattle side of winning, Sunday, Natasha Howard had 19 points, Breanna Stewart had 18, Loyd had 16 and seven assists, Alysha Clark had 15, reserve Ezi Magbegor scored 12, and Sue Bird had eight points and seven assists.

 

Minnesota’s Damiris Dantas had 22 points and nine rebounds, Odyssey Sims had 14, rookie Crystal Dangerfield scored 13, and reigning rookie of the year Napheesa Collier scored 10.

 

Looking Straight Ahead

 

As for Monday night’s Phoenix/Connecticut game, the Mercury will play Seattle Friday to finish up after the back-to-back with the Sun, but likely the best they can finish with a sweep is third or fourth.

 

Connecticut, which could catch Phoenix, finishing in a 3-0 sweep, for Monday night and first-things, first, a win gives the Sun mathematical entrée into the playoff field plus the comeback after losing the first five games of the season have been predominately over the like-teams below their spot of seventh in the standings.

 

Against the teams with losing records — Dallas, Washington, Indiana, Atlanta, and New York, the Sun went 8-1, the ninth win off a split with Chicago in terms of beating anyone with a winning record.

 

Thus, moving Chicago into that winning group, Connecticut has struggled, though competitive in games, to a 1-9 mark so minimally splitting with the Mercury and doing it by grabbing Monday’s game would mean world’s in terms of finishing and getting ready for the postseason.

 

And if that fails, then Wednesday, though it could be they would have backed in by then in terms of the official playoff team so please remain in Florida designation.

 

And that’s the report.