Stars-Wings preview
The Dallas Wings' combination of potential superstars and role players has led the team to a season-best, three-game win streak, with the latest run of success an indication that the squad is finally finding its stride 13 games into the campaign.
The Wings hope to keep that run going when they host the San Antonio Stars on Thursday.
The memory that the Wings (6-7) lost six straight games before their current run has been wiped out by recent torrid shooting and clutch play. Dallas shot a season-best 52.8 percent from the floor (and a season-high 52.9 percent from 3-point range) in Tuesday's 100-90 home win over Phoenix.
That win came three nights after 117-111, triple-overtime victory against the Mercury in Phoenix.
"We are clicking right now and everything is just going well," Wings point guard Odyssey Sims said. "We're having fun. We're sharing the ball, smiling, high-fiving and that's always fun. We're just playing some basketball and trying to get some W's."
The surge has coincided with guard Skyler Diggins' return to the court after a knee injury kept her out of seven of Dallas' first eight games.
After leading the team with 27 points in the triple-overtime win at Phoenix, Diggins scored a team-high 20 points in the follow-up, her third game in double figures this season. Diggins is averaging 14.0 points per game since her June 11 return.
Thursday's contest will be the third consecutive road game for the Stars, who lost 81-75 to the Chicago Sky on Tuesday and, at 2-10, own the league's worst record and are winless on the road.
Guard Moriah Jefferson led the Stars against Chicago with new career highs of 20 points and five rebounds while guard Kayla McBride scored her first double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
The Stars recorded an opponent season-high 30 defensive boards against the Sky but lost the total rebounding battle 40-35.
San Antonio, which lost to Dallas 82-77 in Arlington, Texas, in the two teams' first meeting on May 21, has shot above 40 percent from the field in the last four games after failing to reach that percentage in six of the team's first eight games.