Wings Downed by Sky, 104-96
August 6, 2023 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Dallas Wings News Release
ARLINGTON, Texas - The Wings fell, 104-96, to the Sky at College Park Center this afternoon.
The teams combined for 54 fouls and 70 free throw attempts, 35 each. Today's 70 combined free throw attempts are a WNBA season high, exceeding the previous high of 67 set in a game between Dallas and Atlanta on June 20. The last time there were 70 or more combined free throw attempts in a game was exactly a year ago today (8/6/22, IND vs. DAL - 74). The 54 fouls are the most in a WNBA game since August 2, 2020 (PHO vs. NYL - 59).
Satou Sabally recorded a team leading 25 points, sinking half of the Wings' shots from deep, and dished out eight assists. Natasha Howard finished with 24 points on 6-9 shooting, while also hitting 11-13 shots from the free throw line. The duo both grabbed five boards.
Arike Ogunbowale totaled 14 points on the afternoon, while Kalani Brown recorded 13 points on 5-6 (83.3%) shooting and McCowan recorded 11 points alongside nine rebounds.
Dallas Wings Notes:
Dallas outscored Chicago 44-28 in the paint, 16-6 in fast break points and 17-11 in second chance points.
Up Next:
Dallas will stay at home where they will play the Las Vegas Aces on Tuesday, August 8 at 7 p.m. CT coverage on Bally Sports Southwest Extra.
Score after 1st Quarter: Dallas 21, Chicago 21
Score at Halftime: Dallas 37, Chicago 46
Score after 3rd Quarter: Dallas 66, Chicago 75
Final Score: Dallas 96, Chicago 104
Zoom Recording: Dallas Wings Postgame (Head Coach Latricia Trammell): https://we.tl/t-b4xAITCpNQ
Zoom Recording: Dallas Wings Postgame (Natasha Howard): https://we.tl/t-yt8hdNOxex
PHOTOS AND B-ROLL: Dallas Wings vs. Chicago Sky (August 6)
POST GAME QUOTES
HEAD COACH LATRICIA TRAMMEL
On how she keeps focused during long reviews that hurt game momentum...
"I'm really proud of our fight, that's something that I'm very impressed with and it was definitely a group effort. We had some solid minutes from a lot of players especially going small at the end to get a chance to get back in it and cause some turnovers. I think that second quarter, we gave them eight points and just the three ball of course. But, we didn't back down so I am proud of that for this team."
On Teaira McCowan's condition after today's game...
"Yeah. She's doing really good, I know she got hit in the stomach but I'm anxious to see if she's solid. I know she came back in the game for a little bit, but I definitely want to touch base, I just haven't [met] with the medical team yet."
On their attack plan for Tuesday's game...
"When you play a team four times that is a system team, you know what you're going to get. This is a starter-heavy Vegas as we know, and they play extremely well together. When they're in flow, they're the best at what they do within their team in transition. We match up really well against them. We're the only team that has beaten New York and Vegas and gave them one of their three losses, but it should be a great game. We've got to get the rest that we need. I say this all the time, I don't know when we're going to get that rest moment because we keep going one after another, but that's just a part of the process. So, it'll be a fun game."
On Satou Sabally's versatility on defense...
"Competitor. She wants to win, sometimes when you play heavy minutes at times you have to dig deeper, and she knows where that is for herself. I always say she's a force to be reckoned with, but she does all those little things, hence why I said thank you for saying that because most people don't notice it. Usually, people go right to the points, but she does some of that grind work and shows a lot of grit."
On if Sabally's ability to put pressure on the ball and deflect balls is rare...
"Depends on who it is, right? Again, these are professional athletes, and these players can play multiple positions. A lot of them, but I get what you're saying. Her versatility, her quickness, her lateral movement, her instinct on defending the ball, that's what separates her from many of those people."
On her plans to combat Vegas' three points shooting on Tuesday...
"We just have to follow the plan. We've got to do better at defending the ball just 1-on-1, because a lot of times we made an adjustment from what hurt us last game with the screen and rescreen and then we gave up the three today. But I have to say it, I give Chicago credit because they have been shooting the basketball extremely well. There were a lot of times that we had a hand in their face, but they just flat out nailed it. So, if we're there, but we must do our work earlier and disrupt passing lanes."
On the team's thought process in today's game versus Friday...
"Well, they got ticked because of losing to them the last game at home. So, we knew we had to come back home and let our presence be known, and that's one thing I was very proud of today. I like the aggressiveness, I like that strong mentality, that's going to take us a long way."
On how games like today help prepare for the Playoffs...
"Well, you know the playoffs are going to be tough. Our ultimate goal is to win a playoff series and then let the chips fall where they may. But I think we're getting so many different calls each game, one game they may call the game tight, and one game they may not, so we may get that type of officiating in the playoffs which I think is a plus."
On how the team can get back in the groove before Tuesday...
"We've got hard stretch, don't we? If we can just survive until we finally get our break which will be during the Commissioners Cup, we get 3 full days that I am giving this team. I think about the journey we've been on and when we played Vegas the last time, they had four days off. We go to play Chicago, they had four days off, and we're coming off a crazy schedule of traveling plus games and it keeps hitting us. I'm sure a lot of teams in the league have to go through that, we just have to find a way to hold on, stay together, and just know that little break where we can reset, and recover is coming up. But these players are tired you know, here we have Vegas like you mentioned, not tomorrow but the day after, and so you can't really do much. Because their mental health and recovery is really the most important thing so sometimes they have to make adjustments on the fly."
On how important it is to focus on the positive and focus on enhancements for next opponents...
"Well, you know I'm always on the positive. So, we had more paint points then they did, which was big. We had more fast break points, had 17 second chance points, tied the first quarter, lost the second by 8, tied the third quarter, and won the fourth quarter. So, it's just those eight points in the second but we always say it's the little things that make the big things happen. A couple more stops, a couple more easy shots, and we win this game. We'll focus on that, at least we had an opportunity to win."
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