Wings Grab Playoff Spot, Soar over Portland
WNBA Dallas Wings

Wings Grab Playoff Spot, Soar over Portland

Published on August 25, 2026 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Dallas Wings News Release


Arlington, TX - The Dallas Wings clinched their first playoff berth since 2023 with a 96-78 victory over the visiting Portland Fire on Tuesday night at a sold-out College Park Center. With the win, Dallas improves to 23-16 on the year to set a team record for most regular-season wins (23). Portland drops to 15-23 and is officially eliminated from playoff contention. The meeting was the rubber match between the two teams, with Dallas securing the series victory with Portland, 2-1 - the Wings' ninth series win of the year.

All five starters scored in double-digits for the Wings, led by Paige Bueckers who notched her third points-assists double-double of the season with 22 points and a game-high 11 assists. She also added four rebounds, two steals and one block in 33 minutes of action. With her 23rd outing with at least 20 points on the year, Bueckers moved into second all-time in 20+ points games in a single season in Wings history.

Jessica Shepard finished one rebound shy of a double-double, with 21 points, nine rebounds, six assists and two steals. The game marked her 30th double-digit scoring performance of the season, more than double her total from a season ago (13). Shepard has recorded a league-best five games this season with at least 20/9/5.

Awak Kuier added a double-double in the win, notching 12 points, a team-high 12 rebounds, a career-high tying three steals and five blocks. Her five blocks gave her 54 blocks on the season, tying her with Liz Cambage for the most blocks in a single season in Wings history. Kuier joins A'ja Wilson as the only two players this season to record at least 12 points, 12 rebounds and eight stocks (steals + blocks) while shooting at least 50% from the field.

Arike Ogunbowale recorded 17 points, two rebounds, four assists and two steals, shooting 50% from the field (7/14), while Alanna Smith rounded out the Wings' double-digit scorers with 10 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal on the evening.

Dallas finished the night shooting .551 from the field, .458 from three and .692 from the free-throw line, while Portland shot .375 overall, .278 from three and .824 from the charity stripe. The Wings grabbed a season-high 11 steals in the win, with four players (Kuier-3, Shepard, Ogunbowale, Bueckers- 2) grabbing two or more steals for the second time this season.

The Wings held the advantage in the paint (46-34), on second chance opportunities (22-16) and fast break (15-7), while the Fire's bench outscored the Wings' bench, 29-14. Both teams committed 12 turnovers on the evening, but Dallas converted 23 points off turnovers to Portland's 14.

Dallas will play its final game ahead of the 2026 FIBA World Cup break on Sunday against the Connecticut Sun. Tipoff at College Park Center is set for 7:30 p.m. CT, with the game airing on WFAA - the local ABC affiliate in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Game Leaders

Points Rebounds Assists

Portland Carleton, Samuelson (14) Engstler (15) Leite (7)

Dallas Bueckers (22) Kuier (12) Bueckers (11)

First Quarter: Dallas 27, Portland 18

The Wings utilized a starting lineup of Paige Bueckers, Arike Ogunbowale, Awak Kuier, Alanna Smith and Jessica Shepard for the third straight game. Dallas jumped out to a 12-3 lead with 6:26 to go in the opening quarter sparked by an early five points from Ogunbowale, forcing a Portland timeout. The Fire started just 1-6 from the field while Dallas made five of its first nine, including a pair of threes. Portland went on a 5-1 run out of the TO but Dallas countered with an 8-2 spurt to claim its first double-digit lead of the game, 21-10, with 2:15 left. The Wings would close with a nine-point lead after one, shooting .611 from the field while holding Portland to a .333 mark as Kuier recorded three blocks, impacting Fire shot selections. Kuier led all scorers with eight points, going 3-3 from the field and grabbing five rebounds.

Second Quarter: Dallas 23, Portland 19

Dallas shot .625 from the field in the second quarter while limiting the Fire to just 1-10 from deep as the Wings lead grew to as many as 14. Shepard had eight points in the frame to have a game-high 14 at the half. Kuier tallied 11 points and eight rebounds at the break, with the rebounding total matching her career high for boards in a single half. Bueckers added eight points and eight assists - one dime shy of her career best for assists in a half.

Third Quarter: Dallas 21, Portland 15

The Wings jumped out on a 9-2 run to see their lead grow to 18 - 59-41 - with 6:22 left in the quarter, forcing another Fire timeout. Ogunbowale scored four points during the spurt while Shepard dished three assists. Kuier recorded a steal out of the timeout and Bueckers drained a triple as the lead eclipsed 20 points for the first time, with Smith putting the exclamation point on the stretch by converting an and-one to make it 65-41 Wings. Dallas shot .471 in the quarter and 3-6 from three while limiting Portland to .333 shooting overall and just 1-7 from deep. Bueckers had a game-best eight points in the quarter.

Fourth Quarter: Dallas 25, Portland 26

The Fire would not get closer than 15 points in the fourth quarter, as the Wings were able to keep them at bay to secure the 96-78 win. Shepard scored seven of her 21 points in the final frame to lead Dallas, while Bueckers and Ogunbowale chipped in six apiece. The Wings shot 50% (9/18) from the field over the final ten minutes, including 42.9% (3/7) from beyond the arc.

Check out the Dallas Wings Statistics

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