“…when you see yourself do something, you believe it more…” – Marina Mabrey
Wings fans packed College Park Center for the First Round of the WNBA Playoffs as Dallas faced the Connecticut Sun. The first quarter was nothing short of amazing with a strong performance from guard Veronica Burton, who had eight points including a three that electrified the 5,018 (including NBA’s Ja Morant) in attendance. The first half wasn’t without a low point as forward Isabelle Harrison injured her ankle in the first quarter.
The second half saw the appearance of Arike Ogunbowale late in the 3rd, but the “spark” was no match for DeWanna Bonner and company as they defeated the Wings, 73-58 to go 2-1 in this three games series. Other contributors for Connecticut were Alyssa Thomas who had thirteen points and eight rebounds, Jonquel Jones who had a double double with eleven points and ten rebounds. D’jonai Carrington only had three points, but contributed in other ways that resulted her having a +11 for the evening.
Despite the result, the future is bright for the Wings as this was their first playoff win in six seasons. One of the positives was Teaira McCowan who had twelve rebounds and two blocks. Marina Mabrey who led the Wings with twenty points said, “when you see yourself do something, you believe it more”. Coach Vickie Johnson was also quoted saying that the team is ready to “take the next step forward as a team, offensively and defensively”.
There’s now only four teams left in the hunt for the trophy as the Sun are set to face the Chicago Sky, as well as the Las Vegas Aces (led by WNBA Coach of the Year, Becky Hammon) against the Seattle Storm in the semifinals.
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