Arike Ogunbowale scored 16 of her 22 points in the second half to fuel the visiting Dallas Wings to a 96-86 victory over the reeling Indiana Fever on Sunday in Indianapolis.
Teaira McCowan made 8 of 10 shots from the floor and finished with 17 points and seven rebounds against her former team. She spent her first three WNBA seasons with Indiana before being acquired by Dallas in a trade in March.
Allisha Gray had 16 points and Kayla Thornton added 11 points and eight rebounds for the Wings (12-15), who shot 52.1 percent from the floor to post just their third win in their last nine games.
Indiana’s Kelsey Mitchell erupted for a season-high 34 points on 13-of-23 shooting from the floor. She made just 10 of 28 shots during her team’s three-game road trip.
NaLyssa Smith had 16 points and Queen Egbo added 14 for the Fever (5-25), who extended their franchise-record losing streak to 12 games. Indiana, which committed 19 total turnovers, hasn’t won since posting an 89-87 victory over the WNBA-leading Chicago Sky on June 19.
Mitchell scored nine points to send Indiana to a 19-11 lead with 1:26 remaining in the first quarter. Dallas, however, fought back and trimmed the deficit to six by the end of the quarter.
Gray scored 10 points in the second as the Wings outscored the Fever 28-16 in the quarter to seize a 45-39 lead at halftime.
McCowan’s pass sprung Gray for an easy layup to push Dallas’ advantage to 59-44 with 5:25 to play in the third quarter. Ogunbowale and Thornton each converted a three-point play in the final minute of the quarter push the Wings’ lead to 78-61 after three.
Smith sank a pair of 3-pointers to cap a 10-3 run by the Fever, but Mitchell was whistled for a clear path foul with 6:11 to play. Thornton drained a pair of free throws and Isabelle Harrison converted in the paint on the same possession to halt the momentum.
Mitchell converted a three-point play and Egbo sank a driving layup to bring Indiana within five points with 1:35 to play. Ogunbowale, however, made a pair of layups to effectively seal the victory.
–Field Level Media