Arike Ogunbowale scored 22 factors, Paige Bueckers and Odyssey Sims tallied 20 every, and the Dallas Wings opened the brand new WNBA season with a 107-104 win over the Indiana Fever on Saturday in Indianapolis.
Sims, an important a part of Indiana’s playoff run final season, led the Wings with 12 factors after half-time and made considered one of two free throws within the ultimate seconds of regulation. Caitlin Clark missed a 32-footer and Indiana fouled Bueckers on the rebound, however Bueckers missed each foul photographs with 1.4 seconds left, giving the Fever one final probability.
With Clark smothered by defenders on the inbound play, Kelsey Mitchell uncorked a 3 to tie however it bounced off the rim.
“This recreation was tough. I’m not saying this was our greatest recreation, however we acquired the win,” Ogunbowale instructed the ESPN broadcast after the sport.
Mitchell powered the Fever’s comeback with 11 of her game-high 30 factors coming within the fourth. Aliyah Boston had 23 factors and Clark tallied 20 factors, seven assists and 4 rebounds whereas capturing 2 for 9 from deep.
Clark, who missed a lot of final season with groin and ankle accidents, made her first look in a WNBA recreation since 15 July 2025. She scored her 1,000th profession level on a layup to shut the third quarter.
The sport featured the previous 4 No 1 picks within the WNBA draft: Boston (2023), Clark (2024), Bueckers (2025) and Dallas guard Azzi Fudd (2026). It was the primary season opener in WNBA historical past during which every crew scored greater than 100 factors.
“I believe it’s nice for girls’s basketball greater than something,” Clark mentioned earlier than the sport, referring to the 4 No 1 picks. “And you understand this may be the primary time this has ever actually occurred in sports activities – having two No 1 picks on each side. I believe it speaks to the younger expertise on this league, how excited followers are about them and the way excited they’re about these two groups having us match up within the first recreation of the season.”
Neither crew led by greater than 9 as two environment friendly offenses went tit-for-tat. The Wings shot 59.1% from the sphere and 12 for 23 from three-point vary, whereas the Fever made 51.9% total however simply seven of 24 three-point makes an attempt.
Clark left the bench within the waning minutes of the third interval and returned carrying a black wrap round her decrease again. She reentered the sport and hit the ultimate layup of the third to forge a tie at 80.
Clark was not a part of the Fever’s first lineup for the fourth quarter however emerged from the locker room quickly after, presumably after additional remedy.
“I really feel good, began off somewhat gradual I believe simply the anxiousness of the primary recreation,” she mentioned. “Felt like I used to be actually simply a few buckets away from placing collectively a extremely, actually good recreation and getting a win.”
Sims’s fast-break layup made it 97-90 with 4 minutes and alter to play, however Mitchell clawed the Fever again with a three-pointer, one free throw and a three-point play to get it to 99-97 Dallas. Bueckers responded with a 20-footer.
Boston missed the second half of a pair of free throws however stole the rebound from Bueckers and laid it in to chop it to 101-100. Then the Fever pressured their second five-second violation of the quarter, however got here up empty on offense.
Alanna Smith scored for Dallas and Sims hit a shot over Clark to make it 105-100 with 36.4 seconds left.
After the Fever pushed in entrance early within the second quarter on consecutive three-pointers by Sophie Cunningham and Boston, Fudd responded with the primary factors of her profession on a nook three, and Ogunbowale’s triple restored the tie recreation at 35. Fudd completed her WNBA debut with simply these three factors and one steal in 18 minutes off the bench.