ARLINGTON, TX — The Dallas Wings (9-5) laid the hammer down on the defending WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces (10-4) for a second time this season at College Park Center on Monday. The Wings used a 23-6 second-quarter run to run out in front of the Aces on Monday and never looked back, finishing off a 96-66 blowout win in front of a frenzied home crowd on the fourth of five games in a nine-day span.
Monday’s win was the second win over the Aces in the first 14 games of the 2026 season for the Wings —
marking the first time in franchise history that Dallas has beaten Vegas more than once in any year since the two franchises started playing in their current home towns.
The Wings got an early spark from Awak Kuier and, who else — Jessica Shepard as Dallas built an early 21-11 lead. Kuier’s wide open 3-pointer midway through the first put the Wings up 17-11, before Bueckers found Shepard cutting inside a minute later to make it 21-11.
Later in the quarter, Maddy Siegrsist nailed her first look from 3-point range before Aziaha James stole the Las Vegas inbound pass and converted through the foul of Cheyenne Parker-Tyus with 28 seconds left in the frame. Dallas took a 29-20 lead after one quarter.
Alanna Smith and Arike Ogunbowale kept the pressure on Las Vegas early in the second quarter. Better minutes from Smith over the past two games have been a welcome sight for Wings fans, as she was expectedc to be the biggest free agent addition of the offseason. Ogunbowale scored five straight for the Wings, including a shot-clock-beating 3-pointer with 7:20 left in the half to put Dallas in front 38-26.
Bueckers hit her first from deep just 45 seconds later, then stole the ball and found Ogunbowale on the other end for another Wings’ 3-ball to extend the lead to 44-26 and force another Aces timeout. After shooting just 7-of-28 from 3-point range in Saturday’s 84-83 loss at the Portland Fire, Dallas started Monday’s game shooting 5-of-7 from deep as the Wings jumped out to a big lead in the second.
Dallas took a 56-37 lead into the break behind 13 points and eight boards from Shepard and 11 points apiece from Fudd and Ogunbowale. Jewel Loyd hit four 3-pointers of her own later in the second quarter and led all scorers with 15 points at the half.
The Wings answered every time Las Vegas even thought about mounting a run in the second half, keeping the Aces at arm’s length from their vantage 20 points ahead. Fudd was the most efficient scorer for the Wings on the night. Her pump fake was lethal, and her prowess on the fast break put her in place for a few easy buckets as well. After former Wing NaLyssa Smith cut to the rack for an easy bucket to trim the Dallas lead to 77-58, Fudd got out in front in transition two possessions later for a leisurely lay-in with 7:20 left to play.
Ogunbowale led the Wings with 22 points on five made 3-pointers and seven assists in the win, but Fudd went 8-of-9 from the field for 19 of her own. Shepard finished the game one assist shy of her third triple-double of the year, with 15 points, 15 boards and nine dimes for Dallas.
Spotlight on Kuier
If there is one Dallas Wing with the frame and the athleticism needed to stay in front of and keep a body on A’ja Wilson, the best player in the WNBA, it’s Awak Kuier. So, there’s no coincidence that Monday’s game against the Aces was Kuier’s first start of the season, and just the fifth of her young career.
After being victimized by the dreaded blow-by on the Aces’ first possession of the ballgame, Kuier struck back on the offensive end, scoring two easy baskets on the fast break as Wilson failed to stay in front of the youngster. The second game the Wings an early 8-4 lead and forced Las Vegas head coach Becky Hammon into the team’s first timeout just 2:18 into the first quarter. Kuier nearly had a steal on a post entry pass just seconds later, but Wilson gathered the loose ball for her second bucket of the game instead.
Kuier’s job was just to do what she could to slow Wilson down as much as possible, because no one in the W can stop the two-time defending MVP. Kuier got the better of the center matchup from the scoring column during her first-quarter minutes, outscoring Wilson 7-6 before heading to the bench midway through the first.
Although she wasn’t featured much in the offense after the opening quarter, Kuier’s presence inside was a big part of the Wings’ ability to limit Wilson’s normally outsized impact on the game. Wilson finished the game with 18 points and five rebounds for Vegas.
Triple threat
Already armed with a nine-point lead entering the second quarter, the Wings brought the pain from beyond the arc, connecting on their first four 3-point attempts of the frame. Azzi Fudd’s first of the game was Dallas’ fourth straight, and it came with 5:25 left in the half, as part of a 23-6 Wings’ run over the first six minutes of the second quarter.
Fudd then hit two mid-range jumpers on the next two Wings’ possessions to increase Dallas’ lead to 52-26 with four minutes left before the break. Dallas finally missed its first 3-pointer of the quarter with 3:20 left in the first half, as a good pull-up look from Ogunbowale drew the back iron. The Wings were still 6-of-9 from distance to that point, though.
Bueckers and Ogunbowale applied more pressure from the 3-point line as the third quarter started, helping the Wings extend their lead to 25 points, up 66-41 after Ogunbowale’s third of the game just 4:16 into the second half.
Ogunbowale connected on her fifth 3-pointer, an open look from the left wing, with 6:33 remaining, to give Dallas back an 82-58 cushion. It was all but over at that point. Dallas missed a few down the stretch to finish 10-of-28 (35.7%) from 3-point land in the win.
Alanna Smith aggravates injury
It’s no secret to those who follow the team closely that Alanna Smith’s mask has been limiting her production to start the season. Her minutes have been light, and at times it’s looked like her peripheral vision is extremely limited with the mask on, as Smith has fumbled some passes and scoring opportunities in close to the basket.
Smith was hit in the face while battling for a rebound with 1:59 left in the third quarter, and immediately discarded her mask on her way to the bench after reaching for her nose before head coach Jose Fernandez called a timeout to get her out of the game. A trainer came over to look at the bridge of Smith’s nose on the bench, and Smith briefly came back on the court to argue for a foul call before sitting back down for the end of the third and the start of the fourth.
