Dallas Wings (9-15) at Atlanta Dream (12-12)
Date: Friday, July 22
Time: 6:30 PM (CDT)
Site: McCamish Pavilion
Television: WNBA League Pass
Probable Starters
Wings: Karima Christmas, Plenette Pierson, Courtney Paris, Odyssey Sims, Skylar Diggins
Dream: Bria Holmes, Angel McCoughtry, Elizabeth Williams, Tiffany Hayes, Layshia Clarendon
Storylines
The Wings and Dream face off in Atlanta for the second time in two weeks. Dallas fell in overtime to Atlanta on July 8, despite Karima Christmas’s 18 point/15 rebound performance. Dream forward Angel McCoughtry recorded 27 points, 9 assists, and 10 rebounds versus the Wings.
Dallas and Atlanta also faced off on May 27 in Arlington. The Dallas bench was the story in the 102-93 loss, as Jordan Hooper went 4-for-7 from 3-point range, and rookie Aerial Powers led the team with 16 points in only her second home game.
With 10 games remaining in the regular season, Dallas currently stands out of playoff position, one-half game behind Washington and Seattle for the eighth and final playoff spot. Last season, as the Tulsa Shock, the team went 8-2 in the final 10 games to lock up the franchise’s ninth playoff appearance.
Following the game in Atlanta, the WNBA will go on a month-long break while some of its players participate in the 2016 Olympics. Wings guard Erin Phillips will play for her native Australia in Rio, while Odyssey Sims and Aerial Powers were named to the 11-member USA Basketball Women’s Select Team. The Wings will return to action on August 26 at Phoenix.
The Wings continue to dominate the offensive boards this season, placing three players in the league’s top four performers in the category. Courtney Paris (3.0 per game) leads in the league in offensive rebounds, while Glory Johnson and Karima Christmas are tied at third, averaging 2.7 per game. As a team, the Wings lead the league with 11.8 per game, while the Dream follow closely with 11.0.
What the Wings are saying about Friday’s game…
Head Coach Fred Williams- “It will take solid rebounding to beat Atlanta, and for us to come out and get to the free throw line as much as possible. That’s important.”
Assistant coach Bridget Pettis- “It will take our best Dallas Wings team to show up. That’s what it will take for us to win. We’ve had our best show up at times, and we’ve shown the worst of ourselves at times. It’s just going to take that bigger team to show up.”
Forward Plenette Pierson- “It’s going to take focus. It’s going to take all of us focusing in and buying into the system. We’ll need to break it down and play good team defense.”
Forward Jordan Hooper- “We need to hold on to our lead. We came out really strong last time and we let them creep back in. There were a couple things we didn’t do defensively, and we had a few turnovers offensively. I think if we just fix those things, we’ll be alright.”