2.4 seconds, a pass behind the defense
There were 2.4 seconds left. Alyssa Thomas picked out Kahleah Copper behind the Dallas defense. Layup. 87-86.
Phoenix had trailed by 11 points in the final quarter. Nobody saw this coming, especially not the Wings, who had won six straight and led 68-61 going into the last 10 minutes.
Copper finished with 31 points. She had tied it at 81-81 by making two free throws with 49.6 seconds left. Paige Bueckers answered with a three-pointer at 32.6 seconds. Copper coolly sank two more free throws. Arike Ogunbowale, just 2 of 8 from the field on the night, added two more at 16.9 seconds to put Dallas back up by three.
And then Natasha Mack grabbed a botched inbound pass with 15.7 seconds left. Layup. One-point game. You know the rest.
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Dallas pays the price in the standings
The loss hits the Wings hard. With one day left in the regular season, Dallas shares seventh place with New York, both on 26 wins and 17 losses. Both teams have one game left. Washington is half a game ahead, with two still to play.
So the playoff seedings are still being decided on the margins. Dallas finishes its regular season on Wednesday in Seattle.
Bueckers had 30 points. Jessica Shepard produced a huge all-round effort, with 17 points, 19 rebounds and six assists. It still wasn’t enough. The Wings had led 35-21 after a Maddy Siegrist three-pointer with 7:21 left in the second quarter.
Phoenix has nothing to play for and wins anyway
The Mercury were out of the playoff race a while ago. Their record stands at 16 wins and 27 losses. Nothing left to salvage in the standings, then.
Thomas still put up 15 points and 12 rebounds. Mack added 12 points, Kara Dunn 11. Phoenix ends its season on Thursday at home against Las Vegas, the defending champions.
One last one for the road, against the Aces. The Wings, meanwhile, will have to sit with this one until Wednesday.
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