Natasha Howard makes 2 FTs with 0.4 to play, Wings hand Aces their second loss of season 80-78

Jul 8, 2023, 12:40 pm

DALLAS -- — Natasha Howard made two free throws with less than a second to play and the Dallas Wings handed the Las Vegas Aces just their second loss, pulling out an 80-78 win before a sell-out crowd on Friday night.

Getting the ball with 14.2 seconds remaining, the Wings grabbed three offensive rebounds after Satou Sabally missed the initial shot from the right wing.

Teaira McCowan had the first two rebounds but A'ja Wilson blocked her first shot and McCowan missed the second, but Howard was there for the rebound and was fouled with 0.4 on the clock.

After a timeout, Las Vegas tried a lob pass toward the basket but the clock started before a player touched the ball. Given a second chance, the ball was inbounded to Jackie Young but she had to take a dribble and the clock ran out before her shot swished through and the Aces' nine-game winning streak was over.

Arike Ogunbowale scored 21 points for the Wings (9-9) and Howard and McCowan both had double-doubles. Howard had 16 points and 11 rebounds while McCowan had 14 and 12 for her third straight. Crystal Dangerfield added 14 points and Sabally 10 with five rebounds, five assists and five steals. The Dallas bench only had five points.

Wilson and Kelsey Plum both had 21 points for the Aces (16-2). Chelsea Gray added 14, Young 12 and Candace Parker 10. Only two reserves played for Las Vegas and neither scored.

Las Vegas led 40-39 at the half and surged to an 11-point lead as Dallas had turnover issues in the third quarter. But the Wings battled back in the game that featured 10 ties and 10 lead changes. McCowan's putback with 6:30 to play tied the game at 71 and her layup at 5:01 made it 73-71.

Gray hit a jumper from the foul line that tied the game at 78 with a minute to go. Both teams then missed long 3-point attempts before the wild finish.

The Aces were 10 of 26 from 3-point range but had 17 turnovers and were outrebounded 36-25.

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