Ogunbowale leads Dallas past New York
NEW YORK, May 16, (AP): Arike Ogunbowale scored 18 of her 21 points in the second half and the Dallas Wings beat the New York Liberty 81-71 on Sunday.
Dallas (2-1) had a two-point lead at halftime before Ogunbowale got going. She had 12 points in the third quarter, including a 3-pointer that made it 62-52 with 1:55 left in the period.
New York (1-3) got within five in the fourth quarter but could get no closer thanks to Ogunbowale and Isabelle Harrison, who finished with 18 points.
Sabrina Ionescu had 17 points, seven rebounds and six assists to lead the Liberty. Natasha Howard scored 14 points after missing 14 of her 15 shot attempts in her last game.
New York has dropped three straight.
New York’s Han Xu saw extended minutes with Stefanie Dolson in foul trouble and scored 10 points. The 6-foot10 center from China is a crowd favorite and finished just short of her career high of 12 points set in 2019. She missed the last two seasons because of the coronavirus pandemic and playing for China’s Olympic team last summer.
New York got off to a hot start and led 9-2 behind Howard before Dallas scored 15 of the next 17 points. Gray had 10 points in the quarter and the Wings led 26-22 after one. Dallas held a 39-37 advantage at halftime.
BASKETBALL
It’s always special for Wings coach Johnson when she comes back to New York. She starred for the Liberty from 1997-2005 and is in the franchise’s ring of honor.
Dream 85, Fever 79
In Indianapolis, top-pick Rhyne Howard had a career-high 33 points the most in any WNBA game this season - to help the Atlanta Dream beat the Indiana Fever 85-79.
In a matchup that featured the two top picks in last month’s draft, Howard made 9-of-18 from the field and 12-of17 from the free-throw line with three steals.
Indiana’s NaLyssa Smith - the No. 2 overall selection - scored a seasonhigh 18 points before leaving the game with about 6 1/2 minutes left due to a right ankle injury.