Wings vs. Fever: Arike Ogunbowale and Paige Bueckers Outlast Caitlin Clark in a 107-104 Opener Thriller

Paige Bueckers had missed only two field goals all afternoon. With 1.6 seconds left and the Dallas Wings up three, she stepped to the free-throw line at Gainbridge Fieldhouse and missed twice more, which handed 17,274 people one last chance to lose their minds. Kelsey Mitchell let it go from way out at the horn. It came off the rim.

That's how the Wings escaped with a 107-104 win on Saturday, in an opener that had Caitlin Clark back on a WNBA floor for the first time since July 15 of last season and four No. 1 overall picks in uniform. Dallas also says no season opener in WNBA history had ever seen both teams reach 100 points. If this is the new baseline, somebody warn the scorekeepers.

A Track Meet With 11 Lead Changes

Dallas came out firing and barely stopped. The Wings went 10 of 16 from three in the first half, so exactly half of their 60 first-half points came from behind the arc. Indiana answered with pure downhill basketball, rattling off eight straight across the quarter break to turn a 27-23 deficit into a 31-27 lead. It was tied at 48 with 1:56 left in the half before Dallas finished on a 12-3 run and took a 60-51 lead to the locker room.

The Fever erased all of it. They opened the third with six straight, later ripped off eight more to tie it at 67, and walked into the fourth level at 80-80. That felt right, since neither side had shown much interest in a stop since lunch.

Everybody Got Theirs

Arike Ogunbowale led Dallas with 22 points and five assists in her first game since Aug. 10, 2025, after sitting out the final 12 games of last season with an injury. She had 13 by halftime and looked like she'd never left. Bueckers scored 20 on that ridiculous 8 of 10 shooting with four assists and one turnover. Odyssey Sims, back in a Wings uniform for a regular-season game for the first time since 2024, matched her with 20 on 8 of 11. Jessica Shepard came up one rebound and one assist short of a triple-double in her Wings debut, with 13 points, nine boards and nine dimes. No. 1 pick Azzi Fudd had a quiet three points in 18 minutes, which was fine, since the older kids were busy.

Mitchell was the best player on the floor for long stretches. She scored 30 on 11 of 22 and got hottest when Indiana needed it most, scoring seven straight Fever points on a step-back 3, a free throw and a three-point play to drag a 97-90 hole to 99-97. Aliyah Boston was terrific inside with 23 on 9 of 14.

Clark's 20 points, seven assists and five rebounds came with some rust: 7 of 18 shooting, 2 of 9 from three and five turnovers. Even so, the Fever credit her with getting to 1,000 points, 250 rebounds and 250 assists for her career faster than any WNBA player before her. "Our offense is obviously not the issue," she said, and she's right. Allowing 107 is the issue.

One Trip, Four Points

Boston's driving layup had Indiana up 82-80 early in the fourth, with all the momentum the Fever had spent the third quarter clawing back. Then, with 9:09 left, Aziaha James buried a 3 while getting fouled and cashed the free throw. One possession, four points, and Dallas led 84-82. The Wings never trailed again. They kept going, too, stretching it to 88-82 by the 7:55 mark on an 8-0 run. James finished 3 of 3 from deep with 10 points in 16 minutes off the bench, a very efficient way to swing a game that featured six players with at least 20.

It got close again, obviously. A Boston free throw and a put-back of her own miss made it 101-100 with 1:32 left. Alanna Smith answered on a Bueckers feed, and Sims hit a 7-footer for 105-100 with 36 seconds to go. Mitchell scored, Shepard split a pair, Makayla Timpson's layup made it 106-104, and Sims split a pair of her own at 13.2. Clark's deep 3 at about seven seconds missed, Bueckers' misses reopened the door, and Mitchell's heave closed it.

The Numbers Behind All Those Points

• 59.1%: Dallas from the field, 39 of 66. The Wings rank that second-best all time by any team in a WNBA season opener.
• 12 of 23: Dallas from three, against 7 of 24 for Indiana. That's a 15-point swing in a three-point game.
• 62-44: Indiana's edge in the paint, which kept the Fever alive all afternoon.
• 25-12: Dallas in fast-break points. Indiana did turn 17 Wings turnovers into 22 points, but the Wings got 19 back off 14 Fever giveaways.
• 53: Total fouls, with Shepard, Sims and Ogunbowale each finishing with five.

Two Teams, Two Moods

Dallas is 1-0, 1-0 on the road, and head coach Jose Fernandez has his first win in charge. Counting a 95-80 preseason victory, the Wings have now beaten Indiana twice this spring. They host Atlanta on Tuesday in their home opener.

Indiana is 0-1, 0-1 at home, and visits Los Angeles on Wednesday. The offense gives the Fever plenty to like: they hadn't topped 93 in a season opener since 2017, and they got to 104 and still lost. "When you lose, you take it on the chin and respect your opponent, but you come back more powerful," Mitchell said. That is the correct attitude. A stop or two would also help.

Fast, Furious and Slightly Unhinged

This was a Fast and Furious movie in sneakers. Physics were optional, defense was a rumor, everybody got a hero shot, and the plot came down to who pulled off the last stunt. Dallas leaves with the win, Indiana leaves with homework, and the rest of the league leaves with a fair warning: when these two meet again, bring a calculator.

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Game details as reported by the Associated Press. Quotes and team notes from the Dallas Wings and Indiana Fever.