Kelsey Plum scored 27 points and A’Ja Wilson added 25 as the visiting Las Vegas Aces roared back to beat the struggling Dallas Wings 92-84 on Wednesday afternoon in Arlington, Texas.
The Aces (12-2) trailed by as many as 11 points in a ragged first half before rallying. Las Vegas was up by six going into the fourth but that lead was trimmed to 78-76 after the Wings’ Marina Mabrey canned a 3-pointer with 4:05 to play.
Las Vegas then created some separation, with Dearica Hamby’s putback layup with 2:27 remaining pushing the margin to 87-78. Dallas would get no closer than four points the rest of the way.
Hamby added 16 points and 12 rebounds for Las Vegas, which has won three in a row and remains atop the WNBA standings. Chelsea Gray contributed 16 points as the Aces got all their scoring from their starting five.
Arike Ogunbowale led all scorers with 28 points. Mabrey added 18, Isabelle Harrison had 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Allisha Gray added 10 points for the Wings (6-8), who have lost four consecutive games.
The Wings never trailed in the first half, building as much as an 11-point lead in the first quarter and a 16-point margin in the second.
The Aces rallied to within 39-34 on a layup by Jackie Young with 1:41 left in the half before Ogunbowale’s 3-pointer gave the Wings a 44-35 lead at the break.
Plum, with 14, and Wilson (12) amassed 26 of the Aces’ points in the first half.
Ogunbowale led all scorers with 17 points at halftime. Dallas forged a 23-15 edge on the glass that included a 5-1 advantage on the offensive boards.
The Aces roared to the front on the strength of an 11-0 run that was capped by Hamby’s free throw that made it 54-49 with 3:42 left in the third quarter. Las Vegas settled for a 66-60 advantage heading into the final 10 minutes.
–Field Level Media