Teaira McCowan’s layup with 11.4 seconds to play was the difference and Tyasha Harris scored a season-high 15 points and assisted on the winning basket as the Dallas Wings held on for an 82-80 victory over the visiting Las Vegas Aces on Thursday in a key late-season game in Arlington, Texas.
McCowan led the Wings with 21 points and a season-high 16 rebounds, producing her fourth straight double-double. Marina Mabrey added 15 points and Allisha Gray scored 12 for sixth-place Dallas (15-16), which strengthened its position in the battle with five other teams for the final three spots in the playoffs
Chelsea Gray scored a season-high 28 points to pace the Aces (22-10), who dropped their second consecutive game and fell into a tie for second place with the Connecticut Sun. Jackie Young added 19 points for Las Vegas, while Kelsey Plum hit for 15 and Wilson scored 12.
The Wings led by seven points at halftime and as many as 15 in the third quarter before Las Vegas rallied to within 64-58 heading into the fourth. Dallas scored the first eight points of the final period to go back up by 14 points and looked to be in the driver’s seat.
All that changed quickly, with the Aces reeling off an 8-0 run of their own and eventually climbing into a tie at 80 after Chelesa Gray’s jumper with 29.8 seconds remaining.
McCowan’s layup off Harris’s feed then gave Dallas a two-point lead. Las Vegas’ A’ja Wilson missed a wide-open layup with 1.5 seconds left that allowed the Wings to escape with the win, their third straight.
The Aces forged a three-point lead three minutes into the game before Dallas used a 9-0 run to sweep to the front on the way to a 24-17 edge at the end of the first quarter.
The Wings pushed their advantage to as many 14 points in the second period after a layup by Harrison with 4:45 left. Dallas led by 42-30 when Harris hit a pullup jumper with 1:24 left in the half but the Aces responded by scoring the final five points and pulled to within 42-35 at the break.
Chelsea Gray led all scorers with 15 points before halftime. Harris paced a balanced Dallas attack with 10 points.
–Field Level Media