STWF Sports | HARTFORD, Conn. | July 2, 2026— The Dallas Wings did not lead often Thursday night, but they led when it mattered most.

The Resilience of the Dallas Wings

Behind a brilliant fourth-quarter push from Paige Bueckers and a late defensive stand, the Wings rallied from a 14-point deficit to defeat the Connecticut Sun 86-83 at PeoplesBank Arena. The comeback victory opened Dallas’ four-game road trip on a winning note and improved the Wings to 12-8 on the season. Connecticut dropped to 4-16.

Bueckers again delivered like a franchise cornerstone, finishing with a game-high 25 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. She scored 11 of those points in the fourth quarter, going a perfect 4-for-4 from the field over the final 10 minutes. It marked her fourth consecutive game with at least 25 points, the longest active streak in the WNBA and the longest such run of her career.

The performance also gave Bueckers 11 games with 20 or more points this season, tying her for second in the league in that category.

Dallas needed every bit of her production after spending most of the night chasing Connecticut. The Wings led for only 3 minutes and 58 seconds, but their poise late proved decisive.

The Sun built early control after Dallas opened the game with back-to-back three-pointers from Arike Ogunbowale and Bueckers. Connecticut responded with an 11-4 run to take the lead and closed the first quarter ahead 22-16. Bueckers led all scorers with eight points in the opening period, but the Wings struggled to generate consistent offense around her.

Connecticut stretched the margin in the second quarter behind rookie Charlise Leger-Walker and a series of timely scoring runs. Dallas went scoreless from the final minutes of the first quarter until Maddy Siegrist hit a baseline jumper with 7:39 left in the half. Siegrist provided a valuable spark off the bench, scoring seven first-half points, but the Sun still carried a 43-35 lead into halftime.

The deficit grew in the third quarter when Connecticut used a 10-2 run to take its largest lead of the night at 53-39. From there, Dallas began the slow climb back.

Jessica Shepard opened the second half with a basket and later found rhythm inside, scoring all 14 of her points after halftime. Alanna Smith also gave the Wings a major lift, scoring eight points in the third quarter and finishing with a season-high 11 points. Smith added three rebounds and knocked down a season-best two three-pointers.

Dallas trimmed the Sun’s lead to seven entering the fourth, setting up its best quarter of the night.

The Wings outscored Connecticut 31-21 in the final period, using a mix of shot-making, transition pressure and late-game execution. After the Sun pushed their lead back to 11 at 70-59, Dallas responded with five quick points, including Ogunbowale’s third three-pointer of the night. That basket moved Ogunbowale into sole possession of 14th place on the WNBA’s all-time made three-pointers list, passing Kara Lawson.

Azzi Fudd followed with a midrange jumper to cut the deficit to four with just over five minutes remaining. Bueckers then took over. Her and-one conversion with 2:15 left brought Dallas within one, and another three-point play during a 6-2 run helped push the Wings ahead 81-78.

Connecticut answered through Aaliyah Edwards, whose and-one tied the game at 81. Fudd gave Dallas the lead again with a jumper, but Edwards responded with a driving layup to tie it at 83 with 38 seconds left.

On the next possession, Bueckers drew contact and made one of two free throws, giving Dallas an 84-83 advantage with 25 seconds remaining. The Wings then came up with the stop they needed, and Shepard sealed the game by hitting two free throws with two seconds left.

Dallas shot 48.5 percent from the field and 34.6 percent from three-point range. The Wings also held advantages in second-chance points, fast-break scoring and bench production. Connecticut won the paint battle 42-38 and attempted a Dallas opponent season-high 35 free throws, making 22.

Leila Lacan led the Sun with 18 points and five assists, while Brittney Griner added 13 points and 11 rebounds.

The Wings will continue their road trip Sunday, July 5, against the Toronto Tempo at 2 p.m. CT. Dallas and Connecticut meet again Aug. 2 in Texas.