Wings’ shock loss to Mercury puts WNBA playoff seeding in peril originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Despite a 30-point performance from Paige Bueckers, the Dallas Wings suffered a surprise loss to the Phoenix Mercury on Monday night — a defeat that harms the Wings’ chances of earning a top-six seed.
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Granted, the Wings’ playoff place has been secured for weeks. If nothing else, that is the success of this season: Bueckers has led Dallas back to the postseason after three years, and the Wings figure to grow into a serious contender in the years to come.
However, there’s little doubt the Wings missed a bug opportunity to move up in the standings on Monday, after the New York Liberty lost to the Atlanta Dream earlier that night.
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Though the Wings jumped out to a 14-point lead in the second quarter, the Mercury — with nothing to play for beyond pride — fought back and kept the game close into the fourth quarter. There, even after Dallas pushed the lead back up to 11, Phoenix ended the game on a 24-12 run — punctuated by Kahleah Copper‘s game-winning lay-up with 2.4 seconds remaining.
Dallas’ 87-86 loss at Mortgage Matchup Center drops its record to 26-17. If the season ended today, the Wings would be the No.7 seed and open the playoffs in San Francisco against the Golden State Valkyries.
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Even if the Wings end their regular season with a win over the WNBA-worst Seattle Storm, one more win for the Liberty combined with one win apiece from the Washington Mystics and the Indiana Fever would result in Dallas finishing eighth.
A win over the 15-27 Mercury might have seen Dallas harbor a legitimate chance at the five-seed. Instead, seventh or eighth is likely where Bueckers and the Wings will land after this damaging loss in the desert.
