The Dallas Wings opened their season with a gutsy 107-104 victory over the Indiana Fever on Saturday, holding off a furious fourth-quarter rally in a matchup that brought together four consecutive No. 1 overall draft picks on the same court for the first time in WNBA history.
Arike Ogunbowale paced the Wings with 22 points, while Paige Bueckers and Odyssey Sims each added 20 to outlast the Fever in Indianapolis. The performance came despite what Ogunbowale herself acknowledged was not Dallas at its sharpest. "This game was rough. I'm not saying this was our best game, but we got the win," she told ESPN.
The Wings shot 59.1 percent from the field and drilled 12 three-pointers on 23 attempts. Neither offense let up, with both teams surpassing 100 points in what marked the first season opener in WNBA history where each side reached that threshold.
Indiana pushed back hard in the final period, with Kelsey Mitchell emerging as the Fever's ignition point. Mitchell poured in 11 of her game-high 30 points after halftime, pulling Indiana into contention down the stretch. Aliyah Boston contributed 23 points for the Fever.
Caitlin Clark, making her first appearance since July 15, 2025, after missing time with groin and ankle injuries, finished with 20 points, seven assists and four rebounds. She shot just 2 for 9 from three-point range but found enough rhythm to reach a personal milestone: her 1,000th career WNBA point, which came on a layup late in the third quarter.
Clark's night had its rough moments. She left the court in the final minutes of the third quarter with a lower back issue and briefly wore a black wrap when she returned. She was held out of the initial fourth-quarter lineup but emerged from the locker room after treatment.
The Fever kept the door cracked open through the final minute. With Dallas clinging to a 105-100 lead and 36.4 seconds left, Indiana forced a turnover and had one last chance to tie. But Clark was heavily defended on the inbound pass, and when Kelsey Mitchell launched a three-pointer, it rolled off the rim.
Odyssey Sims, a key contributor to Indiana's playoff push a year ago, anchored the Wings down the stretch with clutch moments including one of two free throws in the game's waning seconds. Bueckers and Sims's combined two-game scoring output proved the difference in a contest that stayed tight throughout, with neither team ever leading by more than nine points.
The historical angle of the game centered on the presence of four consecutive first overall picks: Aliyah Boston (2023), Caitlin Clark (2024), Paige Bueckers (2025), and Dallas rookie Azzi Fudd (2026). Fudd marked her arrival in professional basketball with a corner three-pointer off the bench in the second quarter, her first career WNBA bucket. She finished the night with three points and one steal across 18 minutes of action.
Clark had spoken before the game about what the matchup represented. "I think it's great for women's basketball more than anything," she said, referring to the concentration of elite young talent. "Having two No. 1 picks on both sides speaks to the young talent in this league and how excited fans are about these teams."
Despite the loss, Clark felt she was not far from a stronger performance. "I feel good, started off a little slow I think just the anxiety of the first game," she reflected. "Felt like I was literally just a couple of buckets away from putting together a really, really good game and getting a win."
Author James Rodriguez: "Two No. 1 picks losing to two other No. 1 picks makes for a messy, urgent opening statement, and that's exactly the kind of basketball that will keep people watching."
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