NFL
By: Lamarr Fields
With a 96-78 win over the Portland Fire, the Dallas Wings clinched their first playoff berth since 2023. The Wings are now 23-16, a team record for most regular-season wins.
Bueckers Leads The Way
All five starters scored in double digits for the Wings. They were led by Paige Bueckers, who had 22 points and a game-high 11 assists. She also added four rebounds, two steals, and one block. Jessica Shepard finished one rebound shy of a double-double, with 21 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and two steals.
Awak Kuier added a double-double in the win, notching 12 points, a team-high 12 rebounds, a career-high tying three steals, and five blocks. Her five blocks brought her season total to 54. That ties her with Liz Cambage for the most blocks in a single season in Wings history. Arike Ogunbowale recorded 17 points, two rebounds, four assists and two steals, shooting 50% from the field (7/14), while Alanna Smith rounded out the Wings’ double-digit scorers with 10 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal on the evening.
Dallas finished the night shooting .551 from the field, .458 from three and .692 from the free-throw line. Portland shot .375 overall, .278 from three and .824 from the free-throw line.
Playoffs
Mathematically, the Wings can finish anywhere between second and eighth. The First Round is a best-of-three series (1–1–1 format) where the higher seed hosts Games 1 and 3 (if necessary).
According to the Wings press release, Wings Head Coach Jose Fernandez, who was hired in October 2025, becomes the 38th first-year WNBA head coach in league history to secure a playoff bid. It is also the third time in the last two seasons, with Atlanta’s Karl Smesko and Golden State’s Natalie Nakase also achieving the accomplishment in 2025. Dallas becomes the third team since 2016 to post the league’s worst record and still qualify for the postseason the following year (Phoenix 2022-2023; New York 2020-2021).
