Dallas's Paige Bueckers made history in Monday's losing effort, breaking Arike Ogunbowale's franchise single-season scoring record in a narrow Wings vs Mercury defeat.
Bueckers finished the night with 853 points on the season. She passed backcourt partner Arike Ogunbowale's 849-points 2023 record. The performance subsequently marked her sixth-career 30-point game and her fourth this season.
She carried the load early. Bueckers accounted for every Dallas point in the first quarter with five points and eight assists worth of scoring. The Wings had a chance to steal the game at the buzzer, but Bueckers airballed a contested 3-pointer, and Phoenix held on for a one-point win.
Jessica Shepard added 17 points for Dallas, but the duo could not slow Kahleah Copper and Alyssa Thomas, who combined for 46 points on 17-of-29 shooting.
The record extends a historic stretch for Bueckers. In the teams' previous meeting on September 19th, she broke Seimone Augustus's mark for most points through a player's first two WNBA seasons.
Bueckers now averages 20.6 points and 5.8 assists per game while shooting 50.9% from the field. Her play has lifted the Wings to a franchise-record 26 wins.
Dallas closes out the regular season tomorrow against the Seattle Storm, with a shot at the No. 5 WNBA playoffs seed on the line.
