No Paige, no problem for the Dallas Wings. They dispatched of the Washington Mystics, who came to town with two Rookie of the Year candidates and a three-game winning streak, but left with an L. JJ Quinerly led the charge, making her first start of her young career, and she made the most of it.
Dallas blasted the Mystics early in the ball game, and they struggled to handle the blitz. JJ looked like she had been starting the entire season, and went for 13 points, four rebounds, four assists, with a +13, which was a game high at the time. She stumbled a bit out of the halftime break, but not enough to worry about her. She finished with 15 points and relied on her teammates while maintaining her poise.
It was an eye-opening experience, revealing exactly what Quinerly is capable of with the ball in her hands. It begs a question that Wings fans have to be wondering. Should she start next to Paige Bueckers and Arike Ogunbowale?
Quinerly could be the spark the Wings need to turn the season around
Let's be clear about one thing first: Dallas has already made strides this season. The loss to the Fever was a step back, but this team had found its way to multiple victories lately. They're now 4-2 in their last six games, and things are looking up for Coach Koclanes' ball club.
However, the job is not finished, and it never will be, as sports require constant work. The Wings have sometimes had issues with slow starts offensively. JJ could be the answer to if that problem. Now, there aren't many guards on the team after that, so you would be thinning out the playmakers on your bench, but that just means a stricter rotation.
Let those three start together, and substitute one of them out early for a quick break before they return to the floor to give some rest to one of the others. Begin the rotation from there. Getting off to a good start can be the difference between winning and losing games. I'm sure the Mystics will feel that tonight, after their dismal start led to their defeat, even though Sonia Citron poured in 22 points.
This was an impressive win for Coach Koclanes. It's the second night of a back-to-back after getting their back kicked in against the Fever last night. They're without Paige, but he's learning what levers to pull at the right time. Washington made a run in the third quarter, but with a sub here and some direction there, the Wings beat back the push.
Dallas got a much-needed 79-71 win, and now they have four days off before their next game. They'll need the rest. The Phoenix Mercury are just around the bend, and the Wings are banged up. Some downtime will do them good.