Dallas Wings Favored by 8.5 Points as Jessica Shepard PRA Line Sits at 29.5

Q: With Azzi Fudd sidelined, did Paige Bueckers and Dallas find enough spacing to suppress Seattle's surging young star Dominique Malonga?

Yes. Even without Azzi Fudd, Dallas had enough spacing and offensive organization to blunt Dominique Malonga and control the game. The clearest evidence is the final score and Malonga’s output. In Dallas’ 92-70 win on Aug. 23, Malonga was held to 12 points after torching the Wings for 37 points and 12 rebounds in the June 22 overtime meeting. That is a dramatic drop against the same opponent and strongly suggests Dallas adjusted effectively. Paige Bueckers was the main reason Dallas could survive Fudd’s absence as a spacing threat. Bueckers scored 32 points and went 6-for-6 from three, stretching Seattle’s defense by herself. Her shot-making forced the Storm to honor Dallas well beyond the arc, opening room for Arike Ogunbowale’s drives and for Jessica Shepard to operate as a playmaking hub. Shepard added 11 points and 11 rebounds, reinforcing Dallas’ inside-out balance. Dallas’ structure also mattered. The Wings came in with the league’s best assist-to-turnover ratio and one of the lowest mistake rates, which helped them get into clean actions even without Fudd. Seattle’s known rebounding issues and difficulty guarding efficient half-court teams showed again, as Dallas built a 56-35 halftime lead and never let the Storm mount a real comeback. Malonga remains one of Seattle’s brightest young stars, but on this day Dallas’ spacing was good enough, and Bueckers’ perimeter gravity was overwhelming enough, to keep her from repeating her earlier breakout against the Wings.

Q: After their previous 112-110 overtime thriller, did Sunday's Dallas-Seattle showdown revert to the grueling, low-scoring defensive battle experts predicted?

No. Sunday’s rematch did not turn into the kind of tense, grind-it-out defensive battle many expected. Dallas controlled it early and won comfortably, 92-70. The game was lower scoring than the previous 112-110 overtime thriller in raw total points, but it was not a close, bruising struggle. The Wings blew it open in the first quarter, outscoring Seattle 34-17 as Paige Bueckers poured in 18 points in the opening 10 minutes. By halftime, Dallas led 56-35 and had already removed most of the suspense. Bueckers was the clearest reason the game broke from the predicted script. She finished with 32 points, including a career-high six made 3-pointers, and Dallas shot 48% from the field and 11-for-23 from deep. Jessica Shepard added an 11-point, 11-rebound double-double as the Wings again punished Seattle on the glass and with efficient execution. Seattle never fully recovered from the early avalanche. Flau’jae Johnson scored 23 points and Jade Melbourne added 15, but Dominique Malonga was held to 12 and Natisha Hiedeman missed the game with a shoulder injury. The Storm lost for the third straight time and for the 14th time in 15 games. So while the final total of 162 points fit the broader under trend in this matchup, the character of the game did not. It was less a defensive slugfest than a one-sided Dallas rout driven by Bueckers’ explosive start.

3 articles · Updated · Covers · Aug 23

Jessica Shepard’s Over 29.5 points-rebounds-assists is the lead pick for Sunday’s Storm-Wings matchup, with the analyst projecting Dallas to win a low-scoring home game.
30.3 PRA per game underpins that call: Shepard is averaging a career-best mark, has cleared 30 PRA in 20 of 35 games, and faces a Seattle interior defense described as vulnerable against opposing bigs.
Dallas is listed at -8.5 and -375 on the moneyline, but the spread is viewed as steep because Seattle has been strong against the number while the Wings are only 4-5 ATS as home favorites.
174.5 is the total, and the recommendation leans Under because Dallas has cashed the Under in 70.6% of its home games despite a 112-110 overtime meeting on June 22 ending a six-game Under streak in this matchup.
Paige Bueckers Under 21.5 points is the secondary prop, with her home scoring average at 18.5 and Dallas entering 11-6 straight up at home for its third meeting this season with Seattle.

Sources

Covers9h ago

WNBA: Seattle Storm vs. Dallas Wings Game Predictions & Betting Picks

Stat Salt21h ago

Seattle Storm vs Dallas Wings Picks and Prediction for Sunday August 23 2026

SBR12h ago

Storm vs. Wings Prediction | WNBA Picks & Odds for Sunday, Aug. 23

15 Sources

With Azzi Fudd sidelined, did Paige Bueckers and Dallas find enough spacing to suppress Seattle's surging young star Dominique Malonga?

Did the Storm's rebounding woes ultimately doom them against Jessica Shepard's historic playmaking in Sunday's highly anticipated WNBA clash?

After their previous 112-110 overtime thriller, did Sunday's Dallas-Seattle showdown revert to the grueling, low-scoring defensive battle experts predicted?