Arlington, Texas – Liz Cambage’s 35 points and 17 rebounds powered the Dallas Wings past the Washington Mystics Thursday, 90-81. It was the second straight record-setting performance in a game for the center.
Along with a WNBA single-game scoring record 53 points Tuesday, Cambage’s 88 points in a two-game span is the most in league history. Four other Dallas players scored in double figures, led by Kayla Thornton’s 15 and 13 from Glory Johnson.
LaToya Sanders had 25 points for the Mystics, rookie Ariel Atkins 15, and Elena Delle Donne added nine points, 13 rebounds and five blocks.
Thornton set the tone for the Wings, hitting her first four shots to give her team a 31-20 lead after one quarter. They kept their lead comfortable in the next period. Thornton also locked down All-Star Delle Donne on defense.
“I have a defensive mind, and whoever my opponent is, I want to make sure they feel me,” she said.
Washington cut the lead to four in the third quarter, but Dallas stepped it up in the fourth to pull out the victory.
Wings coach Fred Williams called it a “grind out win” for his team.
“I thought they shot the ball well, especially Sanders from the outside,” he said. “I thought we got some game breaks towards the fourth quarter.”
Cambage insisted she didn’t care as much about her own performance as she does about her team’s current tie for third in league standings.
“I don’t care if I walk out tomorrow and score zero points,” she said. “As long as we win, that is all that matters to me.”
Dallas has little time to celebrate, as they play the Sky in Chicago Friday night.
