Dallas Wings celebrated 89:76 in Toronto, Paige Bueckers again led the offense
The Dallas Wings continued their successful road run in the WNBA regular season with an 89:76 victory against the Toronto Tempo at Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto. The game was played on July 05, 2026, at 15:00 local time in Ontario, and according to the official WNBA record, 8210 spectators attended the matchup. Dallas, according to the league’s official report, won the first quarter 30:19 and did not give up the lead until the end, thereby steering the game toward victory early. Toronto found a better rhythm in the second quarter and reduced the deficit, but did not manage to turn the game around or seriously disrupt the control Dallas had established already in the opening minutes. After this result, the Wings, according to the WNBA team page, reached a 13-8 record, while the Tempo entered the next part of the schedule with a 9-11 record.
The game carried additional weight because Toronto, in its inaugural WNBA season, was seeking stability in front of its home crowd, while Dallas was trying to confirm that it could rely on a balanced offense even outside games decided by one possession. Associated Press stated in its report that Dallas never trailed, and that fact best describes the balance of power on the court. Paige Bueckers finished the game with 22 points and seven assists, shooting 9/16 from the field, and was again the central figure of the team from Texas. Dallas also avoided the scenario from several earlier wins, in which it had to look for solutions in the closing moments. This time, according to the Mavs Moneyball report, Bueckers was able to rest in the final minutes because the job had largely been done before the ending itself.
Bueckers took over the closing stretch when Toronto threatened
The key moment of the game occurred in the fourth quarter, even though Dallas already had a double-digit lead after three periods. The Wings entered the final quarter leading 71:59, but Toronto reduced the score to 75:66 with a series of better offensive possessions with a little more than six minutes remaining. According to the Mavs Moneyball report, the Dallas coach responded with a timeout, and after it Bueckers attacked one-on-one against Marina Mabrey, drew free throws and made both. On the next possession she scored again, increasing the lead to 79:66 and practically stopping the most dangerous home comeback attempt. That run was not spectacular in scope, but it was very important because of the moment in which it happened.
Bueckers entered the game in the context of very strong form, and Associated Press noted that her streak of four consecutive games with at least 25 points ended precisely in Toronto. Still, the fact that she stayed at 22 points did not diminish her impact on the result, because with efficient shooting she connected the offense, made decisions in decisive possessions and opened space for her teammates. According to ESPN’s game log, along with 22 points she had three rebounds, seven assists and only two turnovers in 31 minutes. That combination of control and execution is especially important for Dallas, a team that during the season built its identity around the backcourt, but also around better ball movement. Bueckers remained the first offensive option, but the way the win was achieved showed that the Wings can win even when she does not have to carry almost every possession in the closing stretch.
The first quarter determined the direction of the game
Dallas opened the game aggressively, especially in three-point shooting and in the battle for offensive rebounds. According to the official WNBA box score, the Wings scored 30 points in the first quarter, which was the foundation for their later control of the game. Mavs Moneyball states that Dallas made half of its three-point attempts in the opening period and grabbed seven offensive rebounds, which forced Toronto already in the early phase to defend extended possessions. In games in which the road team separates early, second-chance possessions often carry the same weight as shooting accuracy itself, and that was exactly the case in Toronto. With that combination, the Wings created a 30:19 lead after the first ten minutes and sent a clear message that they would not allow the home team to dictate the rhythm.
The score line further shows how the start had a lasting effect. Toronto won the second quarter 23:17 and went into halftime with a much more realistic deficit, but Dallas again raised its intensity in the third period and won it 24:17. The final ten minutes ended 18:17 for the Wings, so the final 89:76 was not the product of one late run, but of continuous control through most of the game. According to official WNBA statistics, there were no lead changes and no ties in the game, which confirms that Toronto had to chase the result the entire time. For the Tempo, that meant that almost every possession after the first quarter carried additional pressure, while Dallas could play more patiently and choose more favorable situations on offense.
Azzi Fudd and Jessica Shepard gave Dallas’s offense width
Although Bueckers was the headline name of the game, Dallas’s victory was not solely the result of her individual night. Azzi Fudd played a notable game for Dallas, as confirmed by the official Wings roster and reports after the matchup. According to Mavs Moneyball, Fudd scored 17 points on 6/16 shooting from the field, made five of 11 three-point attempts and added three steals. Especially important was the fact that she made half of Dallas’s threes, because the Wings made a total of ten attempts from behind the three-point line. Fudd already made two threes in the first quarter, helping the visiting team build its initial momentum and forcing Toronto into early defensive adjustments.
Jessica Shepard gave another dimension to Dallas’s victory through rebounding, physical presence and constant activity on offense. According to the Mavs Moneyball report, she finished with 14 points and 15 rebounds, including six offensive rebounds, and recorded her 12th double-double of the season. Her ability to extend possessions was especially important in the third quarter, when Dallas was trying to repel every Toronto attempt to fully return to the game. In one of the key sequences, Shepard grabbed an offensive rebound after a missed Fudd three-pointer, and the ball then ended up with Bueckers for points that took Dallas to 69:57. Such plays do not always take center stage in highlights, but they often decide the difference between a game that opens up for a comeback and a game that remains under the control of the leading team.
Toronto without a complete answer, Mabrey led the offense
The Toronto Tempo had several stretches of good play, but did not find enough defensive stability to stop Dallas’s balance between outside shooting, drives and second chances after rebounds. Marina Mabrey was the home team’s leading scorer with 19 points, according to ESPN’s game summary, but the Tempo did not manage to turn her production into a more serious comeback. Dallas seized the initiative before the home offense could fully settle, and every later attempt to get closer was met with an answer from Bueckers, Fudd, Shepard or the rest of the starting five. Toronto showed in the second quarter that it could increase the pace and force Dallas into adjustments, but it did not manage to string together enough consecutive defensive stops. In a game without lead changes, that was the decisive difference.
For the Tempo, this defeat came in a sensitive part of the season. According to the WNBA schedule, Toronto had lost to the Phoenix Mercury 89:80 a few days earlier, after previously earning a highly convincing 125:97 victory against the Los Angeles Sparks. Associated Press noted in the game-context preview that Mabrey scored 53 points in that win against the Sparks and tied the WNBA record for points in a single game. That fact shows how great Toronto’s offensive potential is, but also how pronounced the fluctuations can be in the first season of a new franchise. Against Dallas, those fluctuations were visible in the transition between the better second quarter and the third quarter, in which the Wings again moved the game back to a safer distance.
Broader significance for the WNBA season and the race toward the playoffs
This game was played in a season that the WNBA officially presented as the league’s 30th season, with expansion to 15 teams and a 44-game schedule per team. According to the WNBA’s official announcement, the 2026 season includes two new organizations, the Toronto Tempo and the Portland Fire, and each team plays 22 home and 22 road games. In that context, Toronto is not only a new sports story in the league, but also part of the broader growth plan of the WNBA, which is trying to increase the number of markets, the number of games and its international reach. The Tempo, according to the club’s official announcement, opened its inaugural season on May 08, 2026, precisely at Coca-Cola Coliseum against the Washington Mystics. The loss to Dallas therefore cannot be viewed only as an isolated result, but also as part of a process in which a new franchise is learning how to maintain competitiveness through a dense schedule.
Dallas, on the other hand, further strengthens its position among the group of teams aiming for a stable entry into the playoffs with the victory in Toronto. According to the WNBA team page, the Wings were at 13-8 after the matchup and in fourth place in the Western Conference. Even more important is that on the road they looked like a team that has multiple ways to score points, and not only Bueckers’s individual creation. In a game in which all Dallas starters, according to the Mavs Moneyball report, had double-digit production, the load was distributed in a way that can be important in the closing part of the season. It is precisely offensive depth that is often the difference between teams that depend on one great night and teams that can maintain their level of play through several consecutive games.
All-Star confirmation of Dallas’s form
The win came only a few days after the WNBA announced the starters for the 2026 All-Star Game, and two Dallas players were among them. According to the league’s official announcement, Paige Bueckers was selected as a starter for the second year in a row and received the highest number of fan votes in All-Star voting, while Jessica Shepard was selected among the All-Star starters for the first time in her career. That is important context for the game in Toronto, because both players confirmed on the court exactly why they have that status. Bueckers led the offense and calmed the closing stretch, while Shepard gave Dallas a constant source of additional possessions with her rebounding and energy. Their performance against the Tempo was not only statistically good, but also functionally crucial to the way Dallas controlled the game.
According to the WNBA, the 2026 All-Star Game will be played on July 25 at United Center in Chicago, and the starters were chosen through a combination of votes from fans, players and media. In such a system, Bueckers and Shepard were confirmed not only by popularity, but also by recognized performance in the season. Bueckers, ahead of the announcement, according to the league, was among the leading players in points and assists, while Shepard was the league’s second-leading rebounder and one of the most useful frontcourt players in offensive organization. The game in Toronto fit into that broader picture: Dallas won because its leading players performed at the level of the status they hold, but also because Fudd, outside shooting and offensive rebounding added the necessary width. For Dallas’s opponents, that is a warning that the Wings become dangerous when the offense does not depend on one option.
The schedule immediately brings new tests
Dallas will not have much room to rest. According to the WNBA team page, after Toronto the Wings visit the New York Liberty on July 07, and then meet the Tempo again on July 10. That second game against Toronto will be played at Bell Centre in Montreal, which is part of the Tempo’s broader Canadian schedule in their first season. For Dallas, it will be an opportunity to confirm that the win at Coca-Cola Coliseum was not only the result of a strong opening, but a sign of more stable road form. For Toronto, meanwhile, the new matchup against the same opponent will be a quick opportunity for a tactical response, especially in the areas of defensive rebounding and control of Dallas’s perimeter line.
Before that new meeting, according to the official schedule, the Tempo will host the Golden State Valkyries on July 08 in Toronto. That part of the calendar requires quick adjustments, because Toronto plays in a short period against teams that are directly important for the standings and the mood in the middle of the season. The 76:89 loss to Dallas showed where the biggest problems are: a poor start to the game, too many allowed second chances and too few defensive runs that could have changed the rhythm. At the same time, Mabrey’s 19 points and occasional offensive bursts provide a foundation on which a response can be built. Dallas leaves Toronto with a win that was clearer than the final 13-point margin, while the Tempo, ahead of the continuation of their home stretch, must find a way to turn the energy of the crowd into a firmer start to the game.
Sources:
- WNBA – official game summary Dallas Wings - Toronto Tempo, result, quarter-by-quarter line, venue and game information (link)
- Mavs Moneyball – game report, performances of Paige Bueckers, Azzi Fudd and Jessica Shepard and description of key sequences (link)
- ESPN / Associated Press – result summary and statistical data on the game’s main players (link)
- Dallas Wings / WNBA – official roster, team record and schedule of upcoming games (link)
- Dallas Wings – official roster confirming that Azzi Fudd plays for the Dallas Wings (link)
- WNBA – official announcement of the schedule for the 2026 season, context of the 30th season, 15 teams and 44 games per team (link)
- WNBA – official announcement of the starters for the 2026 WNBA All-Star Game (link)