Maddy

Siegrist

Siegrist’s double-figure scoring performance on Sunday marked her 11th consecutive game with at least 12 points scored — she got to this number despite limited three-point production and no points from the free-throw line, but still finished as one of three Dallas players to register at least 10 points. The third-year forward contributed some defensive statistics, too, to help make her final stat line look a little richer. And although Siegrist’s Sunday outing was an unspectacular one, she’ll have a chance to bounce back on Thursday against the Mercury in the Wings’ season finale.

The continued absence of Arike Ogunbowale has allowed Siegrist to take a more prominent role within the Wings’ offense. A double-digit scorer in 10 straight games, the 6-foot-2 forward has attempted at least 12 shots in three straight and five of her last six appearances. Siegrist put up 16 shots against the Valkyries, including eight from beyond the arc. While the stat line was a bit lean outside of points and three-pointers, the opportunity has made Siegrist worth a look in deeper fantasy leagues that remain active.

Siegrist’s consistent play continued on Monday, finishing as one of four Dallas players to score in double figures. While she wasn’t uber efficient as a shooter, she did connect on 40.0 percent of her three-point attempts, with her pair of makes accounting for more than half of the Wings’ production from beyond the arc. Siegrist has now scored in double figures in 11 of the 12 games she’s played in since returning from a knee injury in early August, and her total on Monday marked the ninth consecutive of at least 10 points. She’ll look to log another productive outing on Thursday against the Valkyries.

Siegrist led her team in scoring with high efficiency. She leaked out in transition to get on the board early and took different defenders on the dribble. Siegrist scored 11 of her total 23 points in the first quarter, which gave the Wings a lift especially when Paige Bueckers clearly was the main focus of the Dream on their scouting report. While Siegrist cooled down scoring in the remainder of the game following the first quarter, she still got on the board. She took Naz Hillmon and Te-Hina Paopao off the dribble, hit a couple of three-pointers and hit a one-legged fadeaway with Rhyne Howard guarding her. She matched her career high in scoring, a personal record she set on August 17 against the Aces.

Bueckers matched her career high in assists on Friday night, recording 10 of them in addition to earning her second career points-assists double-double. Bueckers found four different teammates including Maddy Siegrist, Myisha Hines-Allen, Amy Okonkwo and Grace Berger. She found Siegrist in transition, which has become par for the course. Okonkwo, Hines-Allen and Berger had open driving lanes that Bueckers was able to find. When it came to her scoring, Bueckers attacked the basket and scored most of her points inside the paint, although she hit two shots in the mid-range, her speciality as a scorer. She scored both on and off the ball, driving with the ball in her hands while running around with Rhyne Howard trailing her during Wings quarter court possessions.

Siegrist led the Wings in scoring on Sunday and made her shots from a bunch of different areas on the floor. She hit a 10-foot pull-up jumper where she attacked the defense’s closeout, moved off the ball on a backdoor cut to score, hit an open three from the left wing and scored in transition following the Wings winning a jump ball. This was Siegrist’s eighth game scoring in double figures since she returned from injury on August 5 and her sixth double-digit scoring game in a row.

In a game when the Wings scored 60 points, their lowest total of the season on 29.9% shooting, their second lowest clip of the season, Siegrist lifted the offense. She led the Dallas offense on Friday night, and scored by running the floor well in transition in addition to getting on the offensive glass for putbacks. She posed as a mismatch for Storm forward Gabby Williams as Siegrist scored over one of the Storms better defenders multiple times. All of Siegrist’s made field goals were scored within five feet of the rim.

With Arike Ogunbowale out due to a knee injury, Siegrist has firmly established herself as the Wings’ second option behind Paige Bueckers. While she wasn’t super efficient especially within the paint trying to create her own shots due to the length and size of the Sparks’ front court players, Siegrist did most of her damage beyond the three-point line. She spaced well and rookies in Bueckers and Aziaha James found her for wide open three-point makes coming off paint penetration. Since Siegrist returned from injury on August 8, she’s been hitting three-pointers at an over 40 percent clip.

The Wings have not provided a return timeline for Ogunbowale, so she should be considered out indefinitely until her status is updated. The veteran guard’s absence means the offense will continue to run exclusively through Paige Bueckers, the favorite to win Rookie of the Year honors. With the Wings boasting a 9-26 record ahead of Wednesday’s game against the Sparks, it’s possible that Ogunbowale will not play again this season. Haley Jones has been in the starting lineup with Ogunbowale sidelined, and Maddy Siegrist will also continue to have a more critical role within the rotation.

Sigriest took advantage of how the Aces guarded her from the beginning of the game. Las Vegas wing Kiersten Bell was responsible for Siegrist at moments but that backfired when Siegrist used her long arms to shoot over her. Siegirst boxed out the smaller Las Vegas guards that were assigned to guard her. As a result, Siegrist had three offensive rebounds and scored on two of them.