Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers set a WNBA single-game rookie scoring record with 44 points Wednesday night in Los Angeles. But it wasn't quite enough for the victory as Sparks guard Kelsey Plum hit a shot just before the buzzer to give L.A. an 81-80 win at Crypto.com Arena.
But the loss didn't diminish Bueckers' amazing night. She shot 17-of-21, making her the first player in WNBA history to shoot at least 80% from the field while scoring 40 or more points.
Despite Bueckers' efforts, the rest of the Wings combined to shoot 31% (12-of-39). Bueckers accounted for 55% of her team's points, the fifth-highest percentage of any player in WNBA history and the highest since 2004, when Houston Comets forward Tina Thompson had 35 of her team's 62 points (56%).
Bueckers, who has been known for her efficiency since her days at UConn, talked about how it has carried over to the WNBA.
«It's a lot of repetition in practice,» Bueckers said. «And learning and growing, watching film of how you can get to your spots, how you can attack, how you can use your teammates screening for you, attacking in transition and when teams switch on screens. Just reading the possession.»
Bueckers also made all six of her free throws and all four of her 3-pointers. She also credited her use of the midrange game.
«I truly think basketball has gotten away from it — it's mostly layups and 3s,» she said. «Teams don't know how to guard it. So I think it's an advantage when you can score in the midrange.»
Bueckers' 44 points, the most scored by anyone in the WNBA this season, are tied for third most in history of the franchise, which previously was called the Shock in Detroit and then in Tulsa, Oklahoma, before moving to Dallas in 2016. Center Liz Cambage
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