Sparks Vs Wings: Dallas hosts Los Angeles as the WNBA regular season resumes
The sparks vs wings game is scheduled for Thursday, September 17, 2026, with the Dallas Wings hosting the Los Angeles Sparks at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas. Available reports set tipoff at 8 p.m. ET, or 7 p.m. local time, but do not establish a final score or winner. (NJ.com; Mavs Moneyball)
Dallas hosts Los Angeles as the WNBA regular season resumes
The matchup is the first game for both teams after a break for the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup. Dallas guard Paige Bueckers and head coach José Fernandez returned after helping Team USA win the tournament, according to NJ.com and Mavs Moneyball.
Dallas entered the game at 24-16 and had already secured a playoff berth. Los Angeles was 15-25 and had been eliminated from playoff contention, according to PrizePicks and Daily News.
The reported game time differs by time zone rather than indicating separate games: PrizePicks lists 8 p.m. Eastern, while Mavs Moneyball lists 7 p.m. for Arlington.
Dallas is playing for playoff seeding
The Wings were reported as being in a three-team tie with the New York Liberty and Washington Mystics at 24-16. The reports disagree on Dallas’ exact place: Daily News and Mavs Moneyball describe the Wings as eighth, while NJ.com places them in a tie for sixth.
What the reports consistently establish is that Dallas was trying to improve its playoff position during the final four regular-season games. Mavs Moneyball says the Wings could move as high as the sixth seed, though doing so would require Dallas to win and receive help from other results.
Dallas had won four straight games before the international break, according to Mavs Moneyball. PrizePicks listed the Wings as 9.5-point home favorites, a pregame line that could change and does not determine the result.
Los Angeles enters with a final stretch built around Ogwumike
Although the Sparks had missed the playoffs, coach Lynne Roberts said the team still had four regular-season games to play for, according to Daily News. The stretch began in Dallas and was scheduled to continue with games against Portland, Las Vegas and Golden State.
The games also carry significance for Nneka Ogwumike, the Sparks’ franchise scoring leader. She announced that she would retire from the WNBA at the end of the season, and the team had four games remaining with her, Daily News reports.
Los Angeles had won three of its previous four games, including two in a row, before the break. The Sparks’ recent run included an 88-82 win over Washington on August 28, according to PrizePicks and Mavs Moneyball.
As of the available September 17 reporting, the game remained a scheduled matchup with Dallas pursuing seeding and Los Angeles beginning its final four-game run. A completed score or postgame result is not established.