Paige Bueckers' homecoming in Minneapolis wasn't going as she might have hoped.

The Bueckers and Dallas Wings played the third straight game, opening a new WNBA season on Wednesday night. When they were late and some comeback, Minnesota's Links insisted on an 85-81 victory at the Target Center, which allowed the Bueckers to ruin her hometown in her first professional game.

advertise

The wings emitted heat during Wednesday's 15-5 run, although almost immediately collapsed. Lynx responded 16-3 to take control of the game directly at the end of the first quarter.

Lynx then raised their lead to double digits later in the third quarter, entering the locker room with almost 10 points after Natisha Hiedeman's field half-time shot on the buzzer. Her shot was just considered too late, but Lynx's lead was cut by 7.

The Bueckers also struggled in the first half. She only scored 1 of 6 from the field and didn't score until later in the second quarter.

Napheesa Collier dropped 12 points in the third quarter, including a 15-foot high before the buzzer to keep his wings in the bay for the next 10 minutes. The Bueckers drilled her second 3-pointer of the night just minutes in the fourth quarter, and then Dijonai Carrington drilled one of her own minutes later to make it a game. Then, after a period of battle, Arike Ogunbowale drilled from the wings for 3 minutes, and only 39 seconds left to keep the wings in it.

But Collier hit two free throws after that, and the Bueckers missed the last three, which gave Lynx a four-point victory. This has kept them a perfect 3-0 this season and lowered their wings to 0-3.

advertise

Collier led the Bobcats with 28 and 8 rebounds while shooting 8 from the field. Alanna Smith and Courtney Williams also added 13 points. Lynx also scored 27 assists with 28 shots on the team and surpassed the wings by 16.

Arike Ogunbowale led the wings with 21 points and 5 assists, and Myisha Hines-Allen added 11 points. In Dallas' losses, the Bueckers fell by 12 points and 10 assists. She shot 3 of 11 from the field and 2 of 5 shots behind the arc.

The Bueckers grew up in Hopkins, Minnesota, a suburb of southwest Twin Cities. She led her high school to a state championship when she won Gatorade Player of the Year in 2019, which helped her stand out on UCONN. So, earlier this month, Hopkins changed her name to honor her before the Bueckers’ first professional WNBA game.

advertise

The town became "Page Books of Minnesota" every day. There are countless events throughout the town, including the season opener of the Wingspan. That game coincided with Sanlia in Dallas.

While Wednesday's game wasn't great for the Bueckers, she had to at least play in a familiar place and cross a major milestone. And, since she still has only three games in her WNBA career, the Bueckers should have more chances to win at the target center when they returned to Minneapolis on September 1.

This article will be updated with more information soon.