The crowd at College Park Center made its voice heard when Satou Sabally was introduced in the Phoenix Mercury starting lineup. The reception wasn’t warm — but it wasn’t ignored.

“The city booed me, so I’m moving on,” Sabally said postgame. “I was happy to see everyone in the back and hug everyone, and I was actually really happy to come here. But then, I guess it’s also a sign of respect to be booed, so I’ll take that.”

It marked Sabally’s first appearance in Dallas since being traded in the offseason after four seasons with the Wings. And while the emotion of the return was clear, the on-court result wasn’t what Phoenix hoped for.

The 2025 rookie class shined as the shorthanded Dallas Wings defeated the Mercury 98-89 on Thursday night. With four rookies starting — the most by any WNBA team since 2000 — the Wings pulled off their fifth win in seven games and continued their home-court dominance with a fourth straight victory at College Park Center.

Kahleah Copper: “Respect to Them, For Sure”

Sabally opened the game with a layup, but the Wings responded with an 11-0 run and never looked back. Dallas shot 76.9% in the first quarter and exploded for 61 points in the first half — tied for the most by any WNBA team in a half this season.

“I mean, the rookies were fantastic,” Kahleah Copper said. “They came out with no fear, as you should. They played free, they played aggressive, and they showed what they could do — respect to them, for sure.”

Aziaha James led the way with 28 points, six rebounds, and six assists, becoming just the fifth rookie in league history to post at least 25 points, five rebounds, five assists, and five threes in a single game. Paige Bueckers followed with 23 points, JJ Quinerly added 17, and Li Yueru posted a double-double.

Even Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts gave the Wings’ young core its due: “That was a hell of a performance by their rookies. They should be extremely excited.”

Satou Sabally’s View on League Growth and Roster Expansion

Beyond the boos and the loss, Sabally also took time to reflect on the state of the league. When asked about the rise in WNBA franchise valuations, she credited the players themselves.

“I mean, the league is growing, right? And we can always go back to what the product is and who’s actually doing the labor,” she said.

With the WNBA preparing to expand roster sizes in the near future, Sabally said it’s critical that teams are able to properly support those additions.

“It would be great to also have increased roster space and sizes just to keep developing players, keep players in the league that are maybe not good enough yet but really belong in the league and belong to play in America,” she said. “There should definitely be a focus on increasing roster sizes — as long as you can take care of the players.”

Looking Ahead

Phoenix, which entered Thursday’s game with the second-best record in the WNBA, dropped to 12-6 and suffered its second consecutive loss. Kahleah Copper did all she could, posting a season-high 33 points, but the Wings controlled the glass and tempo.

Tibbetts credited Copper’s performance — especially her second-half effort — but acknowledged his team was “a step slow” defensively all night.

“We really haven’t had one of these games this year. And it was from the start,” he said. “They came out and were ready. We weren’t at the level we needed to be.”

The Wings will travel to Phoenix for a rematch on Monday. Tipoff is set for 9 p.m. CT on KFAA and WNBA League Pass. The season series between the Wings and Mercury is now tied at 1-1.

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