Dallas at Phoenix

Dallas is riding a six-game winning streak that has it firmly in the West playoff picture. Two nights ago, these two teams met in Dallas, and the pace was absurd from the opening tip: Arike Ogunbowale and Paige Bueckers combined for 48 points, and the two sides traded buckets from the jump, with the first half alone blowing well past a similar posted number before the break even finished. Phoenix is still playing without Kahleah Copper, one of its top scoring options, and that hasn't slowed anything — the Mercury matched Dallas possession for possession in that same first half before fading in the third quarter. Both teams are shooting-first, pace-up rosters, and back-to-back meetings between the same two teams rarely slow down; if anything, familiarity speeds up an offense that already knows where the openings are. I had the first-half OVER two nights ago, and it cashed comfortably. Take the first-half OVER again tonight.