Satou Sabally's career-high 40 points helps Wings earn WNBA playoff spot, cements her as Most Improved Player

Sabally is now averaging 18.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists this season, all of which are career-high numbers

By Jack Maloney Sep 1, 2023 at 10:18 pm ET• 2 min read

Satou Sabally has a new career-high, and the Dallas Wings are officially going to the 2023 WNBA playoffs. The former No. 2 overall pick delivered the best performance of her career on Friday night to help the Wings secure a 110-100 win over the Indiana Fever, which clinched their third consecutive postseason appearance. 

Sabally had actually not played since Aug. 22 against the Minnesota Lynx, when she suffered a sprained ankle in controversial circumstances that included multiple Lynx fans being ejected and Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve issuing an apology. You would have had no idea from Sabally's performance against the Fever. 

She showed no signs of rust and was uninterested in easing her way back into action. In 28 minutes and 32 seconds of playing time, Sabally poured in 40 points on 13-of-17 from the field, including a career-high seven 3-pointers, and added seven rebounds and four assists. 

The Wings ended up needing all of them to hold off a feisty Fever team that was fighting to keep its season alive and would not go away until the final few minutes. It was fitting that Sabally finally closed the door with three consecutive 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to push the lead to 14. With the defeat, the Fever were eliminated from playoff contention.