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San Antonio Stars dispatch Tulsa Shock 80-76

The San Antonio Stars picked up their first win on the season on the second game of a back-to-back.

Soobum Im-US PRESSWIRE

The San Antonio Stars came back -- and then hung on -- to defeat the Tulsa Shock 80-76 and earn their first win of the season.

Jia "Volume Scorer" Perkins made all four of her 3-pointers and led the Stars (1-1) with 20 points. Two of her 3-pointers came on consecutive plays in the fourth quarter to give San Antonio the lead (75-74 with 45 seconds to play) and then to take it back with 15 seconds left in the game.

With a two point lead and the shot clock turned off, the Stars needed to stop the Shock one last time. After a mad scramble inside the arc, Sophia Malcolm-Young ended up fouling career 55 percent free throw shooter Courtney Paris. Paris missed her first and a lane violation (on what was probably a purposeful miss) gave the Stars the ball with one second left in the game.

Perkins (naturally) was fouled with .7 seconds left in the game and made both of her free throws to ice the game and send the 7,000+ fans at the AT&T Center home happy. Perkins shot just 5-13 from the field but her four 3-pointers and 6-7 shooting from the free throw line more than made up for her inefficiency from two-point range.

I'll have more on the Stars' weekend on Monday morning, but here are some quick thoughts after the jump.

[Box Score] [Stars Website] [Shock Website]

  • Kayla McBride scored a double-digit point total for the first time in her WNBA career. She scored 11 points on 2-9 shooting (6-6 from the free throw line).
  • Danielle Robinson had herself a hell of a weekend. The point god guard scored 17 points and picked up six rebounds and five assists.
  • For the Shock (0-1), Skylar Diggins nearly tallied a triple-double with 20 points, 9 assists and eight rebounds. Her shooting (6-17) leaves something to be desired.
  • Tulsa missed nine free throws (20-29) while San Antonio made 21 of their 23. The Shock posted a better field goal percentage, but the Stars shot 33 percent from 3-point range compared to Tulsa's 24 percent.
  • The Stars are a fun basketball team! I like watching them play! And Becky Hammon hasn't even suited up yet. This is a great win for a team playing on a back-to-back to open their season.
San Antonio is back in action against Brittney Griner and the Phoenix Mercury on Friday at 9 p.m. CST on Fox Sports South West. Check back on Monday for more #analysis on this weekend's action.