With the playoffs approaching, the Dallas Wings have entered a stretch where every game plays a crucial role. So after they lost another hard-fought battle, picking up their fourth loss in the last five and 15th of the season, this time against Caitlin Clark and the Fever head coach Jose Fernandez made it clear that the Wings cannot keep relying on Paige Bueckers alone to carry them through every game.

“It can’t just be Paige the entire fourth quarter to come to the rescue every time,” Fernandez said postgame, per Dallas Morning News reporter Myah Taylor on X.

As the game kicked off, the Wings held their own for most of the night, only to watch the Fever pull away with a 98-87 victory at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. They entered the fourth quarter with a 66-63 lead, but Indiana opened the final period with a 17-2 run that completely flipped the game.

Tyasha Harris knocked down three 3-pointers in the quarter, while Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell helped the Fever take control down the stretch.

Paige Bueckers did everything she could to keep Dallas in the fight as she finished the game with 29 points, six rebounds, and six assists. But Indiana’s late surge left Dallas without an answer. And that is exactly where coach Fernandez’s frustration comes in.

Even though Arike Ogunbowale dropped 20 points, the rest of the Wings roster managed only single-digit scoring, except for Odyssey Sims, who finished with 11 points. But that doesn’t mean the Wings lack players capable of supporting their franchise star. The problem is that several of those key pieces are currently sidelined.

Azzi Fudd has missed the last four games with a right knee injury, while Jessica Shepard remains sidelined with a right ankle injury. Aziaha James is also out with a lower-leg injury, leaving Dallas without important pieces of its front rotation. While all three are expected to return in the near future, their absences have come at a crucial point in the season with the playoff race tightening.

Another reason behind Dallas’ recent slump has been its fourth-quarter execution.

While the Wings have often opened games strongly, they have struggled to carry that same energy through the final stretch. And that’s what happened against the Fever as well. Indiana outscored them 35-21 in the final 10 minutes of the game to take the win, with Caitlin Clark finishing the night with 29 points.

This late-game execution problem is something the Indiana Fever is very well familiar with. But behind their ‘three-headed monster,’ Indiana has now found a comfortable footing and continues to dominate with the best offense in the league, averaging 96.3 points per game.

Paige Bueckers and the Wings are now 20-15 and still hold the eighth seed (PCT 0.571), but the playoff race remains tight with the Washington Mystics in seventh despite being 19-14 because of a better winning percentage (PCT 0.576). So with only nine regular-season games remaining, every win and loss from here on will carry greater weight.

Bueckers may have matched Caitlin Clark’s 29 points, but Fernandez’s message after the game was clear: Dallas cannot keep relying on its No. 1 pick to rescue it every time the game reaches its biggest moments. The Fever and the Wings will lock horns once again on August 20th.