Six weeks ago, Kaela Davis was celebrating a national championship with her South Carolina teammates. On Sunday, she was making her WNBA debut with Dallas.
"You come off a screen, and you see [Brittney] Griner in the lane,"  Davis said of the moments of realization that she is now in the big leagues. "And you're like, 'OK, this is where we're at.' It's an amazing opportunity."Davis, who was the No. 10 draft pick, couldn't have asked for a much better first game. She had 20 points on 6-of-10 shooting, with four rebounds and four assists, as the Wings beat the Mercury 68-58.Yeah, that's a pretty hideous final score, especially with a traditional offensive-power team such as Phoenix being held to fewer than 60 points. It was a rough opener for the Mercury, who have just two players back from last season. The new-look Mercury looked OK in the first half, though, as they got out to an 8-1 edge and led 34-32 at the break.But Phoenix seemed to regress in the second half. Griner finished with 18 points.
Having energetic young players such as Davis  -- redshirt junior for South Carolina last season who opted to forego their final year of eligibility to enter the draft -- helped with Dallas' defense. "Gamecock Nation -- they're they best. They follow us and support us wherever we are," Davis said. "I know they're excited about us being here."