Seattle Storm coast past the Minnesota Lynx 82-72
The game wasn't nearly as close as the final score indicates as the Storm led by 30 points in the 4th quarter.
(Everett, WA) - This was another solid win for the Seattle Storm (5-1) who continue to impress early into the 2021 season. While the final score, a ten-point victory over the winless Minnesota Lynx (0-4) doesn’t sound all that impressive. It certainly was if you watched the game from start to finish.
Seattle shot lights out in the first half while opening up a 58-36 lead through the first two quarters. Early in the 4th quarter, the Storm pushed their lead to 30 points at 80-50 before they finally took their foot off the pedal.
The Storm had five players score in double figures and seven players score at least seven points or more. They were led by Breanna Stewart who had 15 points and a game-high eight rebounds. Jewell Loyd (12 points), Candice Dupree (12 points), Sue Bird (11 points), and Epiphanny Prince (10 points) were the other players to score in double figures in this game.
I talked to Storm coach Dan Hughes after the game about the teams’ balanced effort.
“The ball really moves. It was hard to not appreciate how well the ball was moving. I think it moved well because our movement without the ball allowed us to have the ability to move it freely. They extended out to us, they did a good job taking our three away. But the ball moved so well certainly through the first three quarters and we finished in the lane. This team has a certain rhythm to it. It’s very open-minded, it doesn’t program ‘This is how it looks’. When the ball moves and finds a natural home, it can find any of the five and it certainly did on those first five possessions where we scored.”
Minnesota had four players score in double figures as well with former MVP Sylvia Fowles leading the way with 15 points. Napheesa Collier scored 14 points in her season debut but struggled to shoot against Seattle’s tough defense; limiting her to just 4-12 shooting and 0-2 from beyond the arc. Collier did have a game-high six assists.
“We were fortunate, she’s in game 1 just getting back with her team. Phee is going to be hard to deal with down the road, she just needs a little time. Luckily, we’ve played them twice (already). I know we’ll see them again. Every game Phee will get better. That will impact this team. We were just fortunate she missed a couple of shots today. You can see how she’s going to impact them very, very positively. I’m just glad we’ve got two games under our belt with them because by the time she gets in rhythm they’re going to be hard to deal with.” Coach Hughes told the media about limiting Napheesa Collier in her first game back this season.
Kayla McBride and Bridget Carleton each added 12 points, but seven of Carleton’s 12 points came late in the 4th quarter (garbage time) with all of Seattle’s starters on the bench and the game out of hand.
Lynx Coach Cheryl Reeve sarcastically praised her team’s defense during her post-game press conference.
“Players got too deep and [Seattle] got hands on stuff. We didn’t make shots. It was not a case that we were taking wide-open shots. Seattle, defensively, really crowded us. We were an impressive defensive team tonight with defending the paint -- we were really good. And the only reason they didn't score 70 points in the paint was because [Coach Dan Hughes] sat down players that could have their way with us offensively. One of the more disappointing nights in my tenure. We have lots of work to do.” Coach Reeve said.
Reeve also commented on the Storm’s high-paced offense.
“Their pace is incredible. It's the culture that they have. You know that if you don't bring a certain pace with these guys, they're just going to chew you up and spit you out, and they did that to us.”
Napheesa Collier was disappointed that the strides they made in practice weren’t evident in their play Friday night.
“I think not converting what we have been doing in practice into the game is probably the most frustrating thing for us and the coaches. We worked so hard and really drilled defense especially. We just didn't do what we said we were going to and what we've been practicing this week. I don't know why it's not converting, but we have to figure it out fast and we need to find the answer soon.” Collier said after the game.
Game Breakdown
The Storm looked excellent early on connecting on their first five shots to take a 10-2 lead just two and a half minutes into the game. Seattle started the game 5-5 and all five starters each scored a basket. The streak kept going as Seattle built a 15-2 lead before Napheesa Collier was able to draw a foul in the low post. Collier nailed both free throws. Seattle led 17-4 roughly midway through the first quarter, but it wouldn’t last.
After a second timeout, Minnesota was determined to get Sylvia Fowles going in the low post. She hit consecutive shots down low and then Kayla McBride knocked down a corner three and a cutting layup as part of a 9-2 run by the Lynx to cut Seattle’s lead to just six at 19-13.
Over the final five minutes, Minnesota outscored Seattle 19-10. Ezi Magbegor was able to score a basket down low to give Seattle a 27-23 edge after one period of play.
Jewell Loyd led Seattle with seven points in the opening frame. But Kayla McBride led all scorers with eight points, including two big threes that helped cut into the Storm’s lead.
After Seattle led 17-4, the Minnesota Lynx tied the game early in the 2nd quarter at 29-29. It was the closest the Lynx would get as they never led in this game. The Storm went on a 13-2 run to push their lead back up to eleven at 42-31. Then things just snowballed for Minnesota from there.
Seattle’s defense was a huge story of the 2nd quarter, they got steals and blocked shots that led to multiple transition baskets. They were able to draw fouls on Minnesota, including back-to-back AND1 scoring opportunities by Stephanie Talbot and Breanna Stewart that pushed the Storm’s lead to 18 at 54-36. Seattle finished the half on a 10-0 run and led 58-36 at the midway point. In total, the Storm outscored the Lynx 31-13 in the 2nd quarter. It was reminiscent of their 37-15 outburst in the 4th quarter of their first game against Minnesota.
The 2nd quarter was the true difference in this game and the players spoke about that after the game.
“In the second quarter, I think our defense really dictated what we did offensively. We were able to turn them over a lot, get defensive rebounds and really just push, to the point where it's difficult for them to match up if we're running in transition every time and not really calling place. It was probably [our best defense]. I mean, we've been given up a lot of points and we still gave up a decent amount of points [today], but we're getting there” Stewart said.
“Our defense came together really well in those first three quarters, and obviously that gives us an opportunity to get out and run and get out in transition. Offensively we did a great job of moving the ball. I think they said 50 plus points out of our total we're in the paint, which is really good. Just a good game” Candice Dupree added.
The home team shot 64% from the floor (25-40) in the first half while limiting Minnesota to 42% (14-33). Seattle had five steals and forced the Lynx into seven turnovers in the first half. The Storm also dominated the rebounds throughout the first two quarters with a 19-11 edge.
The Minnesota Lynx had absolutely no answer for the juggernaut that was the Seattle Storm’s offense. Even though Seattle started the third quarter a little sloppy with a few turnovers in their first handful of possessions, the Storm continued to score at will. They extended their lead to 27 points at 69-42 with five and a half minutes left in the third.
Seattle’s offense was like a hot knife through butter against Minnesota’s defense throughout the first three quarters. The Storm led 77-50 at the end of the third period.
A three-pointer by Kennedy Burke pushed Seattle’s lead to 30 points early in the 4th quarter. But credit to the Minnesota Lynx who refused to give up and continued to play hard. Outside of that triple by Burke, the Storm scored just two more points the rest of the way. Seattle didn’t score a single point in the final eight minutes and thirty-two seconds of the game. The less said about that 4th quarter the better.
Dan Hughes talked to the media about the keys to building that 30-point lead in the game.
“We were able to really play out of our defense. We weren't necessarily scoring from the 3-point line, but when we came out of our defense, we were doing a great job of attacking into the paint and finishing. Our players off the bench also contributed to us a little more rest for some of our [starter] players. The inclusion of [Candice] Dupree was very pivotal and the inclusion of Epiphanny Prince it kept a high level of offensive structure. And defensively we were pretty solid the whole time” Coach Hughes stated.
Minnesota finished the game on a 19-0 run and still lost by double digits (82-72). Seattle missed their final 12 shots of the game taking their field goal percentage from a sizzling 58% (35-60) down to under 49% (35-72) for the game. They also committed four turnovers during that time.
It should be noted that Stewart, Bird, and Loyd all sat out the entire fourth period (all five starters did in fact). Rookie Kiana Williams did play six minutes going 0-2 from the field and did collect one rebound.
I spoke to Coach Dan Hughes about the poor fourth quarter after the game and if it was a concern at all to him, considering the team was up by 30 points early in the final period.
“We didn’t play a complete game. We’ll have a chance to address some things in film. I thought we missed some shots that we should have made. What we’ve got is a situation where they were coming at us and we didn’t handle it quite as well as I’d like to see it. I did like the fact that they were on the court, that (those players) got minutes. I like the fact that I didn’t have to overplay some of the (starters). We’ve been in two overtime games. We’ll learn from it and we’ll move on. I thought we still defended decently. I just didn’t think offensively we were near where we had been” Coach Hughes said.
Surprisingly, several of the team stats were nearly equal by the end of the game. Seattle outrebounded Minnesota by just a few (35-32) after dominating the glass in the first half. Both teams had the same amount of assists (20) and turnovers (12). Seattle did have the defensive edge in steals (8 to 5) and blocked shots (7 to 2). It was the Storm’s best defensive effort this season, limiting the Lynx to just 72 points on 37% (25-67) shooting from the floor.
Additional Analysis
The Seattle Storm are a really good team. I’m not quite ready to say the Minnesota Lynx are a bad team but the 0-4 start is certainly surprising. It’s arguably the most shocking thing about the 2021 season so far. A lot of it is circumstantial. The Lynx have only played four games, whereas other teams have already played seven (nearly twice as many). More games equal more chances to pick up that victory they’re in desperate need of. On top of that, two of their four games have come against the 5-1 Seattle Storm who might just be the best team in the WNBA (Top 3 for sure). They’ve also been missing pieces. Napheesa Collier missed the team’s first three games of the season while finishing up her overseas season in France. Aerial Powers, one of the team’s biggest free agent acquisitions is out with a hamstring injury and missed Friday night’s game in Seattle. And their first-round pick Rennia Davis has been out all season (so far) with a foot injury.
I think the Lynx have way too much talent on their roster to remain winless for much longer. They were the 4th best team in the bubble and made it to the semi-finals last season before being eliminated by Seattle. On paper, they made some of the biggest free agent moves in the offseason and appeared to get a steal in the WNBA draft when Rennia Davis fell to them at nine (many projected her as a Top 5 pick). On top of all of that, Cheryl Reeve is generally considered one of the best head coaches in the league.
I do expect the Lynx to turn things around pretty soon and they have plenty of time to do so, especially with the season being back up over 30 games (32) this year. With that said, the schedule doesn’t get much easier in the short term. They face the 6-1 Connecticut Sun next on Sunday and there’s a legit chance they’ll be staring 0-5 in the face after that.
Focusing back on Seattle, if you’re an optimist you’re thrilled with their 5-1 start especially because they haven’t played extremely well in some of these games. The defense hasn’t been great up until Friday’s game against Minnesota. Their offense has looked out of sync at times, especially through the first two-to-three games. But even after factoring in those negatives, they finish the month of May with just a single loss. And it came against one of the best teams in the WNBA (Las Vegas Aces) in a game in which the Aces shot lights out from three, got dominant performances from Liz Cambage and A’ja Wilson, and all of their guards and perimeter players played incredible as well.
But what we saw Friday night, I’m not sure any team is beating the Seattle Storm if they can play the way they did against Minnesota through three quarters. What might be even more impressive is the fact that Seattle, a notoriously excellent three-point shooting team, shot just 24% (4-17) from beyond the arc in this game. Seattle scored with incredible ball movement and dominant scoring in the paint (56 points).
That was the best I’ve seen them play since their complete and utter dismantling of the Las Vegas Aces in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals last season where they won 92-59 to claim their 4th WNBA Championship. I talked to Coach Hughes after the game about that and while he agreed with some of those points, he doesn’t want to compare this team to that one.
“It’s a different team. It’s going through its own journey and learning about itself. I agree with you in that I could see steps of growth in who we are and in also as good of play as we’ve had this season. We still have a lot of things to bring to the team and we’re still waiting to put the team totally together. The 2021 team needs its own identity, it’s not going to be like 2020. It’s going to have its own identity and I think we’re starting to get closer to that identity.” Coach Hughes told me.
Breanna Stewart also talked about the team continuing to build chemistry this season and seeing some of that come to fruition in this game.
“I think it was that and also the mixture of being home. We were able to be home, have a day off, and have practice. With the way that our schedule is, especially during the Olympic year, practice is hard to come by so when we have it, we have the opportunity to really get better and work on the things that are happening in-game. So, I think that’s something really for the next week because we'll have two more practices before our next game. I'm really looking forward to it.”
This is Seattle’s 11th win in a row against the Lynx which is pretty unreal considering the success of Minnesota’s franchise over the years. The Storm have really had the Lynx’s number over the past three years including knocking them out of the playoffs in both 2020 and 2019. The 11 game win streak is currently the Storm’s longest against any WNBA opponent.
Here’s a quick breakdown of those games:
2021 Season
Seattle 82 - Minnesota 72
Seattle 90 @ Minnesota 78
2020 Inside the Bubble
Seattle 92 - Minnesota 71 (WNBA Semi-Finals)
Seattle 89 - Minnesota 79 (WNBA Semi-Finals)
Seattle 88 - Minnesota 86 (WNBA Semi-Finals)
Seattle 103 - Minnesota 88
Seattle 90 - Minnesota 66
2019 Season
Seattle 84 - Minnesota 74 (1st Round Playoffs)
Seattle 82 - Minnesota 74
Seattle 90 @ Minnesota 79
Seattle 84 - Minnesota 77
Jersey Count
The Seattle Storm wore their white and green Heroine jerseys for this Friday night game against the Minnesota Lynx. They improve to 2-0 wearing their Heroine jerseys.
Seattle also improved to 4-0 in the WNBA’s Commissioner’s Cup this season which the players seem to be quite excited about. I spoke to both Breanna Stewart and Candice Dupree about their 4-0 start to Commissioner Cup play after the game.
“Yeah, we talk about it. There’s some joking with it because it’s the first year with the Commissioner’s Cup. To be 4-0 when it’s a total of 10 games, obviously, we’re feeling good. But knowing that there are still some big games to come. The Commissioner’s Cup kinda spices things up a little bit and gives an added challenge. It’s kinda like the TBT (The Basketball Tournament) just throw the TBT into the middle of the WNBA season” Stewart said.
“I’m trying to get that extra money man! I got kids!!!” Candice Dupree added after the game as we both had a good laugh.
Records per jersey type this season:
Rebel: 1-0
Explorer: 2-1
Heroine: 2-0
Overall Record: 5-1
Up Next
The Storm continue to play more games at home as they will host the Indiana Fever (1-6) at Angel of the Winds Arena in Everett, WA on Tuesday at 7:30 PM. This is the first match-up between the two teams this season. The Fever were one of the few teams to beat Seattle during last year’s 2020 season (Indiana, Washington Mystics, and Las Vegas twice).
Indiana continues to struggle since Tamika Catchings retired after the 2016 season. They have missed the playoffs every single year since then. The Fever are off to another terrible start to begin 2021.
Editor’s Note: Thank you for your support! If you know any Storm fans that aren’t currently aware of my coverage through Substack and Twitter (@WNBAStormChaser), please let them know. Word of mouth can be super helpful and is greatly appreciated! Photo Credits to Neil Enns/Seattle Storm. Members of the media on the call along with myself: Percy Allen (Seattle Times), Kevin Pelton (ESPN), Zack Ward (Swish Appeal).
Again, great coverage. It’s so nice to not have to scour all the resources, just to to glean half-assed information. And really quick turnaround. Thank you.