Storm use 2nd half rally to beat Minnesota 81-79
Storm use 2nd half rally to beat Minnesota 81-79
Stewart's heroics once again lead the Storm to victory
(Minneapolis, Minnesota) - We’ve seen a pattern in these recent road games. You can call it championship pedigree. You can call it strong execution down the stretch. You can even call it luck. But the Seattle Storm have managed to pull out three consecutive wins on the road by the narrowest of margins. On Tuesday, Seattle used a large 2nd half rally to defeat the Minnesota Lynx (3-12) by a final score of 81-79.
“I thought it was another gutsy win. Figuring out ways to win on the road without our entire roster. The first half we weren’t very good. The 2nd half our defense and intensity, our want-to, and our will was a lot better. Again, very big plays from a lot of our players. Gabby with her offensive rebounding. Piph hitting big shots. Jewell and Stewie executing at the end. Overall, finding ways to win on the road, we’ll take that.” Coach Noelle Quinn said in her opening statement.
The biggest reason for the victory is pretty simple. The Storm have Breanna Stewart and the other team does not. Stewie led all players in scoring with 29 points on 10-18 FG shooting. She also made 8-10 FT attempts. She got to the foul line more times than the entire Lynx team did. Something the home crowd certainly wasn’t pleased with. Stewart also finished the game with eight rebounds and three assists as she continues to put up MVP-quality numbers.
Epiphanny Prince finally broke out of her shooting/scoring slump and scored 15 points. All five of her made shots came from beyond the three-point line including four of them coming in the 4th quarter when the team needed to rally after trailing the entire game. Prince’s scoring is so desperately needed as the team’s bench has really struggled for multiple weeks now. It really was a great sign for the team and hopefully something that can continue moving forward.
“Piph has been a consummate professional. She works every day. Nothing changes about her effort, her mind, her attitude. I knew that law of averages, Piph is a very efficient player. I just told her before the game, she’ll have a bigger opportunity. I was Piph’s teammate, I know she can get busy. I know what she can do for this team and in this league. It was good to see her knocking down shots and her intensity on defense was great as well.” Quinn stated.
I asked Piph, as a shooter, what are the keys to breaking out of a shooting slump?
“Just to keep shooting and have your confidence. It was good for me, everyone was talking to me and being positive while I was shooting. Also, it’s important to get more reps in too. I know I said I was in a shooting slump, but I probably only took 2-3 shots in those games. I’m not going to be able to get out of that if I don’t shoot the ball.” Prince told me.
Jewell Loyd finished with 14 points and five assists. She scored eight of her points in the third quarter to help Seattle close the deficit from being down seven at halftime to just two points entering the 4th quarter.
Ezi Magbegor added nine points and six rebounds but was limited due to early foul trouble in this game.
Minnesota actually won most of the statistical categories in this game which is a huge reason why the Storm nearly lost the game to what (on paper) appears to be a vastly inferior team. However, what Seattle did have the edge in was critical in picking up the win.
The Storm got to the foul line more often by a significant margin. They made 13-15 FT attempts while Minnesota was limited to just 3-3 on their free throws. Seattle was a +10 in that regard. They also held a small advantage in rebounds at 35-33, but a huge edge in offensive rebounds where they out-rebounded Minnesota 15-6 on the offensive glass. Seattle had 14 second-chance points compared to Minnesota’s seven. Lastly, despite having a worse overall shooting percentage than the Lynx, the Storm made more threes and shot them at a higher percentage connecting on 44% (12-27 FG) from beyond the arc compared to Minnesota who made 32% (6-19 FG) from long range.
The Minnesota Lynx
Four Lynx players scored in double figures as Kayla McBride led the team with 20 points. Aerial Powers had 10 points and led the team with seven assists. Nikolina Milic added 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Jessica Shepard provided 12 points and six rebounds off the bench.
Minnesota doubled the Storm with points in the paint 48 to 24. They consistently got into the interior and converted several layups and short-range shots. The Lynx had a large 21-8 advantage in fast break points which is something Seattle normally loves to take advantage of. Minnesota had more assists 27-24 and shot the ball more efficiently at 52% (35-68 FG) compared to Seattle at 38% (28-73 FG).
Game Breakdown
Nikolina Milic connected on a hook shot to begin the game. Damiris Dantas hit a three for the Lynx but Stewart responded with her own three to tie the game back up at 5-5.
Seattle took the lead after Jewell Loyd hit a three and then the Storm were able to get a defensive rebound and outlet the pass to Stewart for an easy layup to put Seattle up 10-7.
The Storm led 14-9 but Minnesota went on an 11-0 run to regain the lead at 20-14. Stephanie Talbot finally ended the run with a corner three.
Rachel Banham had a positive impact off the bench scoring four points, grabbing two rebounds, and getting two assists finding her teammates for open shots in the opening period. Nikolina Milic led the Lynx in scoring with seven points in the first quarter.
Minnesota finished the first period on a 16-5 run and led 24-19.
Epiphanny Prince hit a corner three to begin the 2nd quarter to cut Minnesota’s lead to just two at 24-22. From there, the Lynx would go on another 7-0 run. Kayla McBride hit a three; then Aerial Powers and Jessica Shepard got easy baskets in the paint. That put Minnesota up nine at 31-22 and Coach Quinn needed to call timeout again.
Seattle briefly made a run with Gabby Williams getting a nice offensive putback and Jewell Loyd connecting on a three to cut the lead to six. However, Minnesota went on a 5-0 run after that with Moriah Jefferson connecting on a jumper and Bridget Carleton connecting on a triple with Stewart’s hand in her face.
A huge offensive rebound by Magbegor led to a Briann January three-pointer. Milic and Stewart exchanged layups. Then Moriah Jefferson hit a jumper over Stewart’s outstretched arms. Ezi was able to drain a triple to cut the 10-point lead down to seven at 42-35.
Breanna Stewart scored four more points for Seattle. Meanwhile, Minnesota got points from Jessica Shepard and Kayla McBride to keep their lead at seven points entering the locker rooms 46-39.
Loyd knocked down a three to cut Minnesota’s lead down to four at 50-46. Stewie then found Loyd for an alley-oop layup. The Storm regained the lead at 51-50 when Loyd found Stewie cutting into the lane for an AND1 layup.
Rachel Banham and Kayla McBride made consecutive baskets to put Minnesota back on top.
The Storm took the lead 57-54. But Minnesota finished on a 7-2 run to regain the lead 61-59. Dantas, Carleton, and Shepard scored the points for the Lynx.
Epiphanny Prince caught fire in the 4th quarter. Something the Seattle Storm desperately needed to see. Prince has been in a funk over the past several games and hasn’t been her dependable self the team is used to. But she came back in a huge way in this game connecting on five three-pointers including four in the 4th quarter to put Seattle ahead 76-72.
Seattle carried a 79-74 lead but Minnesota would go on a 5-0 run to tie the game. Shepard drove near the baseline and kicked it out to McBride for the tying three.
Ultimately, it was Loyd who found Stewart on the pick-and-roll as Stewie scored the game’s final basket with 43 seconds left in the game. Seattle was able to get a stop on a poorly forced shot by Moriah Jefferson. Loyd missed a layup that would have sealed the victory but Breanna Stewart was able to gather the offensive rebound and kicked the ball out to Gabby Williams as time on the game clock expired.
Additional Analysis
Coach Quinn Visibly Upset
The benefit of having the game aired nationally on ESPN was that the coaches were mic’d up. As the Storm were being completely outplayed during the first half we got to hear some of Coach Quinn’s dialogue from one of the timeouts.
“I don’t want to be lucky. I want to be great. No low i, no pressure, no nothing. Where’s your heart at!? Come on!” she told the team.
“Defensively, we’re being too reactive. They’re cutting everywhere, they’re doing stuff and we’re reacting to it. Get aggressive, bump cutters, communicate, and talk!” Quinn added.
For reference, the “i” in a basketball defensive scheme are two players in the paint both in help defense (not on-ball defenders). The top of the “i” is usually hovering around the free throw line and the low or bottom of the “i” would be the player under the basket.
Quinn was frustrated because the players weren’t rotating and helping out in the low post allowing Minnesota to get a ton of paint points.
The good news is the Storm did clean things up in the 2nd half. After giving up 46 points in the first half they limited the Lynx to just 33 points through the final two quarters of the game. I talked with Coach Quinn after the game about what was said in the locker room at the half and the adjustments they made.
“The talk at halftime was very intense. The biggest thing was just effort. Knowing that we can’t be mediocre and expect to win games. We’re not at that point right now. The fact that we’re supposed to come into this game and make sure we’re locking into our systems and schemes; our execution was lacking. They were denying us, starting our offense at half court. They were more physical than us. These are things as a coach, I made sure that the team understood that this is a reflection of me. I’m not a soft person, I’m not a soft individual, I didn’t like that we were showing that we were soft. The message was to get tough. To play more aggressively. To be on our front foot, to not be reactive and I thought the team responded.” Quinn told me.
I honestly loved this quote because the team wasn’t playing well in that first half. Their effort wasn’t acceptable and Coach Quinn pushed them to be better in the second half and they did play significantly better.
After the game, I also spoke to Stewie about the team’s defensive adjustments in the 2nd half that really helped them turn things around.
“I think the biggest adjustments were that we needed to make everything a little bit tighter. We needed to be a little bit better. We were too spread out defensively where we needed to guard the ball on the strong side before we were guarding the weak side. We wanted to pick it up. This group, we’ve been through a lot of different lineups. We wanted to stick together and stay aggressive. Obviously, when you’re on the road no team is just going to give you the game. We need we had to take it.” Stewie replied.
Point Gabby
It is really too bad Gabby Williams is struggling so much with her shot offensively (she made 1-7 FG), because everything else she’s doing on the basketball court is excellent. On Tuesday night, Williams nearly had a double-double despite scoring just four points in the game. She had 10 rebounds and eight assists; both were team-highs for the Storm. Her defense has been very strong all season and was again in this game. But it’s her ability to facilitate and distribute the ball that has caught my eye. Gabby had a career-high nine assists just a couple of games ago against Dallas. And now eight against Minnesota.
After the game, I spoke with Breanna Stewart about Gabby’s contributions outside of scoring.
“Yeah, Gabby was all over the place. I think that when she has the mindset and mentality that she does to get whatever she wants, she’ll get whatever she wants. She’s flying in there for those rebounds, she’s getting into the paint, dropping it off to whoever is there. She’s playing with a lot of confidence. She’s being aggressive and she’s doing exactly what we need her to do. I played with her at UConn and now playing with her again. It’s great to see her doing that out on the court.” Stewie said.
I then asked Coach Quinn about her ability to distribute the ball and if the team has considered playing her more in that backup point guard (or point forward) role.
My understanding from earlier conversations this season with Gabby is that she played some point guard for Chicago but didn’t really like being in that position. Coach Quinn reiterated that she wants to keep Gabby on the wing.
“She was also a plus 14 (in plus/minus), I’ll start right there. Just saying the impact that she brings is very important. Coming in, we know Gabby is a great facilitator. She has the ability to get into the paint, go downhill, and find her teammates. She can initiate. I don’t think I will (put her in that spot). In Chicago, she played point, I know because she’s a good passer and she’s a big guard that is enticing to do (play her at the PG), but I think on this team, leaving her on the wing to be a decision-maker gives us another look. Another playmaker in a sense in a different standpoint of the floor. Also, the ability to post up; her finishes are going to come I strongly believe that. But her intangibles matter so much to this team.” Coach Quinn answered.
Jersey Count
The Storm were wearing their green and white “Heroine” jerseys and they continue to perform well in these jerseys. The team is now 5-1 when wearing this uniform combination. Seattle improves to 9-5 overall and remains as the 4th seed in league standings behind the Las Vegas Aces (11-2), the Connecticut Sun (10-4), and the Chicago Sky (9-4).
Records per jersey type this season:
Rebel: 3-1
Explorer: 1-3
Heroine: 5-1
Overall Record: 9-5
Up Next
Seattle has already won three games on this five-game road trip which means they’re guaranteed a winning record on their longest road trip of the season. However, their biggest challenge will be this next game on Friday where they face the Connecticut Sun. Connecticut is one of the league’s elite teams and has already beaten the Storm in Seattle. Will Seattle get some revenge on Friday, June 17th at 4:00 PM (local, Seattle time)?
Notes:
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Photo Credits to Neil Enns/Seattle Storm/WNBA Photography Team