Storm Get Revenge, Beat Mercury 77-70
Seattle improves to 2-1 on the season.
(Seattle, WA) - The Seattle Storm (2-1) looked significantly better in their rematch against the Phoenix Mercury (2-1) after their disappointing 81-59 loss in the first game of the season. Gabby Williams joked after the game and said, “We’re not talking about that. That game never happened,” after being asked to compare the two.
This time, Seattle had the homecourt advantage, and they used the Storm Crazies’ energy to rally with a 12-0 run that spanned the end of the third period and the beginning of the 4th quarter to take control of the game. Seattle’s defense closed things out, holding the Mercury scoreless over the final 4:48 of the game. They also limited Satou Sabally and Alyssa Thomas to just one point in the 4th quarter.
Skylar Diggins and Nneka Ogwumike led Seattle to a 77-70 victory over the Mercury. Diggins had a stellar game with 24 points and a career-high 14 assists. She was also very efficient, converting 8-16 FG and making 7-9 FT. The 14 assists also tied the regular season franchise record set by Sue Bird back in 2006. As you may recall, Bird had 16 assists in the Storm’s Game 1 victory over the Las Vegas Aces during the WNBA Finals in 2020.
Ogwumike was incredibly efficient in the Storm’s victory. Entering the 4th quarter, Nneka had made nine out of her ten field goal attempts and finished the game 11-15 FG. Nneka finished with 24 points and eight rebounds. She also scored two critical baskets in the final two minutes that assured Seattle the victory.
Gabby Williams was the only other player to score in double figures. She finished with 11 points, five rebounds, two assists, and two steals. She also made 3-7 FG from beyond the arc as she continues to work on her three-point shooting. Ezi Magbegor finished with six points and seven rebounds. Erica Wheeler also added six points off the bench and was a +14 in plus/minus. That was a team-high for the Storm. And it was notable that she played the entire 4th quarter in place of Alysha Clark.
The Storm outshot the Mercury 47% (30-64 FG) to 43% (27-63 FG). However, Phoenix was better from beyond the arc (33% to 28%). Seattle had a slight edge in points in the paint (36-34) and fast break points (8-7). Thanks to Diggins, Seattle had more assists, as well (21-18).
Phoenix Mercury
The Phoenix Mercury were once again led by their new stars, Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally. Thomas finished with a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds. She was close to a triple-double as she finished with seven assists. Thomas also had two steals. Sabally ended the game with 15 points and nine rebounds. While they both played well, the Storm did a much better job at limiting their impact. In the team’s first matchup, an 81-59 loss for the Storm, Seattle gave up 47 points to Sabally and Thomas. In this game, they held them to 16 fewer points.
They did get some solid contributions from their teammates. Rookie Monique Akoa Makani finished with 14 points. Sami Whitcomb went 3-6 FG and contributed seven points. Lexi Held added seven points, and Kalana Brown scored six more off the bench.
Phoenix out-rebounded Seattle 34-30. They also had the edge in offensive rebounds, 7-4. Their bench also outscored Seattle’s 15-10.
Game Breakdown
Nneka Ogwumike knocked down a three-pointer to open the game. Satou Sabally was able to draw a foul on the other end and made both free throws. Skylar was fouled and banked it off the rim for the AND1. Kathryn Westbeld connected on a corner three, and then Sami Whitcomb drove past Alysha Clark to give Phoenix the one-point lead. Satou Sabally then tricked the defense, which left her wide open for the short basket inside the paint. Gabby countered with a three-ball to tie the game at 9-9.
Alyssa Thomas was fouled and made one of two. Then she charged back to the basket on her second possession and laid it in with ease. Lexi Held drove past Skylar for the layup to put the Mercury up five at 14-9. Diggins scored on a technical free throw and then made back-to-back baskets. First, she hit a three on the wing and then drove past the defense for the easy two. Sabally answered right back with a three-pointer. Nneka tied the game at 17-17 with a mid-range jumper.
Nneka converted an AND1 through contact, but the Mercury responded with one from Monique Akoa Makani. Both teams finished the first quarter tied at 24-24. Skylar led Seattle with nine points, and Satou Sabally matched her
Skylar knocked down another mid-range jumper. Dominique Malonga checked in for the first time and made an immediate impact. She caused Alyssa Thomas to miss a shot. And she hit a jumper near the foul line. Malonga, along with Ezi Magbegor, forced Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally to hesitate with their shot attempts, which led to a 24-second shot clock violation.
Seattle briefly extended their lead to five points with layups from Zia Cooke and Diggins. Phoenix tied the game again with a basket from Thomas and a corner three from Lexi Held. The Mercury then took the lead with four quick points from Thomas and a corner three from Sami Whitcomb. Kalani Brown got a late AND1 and Sevgi Uzun to give the Mercury a late five-point lead. Gabby Williams hit a corner three to cut the Storm’s deficit to two at the half, 44-42.
Sabally picked up where she left off in the first half, scoring five quick points to put the Mercury up five at 49-44. Nneka, Gabby, and Skylar all scored to cut the Mercury’s lead to one. Monique Makani hit another three-pointer. After an Ezi score, Alyssa Thomas made a fancy spin move between defenders and finished with the reverse layup and was fouled for the traditional three-point play.
Every time the Storm got a score, the Mercury would respond. Ogwumike scored, but baskets from Held and Alyssa Thomas followed that. Meanwhile, the Storm committed turnovers on three straight possessions. That allowed the Mercury to extend their lead to seven at 61-54.
To Seattle’s credit, they fought back. The Storm went on an 8-0 run to retake the lead with 30 seconds left in the third period. Their defense picked up and forced Phoenix into multiple turnovers. Seattle got a couple more baskets from Nneka, Skylar, and Erica Wheeler. The Storm led 62-61 at the end of the third quarter.
Wheeler scored again to start the 4th period. Li Yueru forced Sabally into a missed shot, and then Skylar was fouled on the other end. Diggins made both free throws to put the Storm up five. Seattle had some opportunities to extend their lead beyond five but couldn’t convert. Then they gave up multiple offensive rebounds to the Mercury, which resulted in a trip to the foul line for Sabally.
A bad turnover by Seattle out of a timeout resulted in a fast break layup for Monique Akoa Makani. Makani would then hit back-to-back three-pointers in between a Gabby Williams three-ball. The 8-3 run by Phoenix tied the game at 70-70 with 4:45.
The Storm’s defense held the Phoenix Mercury scoreless after that three-ball by Akoa Makani. Meanwhile, Seattle’s primary options went to work. Skylar made a mid-range jumper, and then Nneka made back-to-back layups off the pick-and-roll with assists from Gabby and Skylar. Diggins was fouled late and split the pair of free throws. Seattle got nine defensive stops to end the game and won 77-70.
Final Box Score
Up Next
Jewell Loyd makes her highly anticipated return to Seattle as the Storm host the Las Vegas Aces (2-1) on Sunday, May 25th at 3:00 PM. It’s a rematch of last year’s playoff matchup between these two teams, except this time, Loyd will be on the Aces’ bench.
Part 2
Part 2, with additional thoughts, quotes, and discussion, will be sent to paid subscribers tomorrow.
Notes:
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