Historic night for Tina Charles as the Storm win 82-72 over the Atlanta Dream

Tina Charles scored 27 points and became just the 4th player in WNBA history to score over 7,000 points in her career.

(Seattle, WA) - Tina Charles in her second consecutive start with the Seattle Storm had a game to remember. She scored 27 points, had 15 rebounds, and added four blocked shots in what was one of the more incredible performances we’ve seen all season. But she wasn’t the only one. Breanna Stewart nearly equaled her as Stewie scored 23 points, pulled down 10 rebounds, had four assists, three blocked shots, and two steals! The two combined for 50 points, 25 rebounds, and seven blocked shots! It was only the 2nd in league history where a pair of teammates scored more than 20 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and had at least three blocks. The only other time this happened was when Lisa Leslie and Candace Parker did it for the LA Sparks on July 6th, 2008 (per ESPN Stats & Info).

Seattle (18-10) won the game against Atlanta (12-16) by a final score of 82-72 to win the season series two games to one. The home team won all three games when these teams met which is another indication of how important homecourt advantage can be come playoff time.

This game was really a tale of two halves as well. Charles dominated the first half scoring 20 points and pulling down ten rebounds. But in the second half, she put up more modest numbers of seven points and five rebounds. For Stewie, in the first half, she scored just five points and had five rebounds. Over the final two quarters, Stewart scored 18 points and pulled down another five rebounds. Breanna also made nine of ten free throws in the second half and 12-13 FT total.

“I thought our effort was great today from the start. We got some good contributions offensively from Tina. It was good to see her flowing and in a rhythm. It was good to see us execute defensively with our zone for the majority of the game. Excellent bench contributions as well. I thought a really good effort all the way around.” Coach Noelle Quinn said in her opening statement.

“Tina, offensively, gave us a boost. You saw her ability to stretch the floor. She gave us a post dominance offensively which is good. The 15 rebounds are something we need. Even though we didn’t win the rebounding battle, I thought there were some rebounds that were key for us and we got to those. She was a big (part) of that. Stewie was not shooting efficiently but getting to the free throw line and finding other ways to impact the game with her rebounding and her steals. Being long and active in our zone; altering shots - things that matter when the ball isn’t going through the hoop all the time. She was able to impact the game in a variety of ways. I thought both of those players were very attentive, focused, passionate, and energetic. They got us over the hump.” she added.

No other players for Seattle reached double figures in scoring. To their credit, a game after I called them out for not playing very well this season, both Epiphanny Prince and Briann January had strong performances off the bench. It was much needed, especially with Sue Bird and Jewell Loyd combining to score just nine points total on 3-14 FG shooting. Prince was efficient scoring eight points on 50% FG shooting. My favorite play of hers actually came after she missed a three-pointer. But she raced to the rim, grabbed her own offensive rebound, and laid it back in for two points. That’s the type of hustle and effort Seattle desperately needs from them. January added seven points off the bench and was Seattle’s fourth-best scorer. In total, the Storm’s bench outscored Atlanta’s 19-11.

When asked about Prince’s contributions Coach Quinn had this to say.

“We need her. We need Piph to be who we’ve grown and love her to be - a bucket. Her ability to create her own shot, especially at the three-point line. I thought she got fouled on one of her drives to the rim. That’s who she’s been in this league. She’s a great teammate. She’s constantly talking with Jewell. She understands her role very well. Just the offensive output from the game we can get from her is crucial. But also Piph is decent defensively - getting her hands on balls and is a strong guard for us. She’s going to continue to be a key piece to our success.” she said.

Tina Charles also praised the bench performances from January and Prince.

“It’s very crucial. I think that’s why this organization has always had the success they’ve had because of the depth. Because of the trust, that the coaching staff has always had in the players within the organization. You take a Briann January who’s championship caliber. You take Epiphanny Prince, who’s a great vet, who’s been to the finals and is very selfless. It’s definitely very helpful. They have a great basketball IQ that can identify things out on the court. Just help us out along the way, I think that’s the best thing about this organization.” Charles added.

Neither team shot the ball particularly well in this game but the Storm were better connecting on 43% (27-63 FG) and 30% (9-30) from beyond the arc. They held Atlanta to just 35% (29-84 FG) and 24% (6-25) from the three-point line. Seattle also dominated the free throw line making 19-21 FT compared to Atlanta (8-11 FT).

The Atlanta Dream

The good news for the Atlanta Dream is that despite the loss to Seattle the production came from two of their youngest players. Rookies Rhyne Howard and Naz Hillmon both stood out. Howard has been playing well all season long and was the only rookie to be named to the WNBA All-Star team this season. She is the favorite to win the rookie of the year award and she led the Dream in scoring with 23 points. She had a solid all-around game as well as she pulled down six rebounds and dished out three assists.

Despite being the leading scorer for Atlanta, it came at a cost. Breanna Stewart was stunned to read the printed box score during her post-game press conference as she realized Howard took 30 Field Goal Attempts in the game. That was the highest amount of shot attempts by any WNBA player this season per Kevin Pelton from ESPN.

Howard finished 9-30 FG and 4-14 FG from the three-point line.

I spoke with Coach Quinn after the game about the defensive game plan to limit Howard as much as possible.

“First and foremost, we stayed out of man (defense) a little bit because they like to iso and they lead the league in unassisted field goals. The ability to set our zone started from (having) efficient offense. Finding her in the zone. A couple of shots in the first half were heartbreakers, in and out. We talked about making sure we got to her and living with good contested shots. I thought we did a good job overall in our zone.” Quinn answered.

“Make her shoot contested shots. Yeah, she made some of them. We had some lapses in our zone. But really make it tough for their entire roster, make them hesitate with their shots because of our zone and our length.” Stewie added.

Hillmon wasn’t really any more efficient making just 3-10 FG but I liked her tenacity and activity in the paint. She finished with a near double-double with nine points and 14 rebounds. Hillmon has not received a ton of playing time this season but has recently been given more of an opportunity at the tail of the season. She’s been playing pretty well for Atlanta and could become another core piece for the franchise moving forward in future years.

Cheyenne Parker was a load at times down in the paint and had a solid game with 12 points and eight rebounds. But Seattle did a better job defensively against her than the last time they played where she scored 21 points on over 50% FG shooting.

Stewart spoke to the media after the game on the team’s defensive approach to limiting Parker.

“The strategy, when Cheyenne gets the ball on the block she’s really hard to defend especially one-on-one. We played zone most of the game today which is something that is very different for us. I think we have a lot of potential in that zone. It’s hard! Speaking from an offensive perspective, when you try to post up in the zone you have people all around you. We made her take tough shots. Also, we know how they beat us in the last game and we wanted to make sure things were different today.” Stewart.

Tiffany Hayes rounded out the group with 12 points for Atlanta. She was also in a horrific collision with Breanna Stewart that looked like a car wreck. Both players were on the floor for a bit but would return to play.

espnW @espnW

Tiffany Hayes and Breanna Stewart collided at midcourt. Both players remained in the game.

Atlanta was more dominant in the low post outscoring Seattle 40-28 with points in the paint. They also out-rebounded the Storm 45-39 and more notably a 17-5 advantage with offensive rebounds. That led to the Dream scoring 15 second-chance points.

Game Breakdown

Tina Charles got a block on the first defensive possession. Seattle was able to get out in transition. They got the ball into the paint and kicked it out to Loyd for the three-ball. On the next possession, there was some contact but no foul was called. Breanna Stewart got the steal and it led to another fast break for Seattle. Sue Bird found Gabby Williams who bounced it over to Charles for the layup. With Seattle leading 5-0, Coach Tanisha Wright called timeout and was yelling at the ref. He tried to walk away and she continued to yell until he gave her a Technical foul. Stewie calmly knocked down the free throw to put Seattle up 6-0.

However, Atlanta responded back with their own 7-0 run that came from a Rhyne Howard triple, Cheyenne Parker layup in the paint, and two free throws from Naz Hillmon.

Charles and Loyd hit two more jumpers to put the Storm back up one. While Atlanta continued to score most of their points in the paint with Tiffany Hayes, Parker, and Hillmon all scoring down low.

Sue Bird was more active in looking for her shot which was good to see but she was unable to connect on any of them shooting 0-3 FG from the floor in the opening quarter.

Seattle continued to settle for outside jumpers and was ineffective. They shot 2-10 FG from beyond the arc in the first quarter.

Charles checked back in and was able to hit a three to tie the game. Kia Vaughn made a nice jump hook in the paint. Charles was able to score one more time to tie the game at 19-19 at the end of the first period.

Kristy Wallace drove past Epiphanny Prince to begin the scoring in the second quarter. Prince got one back with a nice dribble move into the paint and was fouled. She knocked down the free throw to complete the AND1 three-point play. Prince then missed a three but out-hustled every other player to race down her own rebound. She was then able to put the layup back in.

Parker was able to score down in the paint for Atlanta and Briann January was able to come off a screen and knock down her first jumper of the day. Parker got past Stewart again in the paint. After that, Charles was able to knock down back-to-back three-pointers to give the Storm their largest lead of the game up to this point at 32-25.

Charles had 20 points in the first half and became just the fourth player in WNBA history to score over 7,000 points for her career. After being celebrated by the crowd for that milestone she would promptly hit another three.

Naz Hillmon was able to get past Seattle’s defense for another layup. And then Rhyne Howard drove down the lane for an AND1 and was able to put it through the net.

Hayes was able to drive into Gabby to draw a foul. She sank both foul shots to cut Seattle’s lead down to five (39-34). A pair of free throws from Charles finished the first half.

Seattle led 41-34 at the midway point. Tina Charles completely dominated the half with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Jewell and Stewie each had five points. The Dream were more balanced overall with Rhyne Howard and Cheyenne Parker each scoring eight points in the opening half. Naz Hillmon was also productive with seven points and six rebounds.

The Storm were much better offensively shooting 47% (15-32 FG) while holding the Dream to just 38% (13-34 FG) including an abysmal 1-10 FG from beyond the arc. Other than that, most of the other stats were even with Seattle having a small rebounding advantage of 19-17. Atlanta was more dominant in the low post outscoring Seattle 22-12 inside the paint in the first half.

Howard was able to score first in the 2nd half. No surprise, Seattle continued to feed the hot hand and got the ball into the paint to Charles. She was fouled and made both free throws. Charles scored again and then Hayes and Stewart exchanged baskets in the paint.

Hillmon had a breakaway layup but Stewart was able to catch up and reject it at the rim and out of bounds. Atlanta was able to find Rhyne Howard in the right corner for a three. Seattle responded promptly with back-to-back triples from Bird and Stewart to put the Storm up 12 points (53-41).

Parker and Kristy Wallace scored baskets for Atlanta. Stewie then had an excellent defensive play where she was able to knock the ball off a leg. The ball rolled to Loyd and by the time Jewell started dribbling up the court she found Stewart racing out to the rim on the other end for an easy two.

Both Breanna Stewart and Tiffany Hayes collided in a very nasty collision. Seattle was trying to break out on a fast break and Hayes tried to intercept it but was late and so she ran hard right into Stewie. Both players remained on the floor for a brief moment. Fortunately, both were able to walk off under their own power.

At the end of the third the Storm led 63-53. Stewart had 11 points in the quarter to lead Seattle and Howard added eight points in the period for Atlanta.

Tiffany Hayes hit a beautiful crossover three to cut Seattle’s lead back to single digits. Briann January was able to get one back for Seattle by knocking down a triple. Erica Wheeler then got one to go down after it rattled around the rim and eventually dropped through the net.

Charles was able to drive by Parker to lay it in and get fouled for the AND1. That put Seattle up 13 but Atlanta cut into that lead immediately by scoring seven points in about one minute of game action. Hayes and Parker were able to score from short-range and then Howard hit another three-pointer. This cut Seattle’s lead to just six points (74-68) with roughly three and a half minutes to play and forced Coach Quinn to call a timeout.

Stewie was able to hit a shot near the foul line against Atlanta’s zone defense. Howard quickly scored on the other end. Stewart was able to draw another foul then Tina Charles got a block on the other end. It led to a fastbreak layup for Gabby Williams that put the Storm back up ten at 80-70.

Stewart would knock down one last pair of free throws and Howard converted a layup shortly before the final buzzer. Seattle dribbled out the rest of the clock and won the game 82-72.

Additional Analysis

Tina Up and Ezi Down

Tina Charles started her second consecutive game with the Seattle Storm after coming off the bench during her first eight games with the team. When asked after the last game about the lineup changes, Coach Quinn stated that it was just time. And prior to Sunday’s contest against Atlanta, when asked again about it, she mentioned that Tina was more comfortable playing with her teammates from Team USA (Bird, Loyd, and Stewart). She also stated she wanted Tina to bring an impact immediately by starting the game.

It’s hard to argue with results. In the two games Charles has started with the Storm she has put up some impressive numbers. She’s had a double-double in both games. Against Phoenix, she scored 14 points and had 11 rebounds. On Sunday against Atlanta, she put up 27 points and had 15 rebounds.

Tina talked about her experiences both off the bench and in the starting lineup with Seattle.

“It really helped to come off the bench when I first got here. To be able to watch Stewie and Ezi and their movements within the offense. That really helped. Playing USA basketball was a great experience for me knowing that your role changes when the team changes. This is a different team, my role was that (off the bench) for the first couple of games and now I’m inserted back into the starting lineup that I’ve been doing for the last (several) years of my career. That’s the beauty of myself, being able to adjust and help in any way that I’m asked to do out there.” Charles told the media.

Ezi has not been able to reproduce her earlier success since coming off the bench. This was the third game in a row (2nd where she didn’t start) that she’s scored just four points in the game. She’s also had just five rebounds total over the last two games. Not surprisingly, her minutes have declined quite a bit. Ezi played 19 minutes against Atlanta and just 16 minutes against Phoenix. Compare that to the other eight games since Charles was added to the team where she played anywhere between 22 to 27 MPG. Prior to Tina joining the roster, Ezi was playing 30+ minutes on most nights but we knew that number would have to go down. And in many ways, Coach Quinn has said it’s been more of an emphasis to not overwork her starters this season. A lesson likely learned from last year.

I know a lot of fans have been upset about Ezi’s “demotion” to the bench but we still need to see how it plays out. If Charles continues to score and rebound this well it’ll be hard to argue this was the wrong move to make.

From my perspective, what I really liked about Tina coming off the bench is that Seattle’s bench players have struggled a lot throughout this season and Charles gives them a huge upgrade. I’m confident Tina can give Seattle 15 PPG and 8 RPG whether she’s starting or coming off the bench as long as she’s getting minutes. I’m not as certain that Ezi will still be able to give Seattle 10 PPG and 6+ RPG if she’s not starting. That’s a huge question that needs to be answered. Because Magbegor is still so young and inexperienced I’m not sure she’ll still keep her aggression now that she’s been put in this different role.

The other factor to keep an eye on is Jewell Loyd. Loyd did not have a great game on Sunday scoring just six points on 2-10 FG shooting. Stewie and Tina are two ball-dominant players. With Charles in the starting lineup, she’s going to be taking shots away from other players including Stewie and Jewell. In this game, it may be more about Loyd’s poor shooting night as she still took ten shots which were just three less than either Stewart or Charles.

If subbing Charles into the starting rotation over Ezi results in Magbegor’s point production dropping down into the single digits you can live with that as long as Tina is scoring 15+ PPG. But if both Magbegor and Loyd are both falling into the single-digit scoring range game after game it becomes a larger problem.

Adding Charles to this roster gives the Storm a legit chance at the title this season. Without her, I simply can’t picture Seattle being able to eliminate teams like Chicago, Connecticut, or Las Vegas in a playoff series.

For now, Charles has clearly held up her end of the bargain. She is scoring and rebounding at a very high rate and Seattle is 7-3 since she joined the team. Ultimately, it’ll come down to the other players and the production they can add around her and Stewart.

A Big, Big 3

This also leads to another fun topic. We saw something for the first time on Sunday since Charles was added to the roster. At one point in the 4th quarter, Coach Quinn subbed Stewart back into the game but instead of coming in for Charles or Magbegor who were both on the court, she replaced Stephanie Talbot. This meant Stewart at 6’4” with a 7’2” wingspan was subbing in to play the Small Forward position. All three players stand at 6’4” which gives Seattle excellent length and height on the court when they are all out there.

It was an interesting rotation and one we could see more of as the season goes on and during the playoffs. If Seattle can get Gabby Williams or Stephanie Talbot to score more on top of the production they usually get from Stewart, Loyd, Charles, and Magbegor the team would be nearly unstoppable. Unfortunately, while both talented, Williams and Talbot have struggled to be consistently solid with their scoring. Neither player has reached the levels the team had with Alysha Clark. Where Clark might not get you 20 points but she could consistently get you 8-12 PPG.

If Seattle plays more games where both Williams and Talbot are not effective offensively, we might start seeing more lineups with Stewie playing at the three alongside both Charles and Magbegor.

During the post-game press conference Stewart talked about playing at the three and that’s something she’s done while on Team USA with Charles playing the four (and Griner or Fowles at the 5).

“To be honest, it reminded me of USA basketball because that’s where I played a lot of three especially with Tina. We played zone the majority of the game, to have our back line be that long. It’s really tough on other teams. Just making sure I have awareness. Once you switch from four to three you want to make sure you’re running different lanes and not clogging up things for Ezi or Tina.” Stewart stated.

What’s even more telling was what Coach Quinn had to say after the game and specifically mentioned this lineup may need to be used against Connecticut and Las Vegas. She mentioned those two teams specifically.

“I wanted to do (this lineup) last game but sometimes in my mind, I’m thinking about the practice aspect of it. But today, it was like ‘let’s just do everything’. To move (Stewie) to the three. Because we’re playing zone to have that rebounding we’re big on the floor. With Ezi, Tina, and Stewie - think about adding Gabby to the mix. She was in foul trouble a little bit but that’s a huge lineup. Just tweaking with that, putting Jewell in that eventually. If you think about Connecticut and Vegas, I’m not looking ahead too far. But these are teams we’re going to play on the road. I think it’s important to get game reps when we don’t have a lot of practice. I like what I saw. Obviously, we can do a better job rebounding. Offensively, make it a little cleaner but we’re a deadly lineup when we’re that big.” Quinn told the media.

Once she talked about that I wanted to follow that question up so I asked her how important it is as a Coach to continue to evolve, continue to change things up, tweak lineups, and try different rotations as the team gears up for the playoffs.

“It is important because with the playoff format you jump right into the playoffs. A couple of years ago we had a week or so before the first game to tweak and see if that’s something we could do. I think right now - you just try in the game and live or die with the decision because there’s not another time to practice or work on it. You have to find something where you can say you’re going to this lineup because we’re going to get X, Y, or Z. You can say it confidently and know what you can get out of it. Seeing it today, we know coming up (later) we can use it again. Keep it in your back pocket because in the playoffs you have to try anything to get the win.” she added.

Unfair Criticism?

I take my role as a Seattle Storm beat reporter very seriously. That means I’m not cheering for the team at the games. And that the team, the players, coaches, and front office are not above criticism when it is warranted.

Two things come to my mind a lot. One was a quote from Diana Taurasi a few years back where she said something along the lines that the media needs to criticize WNBA players and teams more often. This obviously doesn’t mean to be like the horrible troll accounts that say sexist/racist/misogynistic comments at the players. But instead, I believe Taurasi was referring to treating the WNBA players and teams just as you would their NBA counterparts. If LeBron makes a terrible play that costs his team the game, he’s called out for it and questioned. Taurasi was saying that should be fair game for the players of the WNBA as well.

The other thing I think about, I believe it was Howard Megdal (EIC at The Next) who simply stated “Media is not PR”. Public Relations and the team accounts are great but they are heavily biased. They’re only going to tweet out or post positive pieces of information.

It’s the media, like myself, who can critique and question things. And write about when things go bad or mistakes that were made. Seattle shouldn’t have signed Candice Dupree. They should have drafted Dana Evans. The Storm should have kept their draft pick in 2017 instead of trading it for Carolyn Swords (etc.).

However, one criticism that I’ve seen around different social media platforms is regarding the job that Coach Noelle Quinn has done since taking over near the beginning of the 2021 WNBA season. I’ve read a lot of “Fire Quinn!” comments, especially during losing streaks or when the team falters in a game or two.

And from my perspective, I don’t think that’s fair. Yes, Quinn is much less experienced than Dan Hughes or Gary Kloppenburg and because of that, she’s probably going to make more mistakes than they might as she continues to grow and develop.

But she has done a good if not an excellent job in her two seasons overall. The team finished 21-11 last year, good for a (.656 winning percentage). Up to this point of the 2022 season, her team is 18-10 (.643). Any time you’re winning around 65% of your games or more you’re doing a good job. The elite coaches and teams are usually winning around 70%.

You also have to look at the situation she’s been in. Yes, the team was eliminated in the single-elimination (Round 2) of the WNBA playoffs last season against Phoenix. But obviously, the season was derailed during the last couple of weeks when Breanna Stewart tore her other Achilles heel. Had Stewie remained healthy they almost certainly would have beaten the Mercury (considering they lost their playoff game in OT) and while they likely would have lost to the Aces in the semi-finals we’ll never know for sure?

While it’s true Dan Hughes won the WNBA Championship in his first season with the Storm you also have to look at the roster he had compared to the cards Quinn has been dealt. While she still has Stewie, Sue, and Jewell (and now Tina), Hughes and Kloppenburg had the Big 3 but also incredible pieces around them in Natasha Howard, Alysha Clark, and Sami Whitcomb. Howard is an All-Star and former Defensive Player of the Year, Clark is a consistent two-way player that is also one of the league’s elite perimeter defenders, and Whitcomb was one of the best three-point snipers off the bench for any team. Overall, the talent was a lot more on the 2018 and 2020 teams.

Hughes and Kloppenburg both won more but they also had more. I think that’s important to remember when criticizing Quinn.

Jersey Count

The Storm were back in their “Rebel” black uniforms for Sunday against Atlanta. They picked up another win to improve to 7-2 while wearing this jersey combination. Overall, the team’s record stands at 18-10 and they remain as the 4th overall seed with eight games remaining. Seattle still trails the Chicago Sky (21-7), the Las Vegas Aces (20-8), and the Connecticut Sun (19-9). They are also just barely above the Washington Mystics (17-11) who are nipping at their heels.

Records per jersey type this season:
Rebel: 7-2
Explorer: 2-4
Heroine: 9-4
Overall Record: 18-10

Up Next

A brutal three-game road trip on the East Coast, starting with the Connecticut Sun and ending with two games on back-to-back nights against the Washington Mystics to close out the month of July. This road trip will likely determine the Storm’s playoff seeding. Winning all three games would put them in an excellent position to finish with a top three seed in the standings. Losing all three would likely mean they finish out of the top four and no longer have homecourt advantage in the first round. The game against Connecticut takes place on Thursday, July 28th at 4:00 PM local time.

Notes:
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