Valkyries Embarrass Storm Again 84-57

Golden State disrupted Seattle from the jump for another strong win.

(San Francisco, CA) - The Golden State Valkyries (9-7) appear to have the Storm’s number, even if Seattle doesn’t want to admit that. For the second time in as many games, the Valkyries dominated the Storm. In the first matchup between these two teams, Golden State led by as many as 22 points and won the game 76-70. In this game, the Valkyries built a 30-point lead on their way to an 84-57 victory.

Seattle had their worst offensive performance of the season and one of the worst in franchise history. The Storm shot 27% (20-74 FG) and 21% (6-28 FG) from beyond the arc. Their 57 points were also a season-low.

Three players scored in double figures. Only Skylar Diggins had a good game. She finished with 18 points, six assists, and five rebounds. Erica Wheeler added 13 points, but made just 4-12 FG. Zia Cooke contributed 10 points off the bench, but also struggled with her shot, making just 3-13 FG. And they were Seattle’s best players in this game.

Gabby Williams made just 1-11 FG. Nneka Ogwumike was 3-10 FG. Alysha Clark went 0-4 FG. And Dominique Malonga finished 1-8 FG. It was bowling shoe ugly.

Seattle lost almost every statistical category. They did have more offensive rebounds (13-6) and more second-chance points (14-6).

Golden State Valkyries

The Valkyries played like a much better team. Even when their offense struggled in the first half, they were still defending, rebounding, and moving without the ball. Their offense heated up in the 2nd half as they made 58% (18-31 FG) of their shots over the final 20 minutes.

Tiffany Hayes led the way with 21 points. Veronica Burton continued her Most Improved Player of the Year campaign. Burton finished with 15 points, a team-high five assists, and five rebounds. Laeticia Amihere (15 points) and Kate Martin (11 points) combined for 26 points off the bench. Amihere also pulled down a game-high eight rebounds. Amazingly, the Valkyries cut her at the end of training camp before bringing Amihere back on a hardship contract.

Golden State outshot Seattle 48% (31-64 FG) to 27% (20-74). They out-rebounded Seattle 41-38. They had more assists (20-13). Their bench outscored the Storm’s reserves 32-14. And they dominated Seattle inside the paint, 46-18. They also had a massive 20-4 advantage in fast break points.

Game Breakdown

The Storm really struggled out of the gate. They didn’t score at all in the first three minutes of the game and trailed 7-0. It would be a sign of things to come. The Valkyries got baskets from Monique Billings, Kayla Thornton, and a three-ball from Veronica Burton. After a Nneka Ogwumike score, Stephanie Talbot made another three-pointer to put GSV up 10-2.

Golden State extended that to double digits late in the first period. Tiffany Hayes led the Valkyries with five points in the opening frame, while Monique Billings and Kate Martin each added four more. The Valkyries led 23-14 at the end of the first.

Seattle cut the deficit to five at 26-21 after Diggins was fouled and made both free throws. The Storm used a 7-3 run to start the second quarter as Zia Cooke knocked down a three-ball, and both Nneka and Skylar got to the foul line. Seattle never got any closer than that five-point deficit.

Golden State pushed their lead back to nine with a transition basket from Laeticia Amihere and two free throws by Talbot.

Erica Wheeler knocked down a couple of three-pointers to keep the Storm within striking distance. Tiffany Hayes scored to end the first half. Seattle made just 9-34 FG (26%) through the first 20 minutes. Golden State led 34-27 at the midway point.

Golden State started the second half similarly to the first, with a 7-2 run to go up 41-29. Veronica Burton scored five of those, including an AND1 layup. Despite a basket from Gabby and two free throws for Skylar, things got progressively worse. Tiffany Hayes knocked down a three-pointer to put the Valkyries up 15 points.

The Valkyries extended their lead to 23 points in the quarter and outscored Seattle 31-17. Kate Martin hit a three. Veronica Burton added another. Burton scored 12 of her 15 points in the third period. Zia Cooke made a couple of free throws before the end of the third, but Seattle trailed 65-44.

There was no comeback or rally in this game. Golden State ballooned its lead to 30 points in the 4th quarter. The Storm were outscored 50-30 in the 2nd half. Seattle didn’t have a single quarter where they scored 20 points or more. In fact, they only had one quarter where they scored more than 15 points. It was a bad, bad game. It was one of the worst performances in Storm franchise history.

As Skylar and Coach Quinn said after the game, their effort and performance were embarrassing.

Final Box Score

Up Next

The Storm (10-7) mercifully have three days to regroup. They face the Atlanta Dream (11-6) on Thursday, July 3rd at 4:30 PM on the road.

Part 2

Part 2 will include additional thoughts, quotes, and discussion from Sunday’s game against the Golden State Valkyries. It’ll be sent exclusively to paid subscribers tomorrow morning.

Notes:
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