Loyd’s 25 and Ogwumike’s 14 aren’t enough as Storm offense struggles
MINNEAPOLIS – The points were piling up on the Seattle Storm’s side of the scoreboard during the second quarter on Sunday afternoon.
They were much harder to come by during the third and fourth.
Seattle scored just 23 points after halftime inside the Target Center, while the Minnesota Lynx more than doubled that output with 47 on their way to an 83-64 victory.
Jewell Loyd led the Storm with 25 points and also grabbed seven rebounds. Nneka Ogwumike added 14 points and eight boards. But they were the only Seattle players in double figures as the offense struggled.
That halted the Storm’s (7-4) six-game winning streak and put the Lynx (8-3) in sole possession of first place in the Western Conference. The teams were tied for the top spot coming into the game.
It also juggled the Commissioner’s Cup standings. Minnesota is now 3-1 with a plus-53 point differential. Phoenix also is 3-1 with a plus-9 differential.
Seattle had won its first two qualifying games, 80-62 at home against Phoenix last Tuesday, and 78-65 at Las Vegas on Friday. The Storm is now 2-1 with a plus-12. Its final two qualifying games are later this week: at home vs. Los Angeles on Tuesday and at Dallas on Thursday.
Down 27-20 early in the second quarter, Seattle put together a 14-0 scoring run. Ezi Magbegor started it with a pair of free throws, and then Loyd hit two from the line for 27-24. Then, after Magbegor blocked a Napheesa Collier shot at the other end, Loyd grabbed the rebound, got it ahead to Jordan Horston, and Horston buried a 3-pointer from the tip of the key for 27-27.
A driving lay-up by Magbegor, a free throw by Loyd, a third-chance putback by Ogwumike, and another putback by Magbegor capped the run and left the Storm with a 34-27 advantage.
It was 41-31 after a jumper by Loyd with 1:20 left in the half. But the Lynx got the final five points of the half, the last two of which were on a pair of free throws by Courtney Williams when she was fouled just before the buzzer. That cut it to 41-36 at the break.
Minnesota climbed into a 45-45 tie with 6:28 left in the third quarter. Still even at 49-49, the Lynx closed the period on a 10-3 scoring run, getting the final two points on a buzzer-beating banker by Bridget Carleton to take a 59-52 lead into the fourth.
Seattle was still within eight at 70-62 at the 4:26 mark. Magbegor picked off a pass from Collier and got it up to Horston with a chance to get closer. But Williams stole the ball right back, and Carleton then buried a 3-pointer, stretching it to 73-62 with 3:57 to go.
BLOCK PARTY
Magbegor came up with another three blocked shots on Sunday. That marked her seventh straight game with at least that many, tying Margo Dydek for No. 2 on the all-time WNBA list. The only one ahead of her now is Lisa Leslie, who had 10 straight games of three or more.
It also was Magbegor’s 12th game in a row (dating back to last year’s season finale) of two or more blocks, tying Lauren Jackson for the all-time team record.
A QUARTER CENTURY AGO …
It was 25 years ago Sunday that the Storm scored the franchise’s first victory. Edna Campbell had 19 points to help Seattle beat the Charlotte Sting in North Carolina, 67-62. The Sting was one of the WNBA’s eight charter members in 1997. They ceased operations in January 2007.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Kayla McBride poured in 32 points for the Lynx, with 11 in the first quarter, 14 in the third, and seven in the fourth. McBride’s total included seven makes from 3-point range. That gave her 15 treys in her past two games, having drained eight on Friday in Phoenix.
- The Storm shot just 34.7 percent from the field (26 of 75), its second-lowest mark of the season. They were 4 of 22 from downtown (18.2 percent).
- Minnesota hit 45 percent (27 of 60), including a blistering 54.5 percent (12 of 22) behind the arc.
- Loyd moved into 24th on the WNBA’s all-time career scoring list. Now with 5,030 points, she moved ahead of Taj McWilliams.
- Vivians collected her 500th career rebound. She had five for the day, giving her 503.
UP NEXT
The Storm hosts the Los Angeles Sparks on Tuesday at Climate Pledge Arena, tipping off at 7:00 p.m. (Fox 13+ / Prime Video Washington).