BRADENTON, Fla. — For the third game in a row, the Seattle Storm (8-1) held an opponent to its season-low, defeating the Atlanta Dream (2-7) for the second time this season, 100-63.
After holding the Phoenix Mercury and Chicago Sky to a season-low in points, the Storm did it again, and won their sixth-straight game, buoyed by the return of Sue Bird and the strong play of Jewell Loyd.
“Just a great team effort overall, that’s what we wanted to do,” head coach Gary Kloppenburg said. “We got our running game going, we were moving the ball extremely well, I thought our defense was just as tough.
Bird scored nine points in her return with three made three-pointers, and dished out seven assists. Continuing a strong stretch, Loyd scored 20 points on 70% shooting, with 11 of those points coming in the third quarter. The Storm also shot 18-of-30 from three-point land, with their 18 made threes a franchise record.
“I think a lot of that goes to us being generous with the ball, we were sharing the ball, we were really moving it,” Sami Whitcomb said. “You see a couple go down early and that makes the whole team feel good, so I definitely feel like when we get that three-ball going it makes us very dangerous.”
Alysha Clark helped the Storm rocket out to a nine-point lead at the end of the first quarter, scoring 10 points and helping the Seattle defense hold Atlanta to just 14 points and sub-40% shooting.
Seattle’s lead only grew in the second quarter, stifling Atlanta’s offense and moving the ball well with 14 assists on 17 made baskets in the first half. Clark continued her hot scoring stretch, posting a season-high for points before halftime, with 14. At the break, the Storm led the Dream, 47-28.
The Storm kept up their strong pace in the second half, holding the Dream to less than 20 points in each quarter and shooting 56.5% from the floor to walk away with a comfortable win.
Clark finished with 16 points and was joined by Sami Whitcomb (20 points) in the double figures scoring club. Jordin Canada also dropped 10 assists in the victory, tying her season-high.
TOP STAT TO KNOW
#SayHerName: It has been 152 days since Breonna Taylor was shot and killed in her own apartment. The officers responsible for her death have not been arrested.
SEATTLE HIGHLIGHTS
- After a five-game absence, Sue Bird returned to the lineup and scored nine points and dished out seven assists.
- Jewell Loyd hit another milestone in Wednesday night’s win, scoring 20 points to surpass 2,500 career points. Loyd is averaging 14.1 points per game through nine games this season.
- Sami Whitcomb tied her career high for three-point field goals in a game with six, and finished with a season-high 20 points.
- Alysha Clark continued her double figures scoring streak, reaching a season-high 14 points at halftime and 16 points for the game. It’s the sixth-straight game Clark has posted double-digit scoring, all resulting in Storm wins.
- Seattle made a franchise record 18 three-pointers in the win, and handed Atlanta their largest defeat in franchise history. The 18 made three-pointers also ties a WNBA regular season record set by the Washington Mystics.
- The Storm’s six-game win streak is its first such streak since 2010, which was also its longest win streak in franchise history at 13 games. Seattle’s current win streak is tied for the third longest in franchise history.
UP NEXT
The Storm will take the floor next against the Dallas Wings on Friday, Aug. 14 at 5 p.m. PT on NBATV and JoeTV, followed by a matchup with the Connecticut Sun on Sunday, Aug. 16 at Noon PT.