Bradenton, Fla. — The Seattle Storm (2-0) defeated the Minnesota Lynx (1-1) 90-66 on Tuesday night, showing off the depth of their bench in the victory with all 11 players who took the court getting on the board. Breanna Stewart led Seattle with 18 points, 10 rebounds, and two blocks.
The Lynx stayed within reach in the first half, but Seattle ran away with it in the third quarter, outscoring Minnesota 28-17. The Storm made five three-pointers in under five minutes in the frame, adding to a total of 11 in the game. The team shot 44% from beyond the three-point line in the game.
“Some days are better than others, and today was a good day,” Sue Bird said.
Bird added 16 points for the Storm, going 6-for-9 from the field and 4-for-6 from three. She also added four assists.
“She’s a pure shooter. That’s something that when she’s 90 she’ll probably still be able to shoot the ball like that,” head coach Gary Kloppenburg said.
Sylvia Fowles passed Minnesota Lynx assistant coach Rebekkah Brunson to become the all-time rebounds leader in WNBA history. Stewart’s 10 rebounds moved her up to No. 5 in Storm franchise history.
The Storm held reigning Rookie of the Year Napheesa Collier scoreless for most of the second half, forcing six turnovers from both her and Damiris Dantas.
“We just felt, at halftime, that we were just too soft rebounding the ball,” Kloppenburg said, “We felt like, I think they had 13 second-chance points and we were fouling them, and they had nine offensive rebounds at halftime. That was a big thing. We just felt like we had to rebound better. I think we did that in the second half.”
Rookie Ezi Magbegor added six points and two blocks for the Storm, and impressed off the bench, especially on defense.
“She’s just so mobile and long and active,” Kloppenburg said. “She just physically can match up there.”
The Storm will face the Washington Mystics at 3 p.m. PT on Thursday, July 30. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
KEY STATS
- #SayHerName: It has been 137 days since Breonna Taylor was shot and killed in her own apartment. The officers responsible for her death have not been arrested
- With Tuesday’s win over the Minnesota, Storm has now won its last four regular-season games against the Lynx. Seattle joins Los Angeles and Connecticut as the only franchises to win at least four in a row during Minnesota’s era of dominance (since 2011).
- Seattle has now scored at least 87 points in its first two contests of 2020. Last season, Seattle cracked the 87-point mark just three times (including a 90-point effort on July 17 at Minnesota).
- Shooting 6-of-9 from the field – including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc – Sue Bird finished the game with 16 points and 4 assists. Through two games, Bird is 7-of-11 from deep. Her made 4 three-pointers match her 2018 regular season high (not counting her 5-of-11 effort in Game 5 of the 2018 WNBA Semifinals).
- Breanna Stewart recorded her 31st career double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. She also added 3 steals, bringing her total to 7 this season.
- Jewell Loyd dished out 6 assists, her most since Aug. 12, 2018 (at Minnesota). The 2-time All-Star also contributed 9 points to the Storm’s winning effort.
- The Storm bench combined for 34 of Seattle’s 90 points led by guard Jordin Canada (8 points).
- With her seventh rebound of the night, Sylvia Fowles passed current assistant coach and Lynx legend Rebekkah Brunson to become the WNBA’s all-time leader in rebounds.
- Fowles finished the night with 15 points and 11 rebounds. She added two assists and two steals. The two steals are good enough for her 400th career steal.
- Napheesa Collier finished the night with 11 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Those five assists tie her career high in assists (5, 4x, MR: at Atlanta, 8/6/19).
- With 18 points and seven rebounds in 27:22 minutes of play, Damiris Dantas led the Lynx in scoring. This marks the first time this season and the third time in her career leading the Lynx in scoring (20, at Dallas, 6/1/19 and 22, vs Las Vegas, 6/16/19).
- The Lynx outrebounded the Storm 38-24, now holding a record of 100-19 all time when having a double-digit rebounding advantage.