Jewell Loyd’s game-high 33 points not enough to clip Wings
ARLINGTON, Texas – Jewell Loyd scored a game-high 33 points, but it wasn’t enough to shut down the red-hot shooting of the Dallas Wings, who took flight in the first quarter and never looked back, defeating Seattle 106-91 Friday night at College Park Center.
Loyd erupted for 33 points, marking her 12th game with 30 or more points this season, tying Maya Moore for most 30+ games in a single season in WNBA history. Those 33 points put her one ahead of New York’s Breanna Stewart for the most in a single-season in league history with the former teammates each having one game left in the season.
Dallas took the lead early in the game, built the lead to double-figures late in the first quarter and looked to pull away for good midway through the second. But the Storm kept fighting back, trimming the lead to seven midway through the third quarter and again to nine in the fourth. However, Seattle could get no closer and the Wings pulled away for good late in the game accounting for a final margin.
Ezi Magbegor nearly notched her 11th double-double of the season, finishing with 15 points and nine rebounds, Magbegor’s 15 points mark her 33rd game in double digits this season, and she finished the game with 314 for the season, passing Storm great Lauren Jackson for second on the Storm’s single-season rebound list.
Kia Nurse nearly matched her season-high with 19 points, finishing a point shy of the 20 points she scored against the Wings when the two met to in the second game of the season.
Five Dallas players scored in double figures by the end of the game, four from the starting lineup (Arike Ogunbowale, Tierra McCowan, Satou Sabally, Natasha Howard and Kalani Brown).
Loyd and fellow former Notre Dame standout Ogunbowale combined for 52 points in the game with Ogunbowale scoring 19 points and a career-high 10 assists for the double-double, adding three rebounds and two steals.
Dallas’s efficiency in the paint and off the glass was key to the Wings to victory. Dallas took over in the paint, outscoring Seattle 60-32 and out-rebounded Seattle 36-24.
Mercedes Russell logged her fourth game in double digit scoring this season, connecting on a perfect 6-of-6 from the field in her return to the starting lineup and recording four rebounds, three assists and a steal.
Up Next
The Seattle Storm wraps up its 2023 season at home, welcoming the Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday for a Noon tip at Climate Pledge Arena. The matchup can be watched on FOX 13+, Amazon Prime Video in the state of Washington and nationally on ESPN3.