Loyd paces Seattle with 22 points while Nurse adds 11

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Connecticut took off quickly on Thursday evening, and Seattle couldn’t seem to keep up.

The Sun outscored the Storm 29-6 in the first quarter leaving Seattle its largest first-quarter deficit in franchise history and, despite a solid second-half performance by the visitors, Connecticut held on for the 93-73 victory.

The league’s leading scorer, Jewell Loyd led the way with a game-high 22 points, eclipsing the 20-point mark for the 11th time this season. But even her offensive heroics couldn’t help Seattle to a road win on Thursday.

After building a big first-quarter lead, Connecticut kept adding to it throughout the second quarter and went to the half up 57-24 with the 24 points marking a season-low in the first half for Seattle.

Seattle made late efforts to close the scoring gap in the fourth quarter outscoring the Sun 28-13. But it proved to be too little, too late.

Jordan Horston stepped back into the starting lineup after coming off the bench on Sunday, her first action since missing three games due to a shoulder injury. The rookie logged six points, three assists, four rebounds and a trio of steals.

Storm All-Star Ezi Magbegor contributed eight points, five rebounds, two blocks and an assist. Joyner Holmes contributed across the board, logging five points, four rebounds, three assists and a steal.

Connecticut’s All-Stars, Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner led the Sun in scoring, combining for a total 32 points. Thomas tacked on seven assists and five rebounds while Bonner added seven rebounds to the board.

Seattle narrowly outrebounded the Sun, 31-30. Nine of those boards came from the Storm’s Sami Whitcomb who matched a career-high and added four assists and a block.

“We did in the fourth quarter what we didn’t do in the first quarter,” Magbegor said. “We can’t let it get to the fourth quarter for us to step up, move the ball and make shots.”