> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Instant Takeaways: Heroic Effort From Storm’s Johnson, Malonga Falls Flat vs. Aces - URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/heroic-effort-from-storms-johnson-malonga-falls-flat-vs-aces/ - Published: 2026-09-21T04:38:45.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-08T05:52:11.000Z - Author: Connor Benintendi - Tags: Game Day, Analysis, Storm, Dominique Malonga, Flau'jae Johnson, Awa Fam, Sonia Raman \[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="6000"\] ![ Seattle Storm guard Flau’jae Johnson rises up for a layup in the team’s 98-77 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Sunday, Sept. 20, at Michelob Ultra Arena. Credit: Courtesy of Seattle Storm ](https://storage.ghost.io/c/1d/f2/1df2f77b-83dd-4bc0-a6d2-6d1bb5df89a3/content/images/2026/10/jdc_7402-format-original.jpg) Seattle Storm guard Flau’jae Johnson rises up for a layup in the team’s 98-77 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Sunday, Sept. 20, at Michelob Ultra Arena. Credit: Courtesy of Seattle Storm \[/caption\] Flau’jae Johnson (29 points) and Dominique Malonga (25) combined for 54 points, but it was still far from enough in a 98-77 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Sunday, Sept. 20, at Michelob Ultra Arena. The Storm’s entire offense was dependent on Malonga and Johnson, with no other players scoring more than six points. Seattle (8-35) lost its fourth straight game and third since the FIBA break, with only one game left to play in the 2026 season. Las Vegas (29-13) did what it has done all season, and the trio of A’ja Wilson, Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray combined to score 68 points. The Aces had more of a supporting cast and much stronger defense that continuously disrupted the majority of the Storm’s offense. Here’s what we learned from another lopsided loss in the Storm’s penultimate game of the season. ### **Malonga, Johnson keep Storm in it early** Much like the night before, the Storm started strong before falling off a cliff. A 17-0 run by the Aces late in the first quarter completely shifted the game, and a previously energetic Storm team began to look scrambled and on their heels once again. Storm head coach Sonia Raman had another challenge on her hands: to settle down her team, get a body or two between the Aces and the basket, and start putting points on the board again. Seattle recovered, taking a deficit that peaked at 15 points and making it just nine at halftime. Malonga and Johnson led the way for the Storm, combining to score 33 of the team’s 43 first-half points. Johnson also generated four turnovers off Las Vegas players, helping create offense in multiple ways. Malonga made eight of her nine shot attempts in the first two quarters, and she had a game-high 19 points and five rebounds at the break. Jordan Horston and Natisha Hiedeman — both starters — didn’t score at all for the Storm in the first half. That held Seattle back, but its top duo made up for it by hammering the ball inside and creating space for shooters. Malonga and Johnson dueled with Wilson and Young on the other side, as each piece of that Aces tandem scored 18 points in the first half. They had more bench support than the Storm’s duo, however, and that led to the difference on the scoreboard. ### **Wilson, Aces take over second half** The Las Vegas combination of Wilson and Young was joined by Gray in the second half. Malonga and Johnson combined for 21 points in the third and fourth quarters, as opposed to 17 from Wilson and Young. But with the Aces’ third star stepping up, their full offense unlocked. Las Vegas did exactly what it wanted to in shutting down the Storm’s attempts to fuel its offense through the paint. Seattle’s offense began to grind to a halt in the fourth quarter, and they didn’t have answers for the Las Vegas stars. The Aces’ lead grew past where it was in the first half. Seattle, while determined as ever to push an upset, simply didn’t have the firepower or experience to keep up with one of the deepest rosters in the WNBA. The Storm outrebounded the Aces and matched their assist numbers. In the end, it was simply a matter of one team getting much better looks and consistently converting them. Seattle has regularly needed exceptional individual performances to stay in games this season, and they didn’t get enough of them on Sunday. Johnson’s 15 second-half points made up nearly half of Seattle’s total scoring on her own. Heading into the 2027 season, that’s where Raman has to get much better: Dialing up easy looks for her stars and putting together an offensive system that doesn’t fall apart once they fall behind. This Storm team is too often rushed, flustered and not taking the game one play at a time. Wilson finished with 30 points, eight rebounds and three steals. Young totaled 12 points and eight assists, and Gray tallied 15 points. ### **The emotion of the season** Following the Storm’s loss to the Golden State Valkyries on Saturday, Johnson was visibly upset during her postgame press conference. The Seattle rookie was in tears as fellow rookie Awa Fam explained how the team has dealt with losing nearly 80% of their games this season. “It’s tough because we’re trying; we’re practicing every day,” Fam said, acknowledging Johnson’s emotion. “It’s hard. It’s not easy when you’re trying; we’re trying to win … but I think that we need to be proud of ourselves. “I think that it’s not easy when you are in a team that you’re losing, losing, losing and you’re trying. But I think that we’re helping … each other.” The Storm have lost four straight games, and all three since returning from the FIBA break. They’ve had five separate losing streaks of three or more games, including two different stretches of 11 straight losses. Seattle is the third-youngest team in the WNBA this season with an average age of just 24.9\. They lack much of the veteran leadership that other teams in the league have, and that’s been apparent in many of their losses this season. The roster, coaches, front office and fans have to hope that the lessons from this season will only make the young core of players even better in years to come. There is no lack of hunger or desire to win on this Storm team, so more wins should come with experience. ### **Up next** The Storm will play their final game of the season at home against the Dallas Wings (26-16) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at Climate Pledge Arena. Seattle is 0-3 against the Wings this season.