Instant Takeaways: Storm Hold Off Decimated Liberty via Ogwumike’s Heroics

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The Seattle Storm won their third straight game on Sunday with an 89-79 victory over the once-hot New York Liberty. Credit: John Mac [/caption]

Veteran forward Nneka Ogwumike continued her impressive scoring stretch, scoring a game-high 26 points in an 89-79 win over the shorthanded New York Liberty on Sunday, June 22, at Climate Pledge Arena.

It was the Storm’s third straight win in their first time back home since concluding a three-game road trip on Friday. New York, which has now lost three of its last four games after a stellar, undefeated start to the 2025 season, was without three starters in the loss. They still kept it close until the very end.

Here’s what we learned from the Storm’s victory over the Liberty on Sunday.

Ogwumike’s 3-game heater

Only 14 games into the season, Ogwumike already had multiple impressive scoring stretches. These last three games, however, have been by far her best of the campaign. Ogwumike has scored 77 points in Seattle’s wins over Los Angeles, Las Vegas and now New York, converting a gaudy 35 of her 49 shot attempts in that span (71.4 percent). She added seven rebounds, two steals and two blocks on Sunday, scoring 13 points in the fourth quarter alone.

Ogwumike and Seattle have now scored at least 80 points in six of their last seven games. The Storm are 6-1 in those games, with the only loss coming in a 76-70 defeat to the Golden State Valkyries on June 14.

She hasn’t done it alone. Seattle had seven players score at least five points against the Liberty, with Skylar Diggins adding 20. Ogwumike has been stellar, but it’s been a team effort to rejuvenate the offense.

Tensions rising between Gabby Williams, league officials

Earlier this week, Williams called out the WNBA referees for their conservative whistles after she injured her ankle when a Los Angeles Sparks player prevented her from landing correctly on a jump shot.

“This is the second time where I’m attacking. It’s very physical. I’m saying something to the ref, ‘Watch my landing space. Watch physicality,’” Williams explained. “I get laughed at, and it ends in my ankle getting turned … My ankle is hanging in there, but it’s starting to get very frustrating. I’m averaging less than two free throws a game. And I drive, like, I’m physical. I’m not someone who’s avoiding contact. So, I just hope that the safety of players starts to become a priority versus the ego of refs.”

Williams, who is arguably Seattle’s top slasher, has taken just 21 free throws this season, averaging out to 1.5 per game. Williams has taken issue with how she is being officiated, and rightfully so. The officials aren’t giving Williams the same kind of calls that a weaker player would get because she doesn’t get bumped around easily. 

The strange treatment of Williams was never more apparent than on a first-quarter no-call against New York. Following a steal, Williams was hacked across both arms on a fast break as she tried to go up for a layup. She fell to the ground on the baseline, putting her arms up in confusion after the official blew their whistle, only to indicate a dead ball. The refs immediately called a shooting foul on that same possession on a drive to the basket by Erica Wheeler.

Williams finished with 12 points (3-4 FT), six rebounds, 10 assists and four steals in the victory.

Breanna Stewart’s streak comes to an end

Stewart won her last 10 games against the Liberty when she was with the Storm. Since joining New York, the former Seattle star had won her previous seven games against her former team. That streak ended on Sunday, as Stewart came out on the wrong end of the matchup for the first time since 2017. Stewart was given a tall task against a fully loaded Storm team as one of just two starters remaining in the lineup.

Shorthanded Liberty

After Jaylyn Sherrod went down with an apparent ankle injury in the second quarter, New York was down to just eight active players. Sherrod returned later in the contest, but it was emblematic of the struggles New York has been working through since beginning the season 9-0.

Without Sabrina Ionescu (injury), Jonquel Jones (injury) and Leonie Fiebich (international play), the Liberty were extremely limited in their lineup options. Still, the Liberty hung around, showing how good the team can be at full strength.

For a time, it looked like guard Marine Johannes was going to carry the Liberty to victory — drilling her first seven shots before missing her final six. Johannes, who entered the game averaging just five points, finished with 17. Stewart led New York with 18 on 6-of-14 shooting.

Up next

Seattle (9-5) hosts Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever (6-7) for the first time this season at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 24. The Fever have lost two in a row, falling to the Valkyries and Aces.

The Storm will try and win four straight for the first time this season, currently in the middle of their third three-game win streak so far in 2025.