> ## 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: Storm in Elimination Mode After Blowout Loss to Aces in Game 1 - URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/storm-in-elimination-mode-after-blowout-loss-to-aces-in-game-1/ - Published: 2025-09-15T04:55:37.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-08T06:18:20.000Z - Author: Connor Benintendi - Tags: Storm, Nneka Ogwumike, Dominique Malonga, Gabby Williams, Erica Wheeler, Skylar Diggins, Brittney Sykes, Noelle Quinn \[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="921"\] ![ The Seattle Storm’s season will be on the line on Tuesday after they opened the postseason with a 102-77 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Sunday night. Credit: John Mac ](https://storage.ghost.io/c/1d/f2/1df2f77b-83dd-4bc0-a6d2-6d1bb5df89a3/content/images/2026/10/54549772252_2836923972_k-format-original-2.jpg) The Seattle Storm’s season will be on the line on Tuesday after they opened the postseason with a 102-77 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Sunday night. Credit: John Mac \[/caption\] Enduring a nightmare playoff situation that began with simply being matched against a Las Vegas Aces team that has won 17 straight games, the Seattle Storm are one win away from having their season ended following a 102-77 loss on Sunday, Sept. 14, at Michelob Ultra Arena. The second-seeded Aces shot the lights out and shut down everything the seventh-seeded Storm wanted to do offensively. Seattle head coach Noelle Quinn threw in the towel before the midway point of the fourth quarter when the Storm already trailed by 30 points. It was a complete obliteration of the Storm in their preferred road environment. Seattle now has one more opportunity to save their season at home on Tuesday, Sept. 16. Here’s what we learned from Seattle’s blowout, playoff loss to Las Vegas on Sunday. ### **Offense non-existent for Storm** Few offensive positives came out of the first half for the Storm. Seattle converted just 30 percent of its shots in the first two quarters and produced just 25 points. The Aces went into the locker room with a 20-point lead, even though they took four fewer shots than the Storm. Nothing went right for the Storm. In addition to losing the rebounding battle, as they often have this season, the Aces had seven steals and five blocks. The Storm had a combined three between those two categories. As an interior-focused offense, Seattle got a combined two points from Ezi Magbegor and Dominique Malonga. The post pair combined to shoot just 1 for 9, with most of those misses coming from Malonga. Magbegor, however, was just a complete non-factor on either side of the court. A’ja Wilson completely dominated the interior for Las Vegas. Nneka Ogwumike carried the interior offense as she has all season. Ogwumike had nine points in the first half as she tried to keep her team in the game early on. The Storm trailed by 29 points with eight minutes remaining in the final quarter after the Aces continued to pour it on in the second half. The Aces led by as much as 32\. Las Vegas converted 14 of 29 attempts from 3-point range, fueling the runs that flushed Seattle quickly. But the free throws also made a huge difference, as the Aces had 10 more attempts at the stripe than the Storm. They converted 16 of those while Seattle made just 8 of 11 shots at the line. Seattle was overwhelmed from the start. It couldn’t recover and looked completely overmatched. ### **Storm lose all the important margins** The Storm lost battles in free-throw attempts, field goal percentage, 3-point percentage, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, turnovers and fast break points, among others. It’s exceptionally difficult to win basketball games when you’re overwhelmingly dominated in every area, and it’s not surprising when you look at the Aces’ recent resume. Seattle has incredible talent, but it isn’t nearly as cohesive as Las Vegas. The Aces’ style complements itself, while the Storm often need miraculous individual performances to win games. That comes down to coaching, and Becky Hammon won round one versus Quinn. ### **It’s just disappointing** While the offense was more productive in the first half, the Storm let up on defense even more in the second half. That falls on players like Magbegor, Malonga and Ogwumike who have to generate more stops on the interior. It falls on players like Skylar Diggins and Gabby Williams to contest shots on the perimeter. At some point, you have to accept when another team is hot, and the Aces were on Sunday. But there’s still a lack of effort that is present, and that’s contributed to multiple losses this season. It’s why the Storm were a seventh seed and not in the top 5\. It all comes back to Quinn. If Magbegor is *that* good of an interior defender, keep her in the paint. Stop with the aggressive switching and shifting her to defending the perimeter, especially when you need her to stop someone like Wilson. It’s just a bad game plan. The season is on the line on Tuesday. It’s time to throw a Hail Mary and hope it works. ### **Nobody steps up for Storm** For a time, it looked like Gabby Williams was going to try and will the Storm back into the game. She had 10 points in the third quarter alone. Ogwumike had just two points in the final two quarters to finish with 11\. Williams totaled 16 points but had just one steal. Diggins and Malonga each had 12 points, while Erica Wheeler finished with 10\. There was no clear-cut star for the Storm when they needed it most. Malonga totaled 11 rebounds, two steals and a block in addition to her offensive output. Ogwumike had eight boards, but nobody else had more than three. Brittney Sykes, who got in foul trouble early, finished with zero points. Magbegor had just two. ### **Wilson’s dominance, 3-point barrage** Immediately asserting herself on both ends of the floor, Wilson played 3.5 quarters and totaled 29 points, seven rebounds, two assists, three steals and two blocks. Seattle had no counter for Wilson on the interior, and that led to her also getting eight of her points at the free-throw line. The only choice was to foul her or give up an easy bucket. Both of the Storm’s top interior defenders, Exi Magbegor and Dominique Malonga, had no answers for the leading MVP candidate. Wilson didn’t work alone, but it was her presence and production that allowed Las Vegas to get anything it wanted. The Aces knocked down 14 triples on 29 attempts (48.3 percent), consistently erasing any momentum the Storm gained. Jackie Young (18 points) had four triples, while former Storm star Jewell Lloyd (14 points) and Dana Evans (13 points) each knocked down a trio of 3-pointers for Las Vegas. ### **Up Next** The Storm face elimination when they host the Aces in Game 2 at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 16, at Climate Pledge Arena. Seattle was just 10-12 at home during the regular season, but went 1-1 against Las Vegas in the venue. Las Vegas will carry a 17-game win streak into the contest.