Instant Takeaways: Storm Earn Much-Needed Bounce-Back Route Against Sparks
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The Seattle Storm crushed the shorthanded Los Angeles Sparks 98-67 on Tuesday in a bounce-back road victory. Credit: John Mac [/caption]
A flurry of Seattle Storm players dominated the Los Angeles Sparks 98-67 via a hot shooting night on Tuesday, June 17, at Crypto.com Arena.
Seattle bounced back from a disappointing loss to the Golden State Valkyries on Saturday by nearly posting their second 100-point game of the season. The Storm were led by 26 points from Nneka Ogwumike, in addition to four other players who scored at least 11 points. Los Angeles, however, was without top point guard Kelsey Plum and her backcourt mate Odyssey Sims.
Here’s what we learned from the Storm’s back-on-track win against the Sparks
Expected dominance … in some areas
The Storm shot 73 percent in the first quarter and finished the first half shooting 55.6 percent. Seattle made good on the opportunities it had, but also gave up slack in other places that allowed the Sparks to hang around early.
Los Angeles outrebounded the Storm 22-14 in the first half, including a dominant performance on the offensive boards. What helped Seattle was its 14 assists, as the Storm moved the ball well and turned it over just seven times. Los Angeles couldn’t keep the ball out of harm’s way with 13 first-half turnovers.
By the game’s end, Los Angeles somehow outrebounded Seattle by 15 while losing by 31 points. The Sparks outrebounded the Storm 13-3 on the offensive boards, which was a major contributor to that total. Against more reliable scoring teams, that won’t cut it for Seattle. Los Angeles shot just under 33 percent from the field, while Seattle converted 52 percent of its shots against a decimated lineup.
The Storm totaled 29 assists, their third-most of the season. Seattle is 0-5 this season when logging less than 21 assists, and 7-0 when exceeding that total.
Gabby Williams makes history
Williams stuffed the stat sheet against the Sparks and set a new single-game franchise record with eight steals. That beat the tie between Sue Bird and Jordin Canada, who both logged seven during their Seattle careers.
Although she exited the game late with an apparent leg injury, Williams finished with 11 points, four rebounds and seven assists in addition to her defensive effort. Center Ezi Magbegor, despite still being a near non-factor on offense, also logged six blocks.
Alysha Clark finding the net consistently
Clark has now scored double-digit points in consecutive games for the first time this season. After scoring 11 points against Golden State, Clark poured in 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting (4 for 5 3PT) to go along with two rebounds and two assists.
The 25 points scored over Clark’s last two games is only slightly short of her 36 total points over the team’s first 10 games. Clark was re-signed to do exactly what she’s done over the past two games: make 3-pointers. She’s done much better off the bench than as a starter.
Where does Seattle fit among top teams?
This game could have been much different if Plum and Sims were in the lineup. Grace Berger, who was signed the day of the game on Tuesday, played 16 minutes for the Sparks in a pinch. It’s clear this team Seattle faced was far from its perfect self.
Even with wins over the Minnesota Lynx and Las Vegas Aces, the Storm need to string together wins where they look like a unit. To this point, Seattle has been so inconsistent that it’s hard to tell what type of team they will actually become with 12 games complete. The star power and talent are clearly there, but the cohesion comes and goes.
The Storm are fifth in the league standings and third among Western Conference teams. They’re 3-2 against the two teams above them in the standings, but their second win against the Phoenix Mercury was when they were without Alyssa Thomas.
We are yet to see the Storm deal with any type of hardship, as opposed to what many WNBA teams are feeling at this point in the season with international departures and injuries. That could work to their advantage if they stay healthy, but it’s also a scary thought of how the team would look without one of its star players.
Mackenzie Holmes makes WNBA debut
Holmes, a 2024 third-round pick, was re-signed on Monday as the Storm had just nine active players on the roster. The move bookended the trade of Li Yueru, who requested a trade due to a lack of playing time early in the season.
In five minutes on the court, Holmes logged one rebound and missed her only shot attempt. But she did force a turnover on defense by getting in the middle of a passing lane, showing how she can use her instincts and height to her advantage.
Up next
The Storm (7-5) conclude their three-game road trip at the Las Vegas Aces (5-6) on Friday, June 20. They will then get three straight games at home, beginning with the New York Liberty (10-1) on Sunday, June 22.
