Instant Takeaways: Storm Shut Down Sun Late, Earn Critical Bounce-Back Victory
Two days after their worst loss of the season, the Seattle Storm buckled down for a bounce-back 79-65 win over the Connecticut Sun on Friday, July 11, at Climate Pledge Arena.
Fresh off a four-game road trip that concluded with a brutal defeat to the Sun — the league’s worst team — the Storm got revenge on their home court to kick off a four-game stretch of home contests. The win vaulted the Storm (13-8) back ahead of the Atlanta Dream (12-8) for fourth place in the WNBA standings.
Here’s what we learned from Seattle’s much-needed win over Connecticut on Friday.
Dominance when it mattered
These past two games against the league’s worst team have been far from Seattle’s best this season. But when it came down the wire, with the Storm trailing by two, they kicked it into gear when they needed to.
Seattle went on a 19-3 run over the game’s 6.5 minutes, shutting down a once-fiery Sun team that so desperately wanted to steal two games from one of the league’s title contenders. The frustration from Connecticut was palpable, namely on two hard fouls by Bria Hartley down the stretch, with one being upgraded to a flagrant that allowed the Storm to push their lead out a bit further.
It was quite literally the opposite of the first matchup between the two teams when Connecticut outscored Seattle 27-9 in the fourth quarter — taking over and shutting down everything the Storm tried to do on offense. Instead, the Storm outscored the Sun 24-13 in the final quarter to seal the win, and it all started because of their defense and improved shot selection (8 for 16 in the final period).
Gabby Williams led the Storm with 18 points, five assists and three steals, while Nneka Ogwumike totaled 16 points, four rebounds, five assists, one steal and two blocks. Ezi Magbegor and Skylar Diggins each added 14 points, while rookie Dominique Malonga posted four points and a team-high eight rebounds.
Tina Charles did her best to keep the Sun in the game, pouring in 20 points and 10 rebounds — her second straight double-double against the Storm.
Tiffany Mitchell’s instant impact
Skylar Diggins picked up three fouls in the first quarter, forcing Storm head coach Noelle Quinn to utilize her newest signing, Tiffany Mitchell, only one day after she joined the team. Mitchell didn’t disappoint in her first time wearing a Storm uniform.
Mitchell logged 13 minutes in the first half — surpassing Zia Cooke, who had just four — adding five points and two rebounds. The statistics weren’t gaudy, but Mitchell was filling a role Seattle desperately needed as a hustle player who was scampering to loose balls and using her basketball IQ to get in position before the ball came her way. She finished with the highest plus-minus of any Storm player in the first half at plus-five.
Immediately, Mitchell showed she fits into the team's culture and boosts some of its weaknesses. As a result, however, Cooke and former starter Alysha Clark combined for just 10 minutes. For fans of Clark, a longtime Storm legend, her disappointing return to Seattle may become even quieter with Mitchell in town.
Ezi Magbegor emerging offensively
This season has been Ezi Magbegor’s worst since at least 2022, when she was just beginning to emerge as a defensive force in the WNBA. While her defense has been good, her offense (7.6 points per game) and rebounding (6.4 per game) have left plenty of room to be desired, especially considering she appeared to be rising in those areas going back to 2023.
The rebounding still isn’t there (10 total rebounds in two games against the Sun, the league’s worst rebounding team), but she is beginning to show up on the offensive side of the ball. Magbegor has now scored in double figures in four of the last six games after doing so just three times in the first 15 games. Her teammates are finding her, and Magbegor is capitalizing on the opportunities.
Magbegor’s effectiveness is what can take the Storm from a low-end playoff team to a title contender. Her offensive rise is huge for the depth of the offense, allowing them to not be one-dimensional with Nneka Ogwumike carrying the load in the paint.
Still, one unfavorable trend
The Connecticut Sun had been outscored by a combined 320 points this season (including the first matchup with Seattle) before the pair of games against the Storm on Wednesday and Friday. That was nearly a minus-18 point differential across 18 games — by far the worst in the league.
Seattle outscored Connecticut by just four points over the past two games, a concerning trend for a team that should’ve had two confidence-building victories added to its record to help it ascend the standings. When almost every team in the league is beating up on one opponent, it’s not a good sign to be the one that doesn’t.
At the very least, the Storm can hang their hat on the fact that they beat the Sun by 17 points in their very first matchup of the season on June 27.
Up next
Seattle moves to the second of its four-game home stand when it hosts the Washington Mystics (10-10) at 3 p.m. on Sunday, July 13. The Mystics are riding a two-game win streak that includes victories over the Las Vegas Aces and Chicago Sky.
