Slow start dooms Storm in 94-83 loss to focus Aces

A slow-starting Seattle Storm team was no match for a locked-in Las Vegas quad. A valiant effort by Nneka Ogwumike and Ezi Magbegor and Jordan Horston    fell short and saw the Storm ( 9-6) drop their second consecutive game.

Ogwumike scored 21 points and Magbegor had a double-double of 19 points and 13 rebounds. Jordan Horston came through with her third straight double-digit scoring performance , droppig in a  season-high 18 points to go along with six rebounds and three assists in nearly 27 minutes of action off the bench. Skylar Diggins-Smith chipped in 10 points.

The hot shooting   Aces (7-6) maintained a double-digit lead from late in the second quarter through the end of the game on the way to a 94-83 victory in Michelob ULTRA Arena. Las Vegas (7-6) went on a 22-7 scoring run bridging the first and second quarters to extend a 12-9 lead all the way to 18 at 34-16.

Seattle climbed back in, cutting the margin to 39-30 with 3:40 to go in the half. But the Storm managed just two more points the rest of the way until the break as Las Vegas stretched it back out to 15 at 47-32.

The closest they came after that was 47-36 when Skylar Diggins-Smith and Ogwumike converted on the first two possessions of the third quarter. The Aces answered with a 7-0 run and stayed at least 12 points ahead until the final seconds.

Jackie Young poured in 32 points for Las Vegas, with 14 of those during the first quarter. A’ja Wilson had 27, getting 16 of hers during the fourth quarter.

BY THE NUMBERS

— While Las Vegas was nailing shots from all over the court, the Storm still shot a respectable 44.3%, hitting 31-of-70. Magbegor and Horston each shot 60% (both 6-of-10), and Ogwumike hit 52.9% (9-of-17).

— Magbegor’s double-double was her fifth of the season and 18th of her career. That moved her past Natasha Howard into No. 4 on the team’s all-time list.

— The season series is now even, with the Storm having won on June 7 in Las Vegas, 78-65. They’ll play twice in Seattle, including once on the upcoming nine-game homestand.

UP NEXT

The Storm begins a WNBA-record nine-game homestand on Sunday against league-leading Connecticut. Tip-off off is at 12 noon in Climate Pledge Arena (Fox 13+ / Prime Video Washington).

TEAM	1	2	3	4	FINAL	HIGH PTS	HIGH REB	HIGH AST
SEATTLE	16	16	22	29	83	N. Ogwumike (21)	E. Magbegor (13)	S. Diggins-Smith (6)
LAS VEGAS	29	19	19	28	94	J. Young (32)	A. Wilson (9)	K. Plum (8)

—— StormBasketball.com ——

HIGHLIGHTS AND GAME ASSETS: 6.19 @ LVA

STORY OF THE GAME:

• Las Vegas broke open the game early, using a long 25-9 run from the midpoint of the first quarter into the second, and held off a strong Seattle second half to win 94-83.

KEY STATS OF THE GAME:

• Las Vegas’ 29 points in the first quarter were the most allowed by the Storm in an opening frame this season. Seattle ended up scoring a season-high 29 fourth quarter points during a late charge.
• The Aces’ 50 points in the paint tied for the most allowed by Seattle in 2024. Indiana also had 50 on May 22. Seattle had 46 paint points on Wednesday.

STORM HIGHLIGHTS:

• Nneka Ogwumike led the Storm in points with 21 and grabbed four steals for her 5^th 20+ point game this season. It was also her 121^st career 20+ point game, moving into 11^th on the WNBA’s all-time list.
• Ezi Magbegor recorded her 18^th career double-double with 19 points and 13 boards to pass Natasha Howard for 4^th in franchise history. She scored 15 of those points in the second half and has now pulled down 13+ rebounds in four games this season.
• Jordan Horston added a season-high 18 points (on 6-of-10 shooting) and adding four rebounds and three assists off the bench. Thirteen of her 18 came in the fourth quarter. Horston has scored in double-figures in each of her last three games, averaging 13.3 PPG over that stretch.
• Skylar Diggins-Smith finished with 10 points, a season-high three steals and six assists. She finished the game with 1,337 assists, tying her with Dawn Staley for 19th on the All-Time assists list.
• Jewell Loyd’s streak of 55-straight games scoring in double figures came to an end. Loyd has scored 10 or more points in every game since Aug. 8, 2022, the 7th longest streak in WNBA history.

ACES HIGHLIGHTS:

• Jackie Young led Las Vegas with 32 points as five Aces reached double figures. A’ja Wilson added 27 points and nine rebounds. Kelsey Plum added 11 and Alisha Clark and Tiffany Hayes each had 10.

NEXT GAME: Seattle begins a WNBA-record nine-game home stand on Sunday, June 23, hosting the Connecticut Sun at Noon PT. The game will be broadcast on FOX 13+ and Prime Video (WA).

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