Awa Fam career high 21pts leads Storm to second consecutive victory

The Seattle Storm secured their second consecutive win with a 105-90 victory over the Atlanta Dream, led by Awa Fam’s 15 points and Flaue Johnson’s 12 rebounds, showcasing team growth and resilience, especially during Pride Heritage night.

FAST START

The Storm started strongly, fast, and determined. They scored the first   12 points of the game. The quarter ended with the Storm leading 21-13. Flaue Johnson pulled down six rebounds, and Awa Fam led all scorers with 9 points. She was a perfect 3-3 from the three-point range. Seattle was 8-for-5 from the three-point line.

LAPSES IN THE SECOND QUARTER

Another point of emphasis has been defensive consistency.  Roman is a defensive-minded coach who is installing a culture of tough defense and dominating rebounding.  Like any young team, the Storm will have growing pains. In the second quarter, the Storm had defensive lapses that allowed Atlanta forward Rhyne Howard to pop in 11 points, reminding fans of the importance of tightening the defense.

  Howard was 3/5 from the three-point range.   The Dream as a whole made just 8 of 21 shot attempts. Howard’s hot hand saw the Dream outscore the Storm 26 to 25 in the quarter. Awa Fam scored seven points in the quarter with a perfect 2/2 from the field and 1/1 from the three-point line. Despite the defensive lapses, the Storm had a 45-39 half-point lead.

 HOT SHOOTING THIRD QUARTER

The halftime message from both coaches had to be similar and emphasized offense. Both teams came out of the break with hot shooting hands.  The Storm made 12 of 14 shots from the floor for an 85% shooting percentage. Flau’jae Johnson made all four of her shots from the floor, made her only free throw, and had a three-point attempt.

Natisha Heidema brought balance to the offense; she had 8 points in the quarter, made 2/3 three-pointers, and was a perfect 2/2 from the free throw line.  Atlanta was just as prolific, making 12 of 18 shots for 66.7%. Howard continued her hot shooting, making   2/5 shots for six points, and  Allisha Gray chipped in six points, connecting on  3/5 field goal attempts. The Storm entered the fourth quarter with a 78-66 lead.

FAST START TO THE QUARTER

A four-point play by Zia Cooke to start the fourth quarter brought the crowd to its feet, cheering and high-fiving.  Cooke was fouled on a step-back three-pointer by Gray and made the free throw for the four-point play. The play ballooned the Storm’s lead to 16 points at 82-68. The Dream made a run at the Storm and cut the lead to 89-82 with 5:12 left in the game.

 The Storm showed the growth and maturity needed to close out a game, going on an 11-2 run to balloon the lead back to 101-8 with 2:22 left.  In the run, the Storm tightened its defense. Heideman drew an offensive foul. Team defense forced a Howard miss from the 3pt range and a Gray layup.

“   It  is all about learning how to finish games on defense, knowing when to switch , close out, and communicate, “Roman said after the game.

BIG TAKE

The biggest takeaway from this game is the Storm’s resilience in countering each of the Dream’s runs. This resilience, along with their ability to close out games through strong defense, should make fans feel proud and confident in the team’s growth and future potential.

STORM HIGHLIGHTS

• Flau’jae Johnson led Seattle with 24 points, shooting a career-high 75.0% from the field. She added 11 rebounds to record her third double-double – the most of any rookie this season – and became the first rookie in 2026 and the fastest rookie guard in Storm history to reach 100 career rebounds. She shot 66.7% from three and tallied four assists and two steals.
• Awa Fam secured a career-high 21 points on 8-for-9 (88.9%) shooting from the field, including 5-for-6 (83.3%) from beyond the arc. She became the first rookie and just the third WNBA player to score 15+ points while shooting at least 65% from both the field and the three-point line in three consecutive games (Courtney Vandersloot, Alex Bentley).  
• Natisha Hiedeman finished with 20 points for the fifth time this season, marking the most 20+ point games in a season in her career. She shot 6-for-10 from the field, as well as 6-for-6 from the free-throw line and dished out a team-high six assists.
• With 16 points and 11 rebounds, Dominique Malonga became the youngest player in WNBA history to record eight career double-doubles, surpassing Lauren Jackson. She also tied her career high with three blocks.
• Jade Melbourne added 10 points on 4-for-9 shooting, including 2-for-2 from three, and five assists. She led the team with a +/- of +25. 

DREAM HIGHLIGHTS

• Rhyne Howard notched 27 points and Angel Reese added 17 alongside nine rebounds.

UP NEXT: Seattle heads to Phoenix for a matchup against the Mercury on Wednesday, July 2. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. PT and will be broadcast locally on the CW Seattle and available to stream on Prime for users in Washington state.