Ogwumike and Storm Show out in Dallas with Big Offensive Win

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WNBA Seattle Storm

Ogwumike and Storm Show out in Dallas with Big Offensive Win

May 20, 2025 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Seattle Storm News Release


ARLINGTON, Texas - The Seattle Storm broke it open with some first-half offense and locked it down with some fourth-quarter defense.

Nneka Ogwumike delivered a double-double of 23 points and 18 rebounds, and the Seattle Storm limited Dallas to just 10 points in the fourth on Monday night, gradually pulling away for a 79-71 victory at College Park Center.

Skylar Diggins added 21 points and nine assists for the Storm while Gabby Williams contributed across her box score line with 17 points, five rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocked shots in playing all but 55 seconds of the game.

Williams also was a big factor in shutting down Dallas star Arike Ogunbowale. Consistently one of the top scorers in the league, she had just eight points on 2-of-14 shooting from the floor.

"Gabby's activity and her defensive presence and athleticism ignites a lot of what we do on the defensive end," Head Coach Noelle Quinn said. "She has tough assignments every game and takes that challenge with great pride. And she's not just a great defensive player, she's a really good offensive player."

"We've had glimpses of her showing that in this league. Now, having her for the entire season, we're going to really see her blossom," Quinn added.

Better shooting made the biggest difference for the Storm. After hitting just 33.3 percent overall and 17.6 percent from long range at Phoenix, they shot at a 41.4 percent clip on Monday (29 of 70) and were 60 percent from downtown (9 of 15).

"Our mindset was just being aggressive and just making the right reads and knocking them down confident," Diggins said. "I thought we got some of the same looks (as Saturday), but - law of averages - we knocked them down at 60 percent."

Except for early ties at 2-2 and 8-8, Seattle led all the way, once by as many as 17 points late in the first half at 54-37. The Storm took a 56-41 lead into the locker room, coming within three points of what they scored for the entire game on Saturday in Phoenix.

Dallas began to chip away in the third quarter and closed within five at 66-61 heading into the final 10 minutes.

The Wings got the opening basket of the fourth, cutting it to 66-63 with 7:44 to play. But Seattle put up the next eight points, expanding the lead again to 11 at 74-63 with 4:13 to go, keeping Dallas off the board for nearly four minutes. Ezi Magbegor had the last four of those points on a lay-in and a turnaround lay-in.

Rookie Paige Bueckers stole an inbounds pass and went uncontested for a lay-in, bringing the Wings within 74-69 at the 1:18 mark. Ogwumike restored the three-possession lead with a two-handed tip-in of Alysha Clark's missed shot, making it 76-69 with 28.9 seconds on the clock.

Seattle then forced Dallas into a five-second inbounds violation. Diggins hit one of her two free throws on the ensuing possession, then finished hard on a driving lay-in off a long pass from Ogwumike with 15.3 seconds left.

"They were coming back, but it was a grind," said Ogwumike. "We were trying to make it difficult for them to score, but we had to respond at the offensive end. Ezi and I try to find our moments, and it ended up working out."

UP NEXT

The Storm open its home schedule on Friday at 7:00 p.m. against Phoenix inside Climate Pledge Arena.

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