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WNBA Seattle Storm

Storm Offense Falls Silent in Fourth as Las Vegas Takes Game One

September 23, 2024 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Seattle Storm News Release


LAS VEGAS - The Seattle Storm tried every kind of shot imaginable. Pull-up jumpers. Fadeaways. Long ones from downtown. Driving lay-ups.

None of those fourth-quarter attempts went in on Sunday night.

Skylar Diggins-Smith had 16 points and eight assists, but her two free throws with 4:07 left in the game were the only points of the final quarter for the Storm as they fell 78-67 to the Las Vegas Aces in Game 1 of their WNBA first-round playoff series.

Gabby Williams added 14 points and Nneka Ogwumike had 13, making it a double-double with 10 rebounds.

After leading for most of the game inside Michelob Ultra Arena, including 65-64 heading into the fourth, the Storm went through offensive frostbite. They were 0-for-12, with seven players getting at least one shot. Seattle had six other possessions cut short by turnovers.

"They had fire and we gassed out," Ogwumike said. "We didn't step up the energy in that fourth quarter. There were many reasons. A team like that, there's no way you're winning the game with that quarter."

Seattle's final field goal was a driving lay-in by Diggins-Smith with 52.9 seconds left in the third quarter, which she ultimately converted into a traditional three-point play for a 63-62 lead.

Now down 1-0 in the best-of-3 series, the Storm are in a must-win scenario when they return for Game 2 on Tuesday night, tipping off at 6:30 p.m. (ESPN). A win would send the series back to Seattle for a decisive Game 3. A loss would end the season.

"You have to have a short-term memory on these things," coach Noelle Quinn said. "The things we can do with such a short turnaround is get better through film and address certain things in that capacity. We are in a situation where it's do or die to extend the series.

"This is something we have to wash off our backs," she added. "Watch film, and our focus is on Tuesday."

Toward that end, Williams said the Storm can't completely push this game aside in getting ready for the next one.

"We have to go back and watch film and see what worked and see what didn't. It's kind of hard to think about right now - I'm still kind of in shock," she said. "Obviously, there was a way we were getting shots in the first quarter that we weren't getting in the fourth. So, we're going to see what was different."

The Storm got off to a solid start, running off nine straight points after Chelsea Gray drained a 3-pointer to open the game. They kept the Aces off the scoreboard for more than four minutes before A'ja Wilson hit a pair of free throws to make it 9-5. Seattle's defense forced Las Vegas into 10 straight misses from the floor and extended the lead to 18-9 by the end of the quarter as the Aces misfired on another six in a row.

But Vegas found its shooting eye at the outset of the second quarter, connecting on five of its first six and eventually going back on top, 23-22. From there, the lead changed hands six times and there were five ties.

The Aces had the equivalent of a six-point play to go from 27-25 down into a 31-27 lead. Gray hit a shot from the top of the and was fouled by Jordan Horston. Upon a video review, the foul was upgraded to a reckless closeout. Gray hit the ensuing free throw, and Las Vegas then got the ball in front court. Tiffany Hayes buried a 3-pointer from the right of the lane to make it 31-27.

Seattle closed out the quarter on a 9-4 run and took a 42-38 lead at the break.

Wilson, who was named winner of the league's MVP award for the third time in her career just prior to Sunday's game, managed just four points on 1-of-8 shooting in the first half. But she came to life in the third quarter with 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting. She finished with 21 points, and Tiffany Hayes came off the bench for 20.

"The MVP is the MVP - there's not a lot you can do," Quinn said. "Those were tough contested shots. She's the MVP for a reason."

BY THE NUMBERS

- Jewell Loyd returned to action after missing the final three regular-season games with a knee issue. She had six points, three rebounds and two assists in nearly 26 minutes.

- Mercedes Russell, making her fourth consecutive start in place of Ezi Magbegor, who remained out in concussion protocol, contributed eight points and had 12 rebounds - six at each end of the court.

- The Aces had a 40-30 edge in paint points, with a 30-6 advantage in the second half.

- The Storm wound up at 36.8 percent from the field (25-of-68). Las Vegas was at 43.5 percent (30-of-69).

- Both teams were perfect at the free throw line: 13-of-13 for the Storm, 11-of-11 for the Aces.

UP NEXT

The second game is set for Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. in Las Vegas (ESPN).

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