Storm can’t upset Liberty despite push in second half as repeated mistakes continue to loom

July 2, 2023

A7409705_fullres — Photo by Stan Morris / fi360 News

Seattle, WA – Lessons continue to be learned for the Seattle Storm, as some growing pains remain prevalent in their third straight loss, falling today to the New York Liberty. Many of the issues that have plagued the Storm were present in this game, from overall lack of paint presence, while issues such as turnovers that had been better as of late were a factor in why Seattle wasn’t able to get back within striking distance of this game. These lessons learned and growing pains experienced will surely help the Storm in the long run, but the frustrations felt from them are visible in the current moment.

Following the opening tipoff for this game, the Storm missed four shots as the Liberty began to build their lead. Seattle’s inability to hit these shots to open the game was a bad start on its own for this game, but also foreshadowed the short of struggles that hindered the Storm’s chances at winning this game. Seattle’s poor shooting tonight was a big factor in their inability to go toe-to-toe with New York, who got production from all five of their starters with little help from their bench. Even the top scoring players for the Storm today, Jewell Loyd and Ezi Magbegor, didn’t have efficient nights from the field while the Seattle bench failed to add scoring outside of Sami Whitcomb, who was also inefficient. Of the many areas of issue in this game for the Storm, shooting and getting consistent scoring from numerous faces in the lineup remains a problem that still hasn’t been solved by Seattle.

“I think we’re growing; I think we’re better than we were at the beginning of the season. For a team like us who are still trying to figure things out, that’s where you want to be,” Jewell Loyd, Seattle Storm shooting guard, on if she thinks the team is in a rut.

Coming out of the halftime break with a deficit of 17, the Storm were in a tough position given the uphill battle they faced in terms of points and talent that they were up against. The push didn’t start immediately for Seattle, as New York pushed their lead up to as much as 22 after Sabrina Ionescu’s three-pointer with 7:24 left in the third quarter. It was after that shot, that the Storm started to dig themselves out of their own hole as Kia Nurse and Jewell Loyd hit three-pointers and Seattle started to get to the free throw line. Even with the shots from beyond the arch and some solid defensive effort to slow down the Liberty for a bit, the Storm weren’t able to go on a run big enough to overcome the double-digit deficit.

“It is quite difficult. I think we’ve proven, as the season has gone on, that we can get ourselves back into games. But that’s not what we want to do, we want to start well, we want to be able to compete with teams from the jump ball and not have to play catch up,” Ezi Magbegor, Seattle Storm center, on having to try to come back from a big deficit.

Today’s loss to the Liberty was the last home game that the Storm will have played prior to the WNBA All-Star break. Seattle doesn’t return home to Climate Pledge Arena until July 20^th, hitting the road for three games during that span. Before they get to that point though, the Storm begin their road trip on Thursday, July 6^th when they battle the Connecticut Sun with a tipoff time of 4PM PST. That game will be broadcast on Amazon Prime Video and will be just the sixth road game that Seattle will have played this season so far.

Storm fall to Lynx in overtime despite Jewell Loyd’s career-high 41

Charles Hamaker

June 29, 2023

Seattle, WA – In the rematch of their Tuesday, June 27^th matchup in Minnesota that saw the Lynx largely control their matchup, the Seattle Storm battled late to force overtime before ultimately falling. Despite Jewell Loyd’s 41-point game and a solid statistical night from the field, the Storm tallied their eleventh loss of the year and still struggle with some of the late game moments that they’ve seen in all but two of those defeats. While Seattle did see big contributions from Loyd, Ezi Magbegor, and Sami Whitcomb off the bench, the Storm didn’t get consistent scoring from the rest of their rotation and missed rookie forward Jordan Horston for another game with a lingering shoulder injury.

Early on in this game, the story in terms of scoring prowess was about Minnesota’s Diamond Miller who helped the Lynx build an eight-point lead after the first quarter. Miller ended that quarter with the game lead in points at nine while also tallying one of each of the key individual statistics, instantly making an impact as the Storm tried to find their footing. On the other end of things, Jewell Loyd was going to be outdone as she poured in seven points while adding four rebounds to help her team in an area that they’ve struggled in for the past few years. While those two players, both with first names relating to gems, had quality starts to the night, Loyd was the one who continued her performance and ultimately showed out for a career night. Loyd went on to score a career-high 41-points on the night with nine-rebounds to flirt with a double-double.

“I think I got to my spots. I wouldn’t say I was too efficient, I missed a lot of easy ones, but just being aggressive,” Jewell Loyd, Seattle Storm guard, on her career night.

Despite Seattle getting the 40-piece from Loyd, the team shot somewhat poorly from the field in the second half and had to battle through a gritty fourth quarter to force overtime. A Jewell Loyd floater with 21 ticks left in the game tied things up, and while Seattle did get a final opportunity to end things off after a Lynx turnover, Loyd’s three-pointer from 44 feet out missed and we headed to extra basketball. Twice during the five-minute overtime period, the Storm held a three-point lead but both times Minnesota was able to respond. After the Storm failed to extend a two-point lead further after a missed Loyd layup, and then turnover after the game had been tied. Lynx forward Napheesa Collier hit a tough turnaround jumper with great defense on her to give Minnesota the lead with 00.9 ticks left, and a Storm prayer at the buzzer was not answered.

“I mean, if we get a rebound. We had a lot of opportunities to get a rebound, we couldn’t. That’s something that we historically have struggled with, is rebounding. We have to get better, because that’s what it comes down to, getting stops and taking care of the ball. That’s on me,” Jewell Loyd, Seattle Storm guard, on the last few possessions of the game.

Following the second loss to Minnesota this week, the Storm will get a couple of days to try and regroup ahead of their next battle, a Sunday, July 1^st battle against the New York Liberty. Despite what all the preseason predictions looked like, the Liberty haven’t necessarily cruised through the season to this point, having lost four games already and nearly falling to the Storm when these teams met back on May 30^th when Breanna Stewart’s third quarter ultimately helped New York pull away. That game on Sunday tips off at 3PM PST on the CBS Sports Network.

Nneka Ogwumike Named 2023 WNBA All-Star Starter

Press Release

June 26, 2023

1RT19535 — Nneka Ogwumike (Photo by Full Image 360)

Ogwumike Earns All-Star Selection for the Eighth Time in 12-year WNBA Career

LOS ANGELES (June 25, 2023) – The WNBA announced today that LA Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike was named a 2023 WNBA All-Star starter for the second consecutive season. She earns All-Star honors for the eighth time in her WNBA career. The 10 starters were selected by a combination of fan voting (50%), media voting (25%), and player voting (25%). Ogwumike has started and appeared in 12 of 13 Sparks games this season. She is averaging 19.7 points, 9.5 rebounds, and career high 3.5 assists per game – comparable to her league MVP season in 2016. She’s shooting 51.2% from the field, has recorded six double-doubles, and is now the LA Sparks all-time franchise leader in steals with 507. For the 14^th time in her career, Ogwumike was named Western Conference Player of the Week for games played May 29 – June 4.

“It’s one of the ultimate honors,” said Nneka Ogwumike on being named a starter for the 19^th All-Star game to be held at the Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas on July 15. “Being named a starter or an All-Star at all is always a blessing. I am humbled to be able to play alongside such talented, professional women showcasing their amazing skills and athleticism to the fans.”

Ogwumike’s numbers rank her 7^th in the WNBA in points per game, 5^th in rebounds per game, 9^th in steals per game, 6^th in player efficiency, and 9^th in both field goal and 3-point percentage. She’s scored in double-figures in 11 games this season, has eclipsed 20-points seven times, and scored a season-high 27 points on June 3 against the Seattle Storm.

“No one is more deserving of this honor,” said LA Sparks Head Coach, Curt Miller. “Nneka is the consummate leader on and off the court, and I am thrilled that she is recognized for her outstanding start to the season and will represent the LA Sparks at this year’s All-Star game.”

Ogwumike’s career accolades include being the 2016 WNBA MVP, 2016 WNBA Champion, seven-time All-Star, four-time All-WNBA Team member, five-time All-Defensive team member, and a three-time Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award winner. In 2021, she was named to the WNBA’s 25^th Anniversary Team, recognizing the Top 25 players in league history. In addition, Ogwumike is in her third term as WNBA Players Association president.

Ogwumike’s with coach Miller (Photo by Full Image 360)

ABOUT THE LOS ANGELES SPARKS

Founded in 1996, the Los Angeles Sparks are one of three original franchises in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Sparks have won three WNBA Championships (2001, 2002, 2016), have qualified for the playoffs in 20 of their 26 seasons and remain the only active team in the league to win back-to-back titles. The Los Angeles Sparks are dedicated to ensuring each home game at Crypto.com Arena has a championship level entertainment experience while showcasing the best female athletes from around the world on the court. LA Sparks 2023 single-game tickets are available here for purchase.

Sparks snatch a win over the Wings

Jevone Moore

June 25, 2023

1RT12526 — Nneka Ogwumike (Photo by Full Image360)

Los Angeles, CA- The Los Angeles Sparks make the right adjustments to have back-back wins over a tough Dallas Wings teams 93-83. This game was a lot closer than the final score shows.

Anther strong performance by newly announced starter All-Star forward Nneka Ogwumike (30) who led her team with 27 points, 12 rebounds and 4 assists.

“We don’t want to let each other down,” said Owumike “I don’t play these games by myself”

Wings guard Ogunbowale was all over the court with active hands-on defense and a hot shooting hand. She dropped 18 points, and 8 assists. Ogunbowale’s effort was so high it was rubbing off on her teammates who also began to catch fire.

The Wings starting five was on 2 points shy of all five scoring in double figures but it was enough.

After a tough battle Friday night these teams are right back for a Sunday noon round two. The Wings looking to make a few adjustments to try to win this game. But the Sparks 4^th quarter with only 1 turnover and strong defense.

“We found a better rhythm to their zone,” said Curt Miller “The end of 3^rd quarter set us up for tonight’s win.” (Down by 11 points)

Sparks took 86-81 lead back with 2:51 left after a strong defensive rebound and a Ogwumike basket before a stop.

After the 1^st quarter of play you could see that the were ready for the challenge. They took 26-18 led to start off the game fast and ready to lock in.

But with 1:19 left in the half the Wings took their first lead 42-41 before a defensive three second call tied game back 42-42.

Putting a mark on the game again outside of the stat box is guard Jordin Canada who helped with 9 assists and 10 points while handling the defensive assignment of chasing Ogunbowale all over the court.

Now the Sparks are 3-0 verses the Wings, and ready to hit the road to face off against Chicago Sky on Wednesday June 28^th.

“It feels good coming in, I’m grateful we came away with another win in the series.” Says Ogwumike (30).

Mercury can’t handle the heat from the Storm, Seattle romps to 97-74 victory in all-around showing

Charles Hamaker

June 24, 2023

Seattle Storm (Photo by Stan Morris / fi360 News)

Seattle, WA – Following back-to-back frustrating losses at home, the Seattle Storm turned in a complete team effort to defeat the struggling Phoenix Mercury by a score of 97-74. After taking a three-point lead on a Moriah Jefferson bucket with five and a half minutes left in the first quarter, Phoenix never had the advantage throughout the rest of the game as the Storm were able to play smart, focused basketball to pick up their fourth win on the season. Despite exciting and versatile rookie Jordan Horston missing this game with a shoulder injury, the Storm were able to get contributions from every single player available.

The first quarter of this contest was a unique one, not in the fact that the Storm lead after those first ten minutes, but because Seattle hit the same number of shots as Phoenix and were generally horrible from the field. How could the Storm build a lead and look strong in the first quarter despite a poor shooting frame? Getting to the free throw line and establishing a paint presence early against a Mercury team that has one of the league’s best bigs in Brittney Griner. None of the eight Seattle players that saw action in those first ten minutes made more than one shot, but four of them sunk both free throws that they saw. Another key factor that helped down the road was that with that foul trouble that Phoenix got into, three of the four Mercury players off the bench that checked in during quarter one picked up at least a foul. All in all, the Storm set themselves up for further success throughout the game.

“Defensively, we were in our coverages, we were locked in on that side, which allowed us to get some breakaway layups, transition shots, which we’re really good at, as well as on the offensive side, we moved the ball really well tonight. We were able to penetrate and fabricate, and people knocked down shots, so it kind of opened a lot of things up for a lot of our shooters,” Jewell Loyd, Seattle Storm guard, on what worked well for the team.

While not necessarily a perfect product by any means, the Storm have been close in all but two of their losses and generally haven’t looked like a bad team this season despite the massive overturn. The Storm have struggled in closing out games and generally in the paint, whether that be the rebounds department, second chance points, or points in the paint, but that wouldn’t be the story today. After a first quarter that set them up for furthered success, the Sounders were able to build off a big second quarter that saw them score 30 points and turn things around from the field as they shot 50% from beyond the arch and in general. The better strokes and taking care of the ball were a quality recipe for Seattle, who took a fifteen-point lead into half and never looked back.

“The biggest thing that stood out, was just our ball movement. I just remember getting stops, our pace was up, but just the ball wasn’t sticking, we found open teammates, and we knocked down open shots,” Noelle Quinn, Seattle Storm head coach, on what stood out to her from this win.

Following arguably their most complete win of the year, the Storm will head out on a one-game road trip following a three-game homestand. Seattle will essentially play a home and home set against the Minnesota Lynx, heading over to the land of 10,000 lakes for their next contest on Tuesday, June 27^th with a tipoff time of 5PM PST against the Lynx. Following that battle in Minnesota, the teams will both head back to Seattle for the rematch on June 29^th.

Sparks bounce back with comeback win over the Wings

Eric Brown Jr

June 23, 2023

Los Angeles, CA- The Los Angeles Sparks rallied from 17 points down to secure the win over the Dallas Wings 76 -74 on Friday night.

The rally charge was led by Nneka Ogwumike scoring 20 points, with new comer Destanni Henderson dropping a career high18 points for the Sparks.

“Attacking and finding my teammates open and stay focus on getting to the rim,” said Henderson “We got a win.”

Destanni Henderson drives (Photo by Eric Brown Jr. / fi360 News)

The Wings were a tough matchup for the Sparks and they currently sit second in the Western
Conference behind the defending champions the Las Vegas Aces.

Arike Ogunbowale coming off her late game ejection Wednesday night against the Atlanta
Dream, got to work early in the first half with 14 points but was held to just 2 points in the entire second half.

Arike Ogunbowale comes down the court. (Photo by Eric Brown Jr. / fi360 News)

Sparks guard Jordin Canada had a solid game of her own with 18 points and 6 assists and was
locked in defensively with 3 steals on the night. The win tonight snaps a 3 game losing streak at home for the Sparks.

Jordin Canada looks to score. (Photo by Eric Brown Jr. / fi360 News)

“Grit, passion, being competitive,” said Canada as key to the rally. “Came down to who wanted it more, and who had the most grit and we showed it tonight.”

With less than 5 minutes left in the 4th quarter, Chiney Ogwumike picked up her 6th foul,
sending her to the bench early.

Ogwumike hugs Henderson after the win. (Photo by Eric Brown Jr. / fi360 News)

Although Dearica Hamby struggled offensively, she did manage to collect 10 rebounds tonight as was a consistent force on the defensive end of the court.

The teams face off again on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena before the Sparks head to the Windy City to play Chicago on Wednesday June 28th.

Offensive lull in second half dooms Storm for second straight game, falling to Fever at home

Charles Hamaker

June 22, 2023

Seattle, WA – In another physical, challenging battle, the Seattle Storm fell to the Indiana Fever in a frustrating defeat. Seattle held strong throughout the first half, holding a lead over Indiana until a minute and a half were left in the third quarter. After that, things turned for the worse for the Storm, as the Fever went on a 17-point run that ran late into the fourth quarter. Seattle, like their loss to Connecticut just a few days ago, hit a speed bump offensively that ultimately hindered their ability to win this ballgame.

Through the first half, the Storm were able to avoid a poor start that they’d seen in a run of their past few games, trading baskets with a young and talented Fever team that somewhat mirrors this Seattle squad in ways. It was a balanced effort on both sides, as both starting fives seemed to trade baskets and each team got solid contributions up and down. Seattle seemed to have the offensive creativity flowing early, as Kia Nurse was very active, Ezi Magbegor continued to show strong paint presence, Ivana Dojkic flashed speed at the point guard position that earned her the starting job, Mercedes Russell was showing strength inside and Jewell Loyd was playing like herself. All seemed to be flowing well for Seattle, except perhaps some more stops defensively.

Seattle’s issue in their past two games, coincidentally against two teams that have more size than the Storm, has been a lull in offensive production in the second half. While Seattle was able to make a strong effort against the Sun to comeback, today’s deficit against the Fever put them in too much of a hole to try and crawl out of in the time left remaining in the game. After a Kia Nurse three-pointer with 4:11 to play in the third, Seattle had seemed to swing the momentum pendulum in their favor as they regained the lead for the first time in the middle of the second quarter. The offensive production had continued to spread across the starting five to that point, and it seemed like the Storm were finding the second gear that they needed to help them get over the hump.

“Couldn’t hit a shot. 21 missed shots, we can’t win games shooting 30% from the floor. I thought our defensive activity was fine. We were creating and generating turnovers and we’re taking contested shots and couldn’t hit a shot.” Noelle Quinn, Seattle Storm head coach, on what happened in the third quarter.

“I think so. I mean, there is a point in the game where we got over a hump, got up at 59-58 and then from there, not good things happened. The rebounding was an issue, the things that brought us success we were not doing, and that is a sign of what this season is kind of for us. It’s just recalibrating, and yes on the growth chart, it does happen to go up and back and down and around for this group. We can’t do it. Just don’t have the luxury of making the same mistakes and this was the first time Yeah, I did feel like that,” Noelle Quinn, Seattle Storm head coach, on if this loss felt like a regression as opposed to growth.

With two losses in their current homestand through as many games, the Storm aim to close out this current slate on a positive note when they play the finale of this three-game slate at Climate Pledge Arena. That game is on Saturday, June 24^th, with a tipoff time of 6PM PST as the Phoenix Mercury come to town for the first time since their preseason battle back in May. That game will be broadcast on Twitter, FOX 13+, and Amazon Prime Video.

Underdog Storm continue to impress, but fail to close the gap against Sun in tight loss

Charles Hamaker

June 20, 2023

Seattle, WA – Returning from a road trip that saw them take two of three games, the Seattle Storm fell in a tightly contested battle with the Connecticut Sun. Some may have written the Storm off coming into this contest considering that the Sun have the second most wins in the WNBA, but Seattle was able to hang with Connecticut all the way until the very end of this contest. Storm guard Jewell Loyd had another monster performance, pouring in 33 points and being only one of three players that reached double digits for Seattle. Every Connecticut starter found double digits, including Alyssa Thomas who tallied a double-double, proving too much for the Storm who failed to capitalize on chances to close the gap.

Despite a sequence that saw the Sun get an early layup off the opening tipoff and an ensuing six point run, the Storm were able to overcome the early stumble to get situated in their own offensive attack. Despite several turnovers early on into that first quarter, the Storm were able to handle the Sun size in the paint early on to force missed shots and turnovers. While a mismatch in terms of size on paper, Seattle wasn’t letting that gain any sort of space in their mindset, and used their switches and help inside to mitigate that size. Ezi Magbegor slashing into the paint and presence on the paint helped to stretch out the Sun front court, and allowed the rest of Seattle to find the necessary pockets to get their offensive attack going.

“I don’t think we started the game well either. You know, we missed a jump ball, gave up a layup, foul, missed two free throws. I just think our starts to those two quarters were indicative of how that quarter went. Obviously in the first, we picked it up, but the teaching point is we have to hold ourselves accountable especially after halftime and not settle. Continue our focus and do exactly what we did to get us here. Now obviously we do adjust as the game adjusts, but I thought we got away from our transition, ball screens, area before ball screens. I thought we defensively kind of were not communicating as much, miss on the defensive assignments, and so that’s just focus,” Noelle Quinn, Seattle Storm head coach, referencing the first half and what changed after halftime.

In the second half, the third quarter particularly, the Storm offense went into a lull. While Loyd was strong through the first half, the Sun did a better job of trapping her to limit the quality looks that she saw, and the issue of Seattle finding more consistent scoring came around. The usual contributors of Loyd and Ezi Magbegor were getting involved, with Jordan Horston finding a double-double off the bench, but the rest of Seattle’s roster failed to get much going. Veterans Kia Nurse and Sami Whitcomb continue to search for a spark, as they struggled from the field again. Starting point guard Ivana Dojkic, who earned the starting spot over Yvonne Turner, struggled tonight as well.

“We just had a lull. They elevated, and we stayed the same. Then we got going again in the fourth, but you can’t do that when you’re playing really good teams. We can’t do that in this league,” Jewell Loyd, Seattle Storm shooting guard, on what happened in the third quarter.

Following tonight’s loss to the Connecticut Sun, the Storm continue a three game homestand when they return to action on Thursday, June 22^nd against the Indiana Fever. With a tipoff time of 7PM PST at Climate Pledge Arena, the Storm will be celebrating their Pride Night presented by AT&T. Seattle hosts a Fever team that has largely struggled, sitting with a 4-7 record, but has some young talent in last year’s top overall pick Aliyah Boston that has the future looking bright. Broadcast wise, you can find that game on Amazon Prime Video, and FOX 13+ locally.

Sparks drop 3rd game to the Lynx

Jevone Moore

June 20, 2023

Los Angeles, Ca- The Minnesota Lynx just seem to have the Los Angeles Sparks number after 67-61 victory on the road.

The Sparks just don’t have an answer for Napheesa Collier(24) who dropped 26 points and 14 rebounds for a strong double-double. She had to step up even more when her front court teammate Dorka Juhasz left the game early due to on court injury.

“Man we didn’t execute all game,” said Curt Miller, “We just couldn’t find any success shooting.”

Nneka Ogwumike(30) played better offensively tonight scoring 20 points and 9 rebounds all offensive. She was not on the defensive block to stop second chance baskets in the paint.

At the half it was still anybody game with the Sparks having a slim 33-32 lead. The Lynx changed up its defense by playing hands on to disturb the flow of Jordin Canada(21).

Collier(24) was a driving force in first half for the Lynx with a team high 12 points and 6 rebounds from her forward position.

The lack of perimeter shooting by the Sparks continues to show on the stat sheet 8 for 26.

“We didn’t score the last 2:47 seconds of the game,” said Miller, the Sparks need to put points on the board.

Last week when these two faced off Ogwumike (30) was held in check with double teams and physical play in the paint. With only scoring 3 points in first quarter last meeting, Ogwumike (30) stepped up earlier to lead all scorers with 11 points in 1^st quarter this time.

The Sparks strong start kept it tight only trailing 19-18 to the Lynx. But by the 4^th quarter came about the Lynx just made more shoots down the stretch and took the game away from the Sparks.

The Sparks will get to practice a few days before back-to-back Friday Jun 23, Sunday Jun 25 game against the Dallas Wings here at Crypto.com arena. The Minnesota Lynx will host the Connecticut Sun Thursday June 22.

Sparks lose two straight games in a physical battle against the Connecticut Sun

Eric Brown Jr

June 18, 2023

0W8A0157 — Photo by Eric Brown Jr / fi360 News

Los Angeles, CA- With 20 points tonight, DeWanna Bonner led the Suns to the win over the Los Angeles
Sparks. Connecticut came into tonight’s game as the No. 1 team in the Eastern
Conference – and it showed.

Nneka Ogwumike bounced back from her last game with her sixth double-double of the season,
logging 19 points and 15 rebounds. That now makes Ogwumike 15th in WNBA history with
2,461 career rebounds.

As the 3rd quarter came to a close, neither team showed signs of slowing down, ending the
period all tied up 63 – 63.

As time began to wind down in the 4th quarter, Karlie Samuelson hit a jumper from deep that
made it 74-all with three minutes to play but the Sparks couldn’t close out the tight game.
Brionna Jones who had 17 pts made a clutch layup late into the game and Los Angeles coach
Curt Miller was called for a technical foul with 1:27 to go.

When asked what led to the technical, Miller answered with a smirk “I thought they missed a call in
a big moment and so I asked her about it.”

Bonner made the free throw and added a layup before Carrington hit two free throws to put the
game out of reach of the Sparks with 38.1 seconds left.

After the game, coach Miller seemed to be in good spirits saying, “ Well that was fun. I love
playing against really good teams. I love playing against really good coaches.”

“We did so many good things tonight and I’m proud of them. We’ve got to protect our home
court and we’ve got numerous players that are rotating in and out but we can definitely play
with the top teams in the league.”