Ezi Magbegor scored 21 points and collected nine rebounds for the Seattle Storm as they beat the Phoenix Mercury 80-62 on Tuesday, earning their first victory in the 2024 WNBA Commissioner’s Cup.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Former Mercury guard Skylar Diggins-Smith potted 17 points in Seattle’s (6-3) fourth consecutive win. Jewell Loyd had 15 points to extend her double-digit points streak to 50 straight games, the longest active streak in the WNBA.
Kahleah Copper had 19 points while Natasha Cloud added 10 for the Mercury (4-6). Phoenix finished shooting 23-for-68 (33.8%) from the field and 4-for-23 (17.4%) from three.
Storm Dominate Early, Mercury Couldn’t Come Back
Magbegor went rogue to begin the clash as she exploded for 13 points in the first quarter, having her way in the paint. Attributing to a 25-12 advantage, Seattle had 20 of its points in the paint during the initial 10-minute frame.
The Storm controlled the tempo throughout the majority of the game while the Mercury struggled to come up with an answer. Seattle outrebounded Phoenix 42-33 on the night which led to multiple, second-chance opportunities where they punished the Mercury.
Extending their lead by 20 to 38-18, the Storm went an 11-0 run to begin the second, with Diggins-Smith scoring nine of her 11 first-half points during the quarter. Sparking an 8-0 run, the Mercury’s defense stepped up by limiting Magbegor to just two points.
Phoenix’s style of play this season revolves around threes and after having a historically low night against the Connecticut Sun last Tuesday, the shooting woes seemed to creep back into the fold. Going 1-for-27 vs. the Sun, the Mercury were 1-for-16 from deep against the Storm until Copper swished one with 5:16 left in the third quarter.
“We are going to keep shooting them, I don’t think we shot enough of them,” Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts said on the troubles from three. “They didn’t go in tonight.”
Down 64-43 in the third, the Mercury couldn’t get back into the game and the bounces of the ball were not going in their favor for the duration of it. Between missed layups and 16 turnovers, Phoenix was unable to get within single digits of Seattle.
“Some of them [shots] were uncontested, we just missed shots,” Copper said. “Maybe some of them were contested but we were getting some good ones off the blitz and trying to find each other.”
With the victory, this was Seattle’s fifth straight win they had over Phoenix. The Mercury are now 1-1 in the Commissioner’s Cup after beating the Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday.
“It’s tough, there are tough stretches throughout the season,” Tibbetts said. “We weren’t at our best tonight. Slow start? I am not sure what it was, but we got to be better to start games.”
Next Games
Mercury: Home vs. Minnesota Lynx (6-2) | June 7 | 7 p.m. PT
Storm: Away at Las Vegas Aces (4-2) | June 5 | 7 p.m. PT
Natasha Cloud ‘always been a defensive-minded player,’ embraces role with Mercury
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Reporter Alec Cipollini covers ASU Athletics, Phoenix Mercury and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini
