The Seattle Storm hope the All-Star break doesn’t dent the defensive momentum they have created.
Seattle (14-9) is seeking another stellar defensive effort when it hosts the Dallas Wings (6-17) on Tuesday night.
Before the All-Star break began, the Storm put together their top defensive effort of the season in last Wednesday’s 67-58 home win over the Golden State Valkyries.
The 58 points allowed is a season-best for Seattle. The Storm limited Golden State to 31.7 percent from the field, including 7-of-31 from 3-point range.
The defensive wizardry was necessary as neither team scored 20 points in any quarter. Seattle shot 32.8 percent overall and misfired on 22-of-29 attempts from behind the arc.
“The offense will be what it will be,” Storm guard Erica Wheeler said after the game. “As long as we play lockdown defense, we’ll be fine. That’s what we did, and we also made shots at the right time.”
Seattle has split its last four games after winning nine of its previous 12.
The Storm had three players in Saturday’s All-Star Game, including Skylar Diggins, who recorded the first triple-double in All-Star history with 11 points, 11 rebounds and an All-Star Game record 15 assists as her Team Collier side beat Team Clark 151-131. Diggins leads Seattle in scoring (17.5) and assists (5.8).
Seattle’s Nneka Ogwumike contributed 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting and grabbed seven rebounds for Team Collier and Gabby Williams had 16 points and five rebounds for Team Clark.
Dallas rookie Paige Bueckers played for Team Collier and registered six points and eight assists.
Bueckers, the No. 1 overall draft pick, has stood out for Dallas and leads the team in scoring (18.4), assists (5.5) and steals (1.7).
However, the Wings haven’t progressed as a team and have lost four straight by an average of 16 points entering the contest in Seattle. Dallas is also 2-10 on the road.
Dallas resides in 12th place in the 13-team league, but first-year coach Chris Koclanes maintains that an in-season turnaround is possible.
“There’s a bigger picture here and if we continue to build good habits, positive habits, and stay together, we’ll get this thing to where we want to get it,” Koclanes said, according to the Dallas Morning News.
The Storm beat the Wings twice earlier this season. Ogwumike fell two boards shy of her career high when she had 23 points and 18 rebounds in a 79-71 road win on May 19. Bueckers was out with a concussion when Dallas lost 83-77 at Seattle on June 3.
–Field Level Media
