Shorthanded Storm Remind Me That I Have Many Upcoming Sundays That I'll Waste On Sports, Lose Game They Could Have Won
This was a freakishly Seahawks-ey game and right in time for the NFL preseason!
THIS GAME WAS VERY ANNOYING! With Sue Bird and (new parent!) Breanna Stewart resting against the Chicago Sky I assumed this one was going to be an L right from the outset. Unfortunately for me and my plans to go out and enjoy an actual temperate Summer Sunday evening, the Storm made this one very winnable and kept my honey baked ham glued to my couch before ultimately falling short in overtime. It’s possible this was an ode to Seattle’s most popular sports team in that they too keep me from pleasant out of doors Sunday experiences with painful losses, but who knows? There were some positives for sure but ultimately this one bummed me out!
The Storm jumped out to a big lead to start the game on the back of non-resting Chicago area native Jewell Loyd and an open parking spot on a Sunday night in my neighborhood level rare 3 pointer from Jordin Canada, but that lead would not last. The Sky took the lead going into the half thanks mostly to Allie Quigley (urge… to… make… a pun… about a Tom Selleck western… barely… being… suppressed) just killing the Storm from behind the arc and the Storm’s complete inability to make a shot in that 2nd quarter. Seriously, it was a very painful quarter to watch! For about six minutes in the middle of the quarter the only Storm points came from two free throws and they weren’t even the only free throws the Storm took, deeply hideous stuff. The game would be back and forth in the 2nd half with neither team really able to pull away. Canada had a fantastic opportunity to put the Storm up by at least one with under five seconds left at the free throw line and Loyd had an open look at the basket to tie that game in OT but much like me and the waves of liking Olivia Rodrigo or bucket hats, they missed them. This one will probably sting if the Storm miss out on the double bye in the playoffs but at least they got a look at what a Stewie/Sue-less team would look like (it wasn’t very fun).
Hopefully this spate of rest for two of the team’s best players is a one off thing rather than a recurring motif for the back half of the regular season. This road trip is going to be a little rough but once the Storm get through it they’re either at home or resting at least three rest days between games for the rest of the year. If we’ve seen all the moves the Storm have personnel wise (the trade deadline is just a few days away) they’re going to need all their best players at full strength for the playoffs.
Brain Drizzles
This was a rough game for both Katie Lou Samuelson and Stephanie Talbot, neither of them saw a lot of the court and when they did they shot a combined 1-9 from the field. I know the offense was totally different for this game and usually they’re just called on to make catch and shoot threes, but yeesh, that is not good. Between their poor play and the debacle of the Candice Dupree signing, the Storm front office really dunked their own head in the toilet themselves this offseason. Sure, Natasha Howard just played her first game of the year and Alysha Clark hasn’t played at all but just holding onto Sami Whitcomb would’ve solved a lot of problems for this team.
On the bright side, Ezi Magbegor finally looked like the player we all (I mean me and also me) thought she’d be this year. She blew some gimmies but she was often in the right place at the right time, cutting and diving and rolling to the hoop with confidence. She’s going to be very important in the playoffs regardless of the opponent.
Also on the bright side, Mercedes Russell! Three assist away from a triple double! Hell yeah! She’s been my biggest surprise this season, really finding her place in the post on both offense and defense. Also, maybe the best instagram follow on the team? At least she seems like she’s having the most fun and running her own account and that’s really all I ask for from my sports follows.
That’s it for now! Hopefully I’ll have much more enjoyable experience when the Storm face the Liberty Wednesday in a match-up that I, your humble Storm substacker, will be attending IN PERSON! Hope my notes are not ruined by stadium nacho cheese so I have something to report on Thursday! BYYYYYEEEEEEEE!