Fever Bully Storm into Submission 95-75
Indiana swept Seattle 3-0 this season.
(Indianapolis, Indiana) - It wasn’t a matchup, it was a mismatch. The Indiana Fever (20-18) dominated the Seattle Storm (20-19) from pillar to (low) post. They led by 32 points in the 4th quarter, and carried a double-digit lead throughout the game, before ultimately securing the win 95-75.
Seattle looked a step slow, and they were physically outmuscled. They were outrebounded 42-21. Indiana pulled down 12 offensive rebounds and outscored the Storm 22-4 in second-chance points. Nneka Ogwumike and Ezi Magbegor combined for four rebounds total. Three players on the Fever had nine rebounds each.
Ogwuike led the Storm in scoring with 17 points on 7-11 FG. Brittney Sykes was the only other player to score in double figures with 12 points on 50% shooting. Skylar Diggins, Gabby Williams, and Erica Wheeler combined for 14 points total on 4-18 FG (22%). Diggins had a game-high eight assists and four blocks.
Their bench outscored the Fever’s reserves 30-14. Dominique Malonga led the way with eight points and a team-high six rebounds. Seattle’s starters were outscored 81 to 45.
Indiana Fever
Aliyah Boston was more than a handful as she scored a game-high 27 points on 10-18 FG. She had a near double-double with nine rebounds. Seattle had no answer defensively for her.
They also couldn’t stop either of Indiana’s starting guards. Kelsey Mitchell (21) and Odyssey Sims (22) combined for 43 points. Sims dished out a team-high six assists. They both shot above 50% and combined for 5-8 FG from beyond the arc.
Indiana outshot Seattle 51% (36-71 FG) to 48% (29-61 FG). They outrebounded Seattle by 21, and that allowed them to take 10 more field goal attempts. The Fever dominated inside the paint, outscoring the Storm 52-38. They had all the answers for Seattle and outplayed them in every area.
Game Breakdown
Odyssey Sims stole the jump ball tip and finished a layup. Nneka Ogwumike knocked down a three-pointer. Aliyah Boston was fouled and split the two free throws. Kelsey Mitchell scored on a backdoor cut past Skylar Diggins. Boston was fouled again and made both free throws to put the Fever ahead 7-3. Ogwumike scored on a turnaround jumper. Indiana knocked down back-to-back three-pointers, the first by Kelsey Mitchell and the second by Odyssey Sims. Ezi Magbegor scored on a putback layup. Sims got past Seattle’s defense again for a floater near the rim that put Indiana ahead 15-7, forcing Coach Quinn to call a timeout.
Immediately out of the timeout, the Storm turned the ball over, and Kelsey Mitchell scored an open layup. Brittney Sykes was fouled on a three-point attempt and made all three free throws. Aerial Powers scored off an offensive rebound. Mitchell hit another three. Ogwumike hit a corner three.
Shey Peddy scored an easy layup. Malonga scored inside the paint. After two free throws from Mitchell, Erica Wheeler connected on a three-pointer to cut into Indiana’s lead. The Fever led 26-20 at the end of the first period.
Skylar was fouled to begin the 2nd period. Sims drilled a corner three. Boston hit a midrange jumper. Damiris Dantas grabbed another offensive rebound and made the short shot. Magbegor dribbled past the defense for the easy layup. Ezi then had a big block against Sims that forced a 24-second shot clock violation.
Brittney Sykes scored down low. Dantas and Ogwumike swapped similar baskets. Indiana continued to control the game. Mitchell scored, Natasha Howard scored, and Lexie Hull hit a triple off another offensive rebound. The Fever extended their lead to 13 points at 42-29.
The rest of the first half continued in a similar fashion. Dominique Malonga had a nice score in the paint. Boston countered with a wide-open three-pointer. Gabby Williams got to the rim, but Boston scored off the pick-and-pop. Ogwumike made a tough shot, fading to her left in the paint. Mitchell got another easy basket under the rim. Boston was fouled at the end and split the two free throws. Indiana led 50-39 over Seattle.
Indiana continued to outmuscle the Storm. Aliyah Boston took over the third quarter. She physically bullied Seattle around; she shoved elbows into their stomachs, shoulders into their chests, and tried to rip Nneka’s arm out of her socket. While Boston physically beat them up, she also dominated in actual basketball. She scored 10 points on 4-6 FG in the period.
The Fever outscored Seattle 24-17 in the third quarter to expand their lead to 18. That lead would balloon to 32 points in the 4th quarter, before both teams emptied their bench. Odyssey Sims led Indiana with seven points over the game’s final minutes. Boston added another six more. Zia Cooke led Seattle with five points in the fourth quarter.
After the home team went ahead 91-59, the Storm outscored the Fever 16-4. Tiffany Mitchell hit a three-pointer. Mackenzie Holmes scored twice, hustling to the rim. Cooke hit a triple and another tough shot. It was good for the bench to get some minutes.
Indiana cruised to a 95-75 victory, where Seattle never threatened.
Final Box Score
Up Next
The Seattle Storm (20-19) conclude their five-game road trip on Thursday, August 28th at 5:00 PM, against the Minnesota Lynx (30-7). Napheesa Collier returned to action last Sunday after missing seven straight games with an ankle injury that she suffered during Minnesota’s 53-point blowout win over the Las Vegas Aces. The Lynx have won two out of the three games against Seattle this season. They won 82-77 in Minnesota and 91-87 in Seattle. The Storm were the first team to defeat the Lynx this season back on June 11th by a final score of 94-84.
Part 2
Part 2 will include additional thoughts and discussion from Tuesday’s game against the Indiana Fever. It’ll be sent exclusively to paid subscribers. It should be good!
Notes:
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Photo Credits: Seattle Storm/WNBA Photography