Sky still in gear for No. 1 seed in WNBA playoffs after loss to Seattle Storm
CHICAGO (AP) — Breanna Stewart had 25 points and nine rebounds, Gabby Williams added 21 points and seven assists, and the Seattle Storm set a WNBA record with 37 assists in a 111-100 victory over the Chicago Sky on Tuesday night.
Seattle also set a franchise record for scoring in any half with 66 first-half points, but the Storm only led by 11 points after Chicago closed on a 13-4 run. The 121 combined first-half points were the most in a first half this season in the WNBA.
Despite the loss, Chicago (25-9) is still in the driver's seat to earn the No. 1 seed in the playoffs, sitting 1 1/2 games ahead of second-place Las Vegas, which played later Tuesday night. Seattle (21-13) moved a game in front of Washington for the No. 4 seed, and the Storm hold the tiebreaker with the Mystics for homecourt in the first round.
Seattle led by as many as 22 points in the second half and hit the century mark with 4:50 left in the fourth.
Jewell Loyd added 18 points for Seattle. Tina Charles had 14 points, Ezi Magbegor added 13 points, and Sue Bird had 10 points and eight assists.
Seattle made nine of its first 11 field goals and shot 76.2% in the first quarter to build a 38-26 lead. The Storm reached the 50-point mark with 5:56 left before halftime on Stephanie Talbot's 3-pointer for a 17-point lead. Seattle finished the half 28-for-42 shooting (66.7%) with 24 assists.
Courtney Vandersloot led Chicago with 28 points, going 10 of 15 from the field and 7 of 10 at the stripe, and she added seven assists. Kahleah Copper scored 17 points, Candace Parker had 14 points and Azura Stevens added 12.
Seattle was without head coach Noelle Quinn after she tested positive for COVID-19 and was in the league's health and safety protocols.