Flau’jae Johnson and Dominique Malonga delivered Seattle’s strongest scoring lines on Sunday night in Las Vegas, but the Storm could not overcome an early Aces surge in a 98-77 loss.
Johnson scored a season-high 29 points and made five 3-pointers. Malonga added 25 points on 10-for-13 shooting, according to the Associated Press recap carried by WNBA.com.
The early separation
Las Vegas used a 21-2 first-quarter run to take control. Jackie Young scored 12 points during that stretch, which gave the Aces a 27-12 lead with 1:40 remaining in the opening period. Las Vegas led 29-18 after one quarter.
Seattle twice cut the deficit to two in the second quarter, but the Associated Press report said the Storm did not get any closer. The Aces led 52-43 at halftime, extended the margin to 12 by the end of the third quarter and closed with a 22-13 fourth period.
Seattle’s productive duo
Johnson and Malonga combined for 54 of Seattle’s 77 points. Johnson’s five made threes supplied perimeter offense, while Malonga’s 10 made field goals came on 13 attempts.
Those performances supplied a meaningful positive in a difficult result, even as the Aces kept control after Seattle’s second-quarter pushes. A’ja Wilson led Las Vegas with 30 points, Young had 23 points and eight assists, and Chelsea Gray added 15.
One game remained
The loss dropped Seattle to 8-35. AP reported that the result clinched the league’s worst record this season for the Storm and left the club with one regular-season game remaining: a home matchup against Dallas on Wednesday night.
The verified story from Las Vegas is therefore twofold: Seattle’s young scorers produced standout individual numbers, while the Aces’ first-quarter run and sustained lead dictated the 98-77 final.