Sometimes a great win isn’t defined by a great performance, but the ability to win a game that very easily could (should?) have gone the other way.
Not that you shouldn’t expect the Seattle Storm to win at this point in the season, but to beat one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference after shooting 25% and being beaten on the offensive boards 9-2 is impressive even for a team that is putting together one of the most impressive seasons in league history.
Most impressive for a Storm team that has had a notoriously weak bench in recent years: they won a game with a fourth quarter comeback while resting the starters, as Agler suggested he might do after Saturday’s 46 point win over the Tulsa Shock. After a slow start, Agler took a page from Shock coach Nolan Richardson’s book and made a very uncharacteristic five player line change with five minutes left in the first quarter adn the team down 14-4. The reserves cut that deficit in half by the end of the first quarter.
While it remains to be seen if this performance leads to more faith in the bench in the future, if nothing else it’s encouraging for fans who were concerned about the team’s bench play heading into the playoffs.
Speaking of the playoffs, from Storm PR:
With tonight’s 80-70 victory over the Atlanta Dream the Seattle Storm (25-4) secured home-court advantage throughout the 2010 WNBA Playoffs. MVP candidate Lauren Jackson and guard Tanisha Wright led the Storm with 14 points a piece. The Storm’s impressive 25-4 record is a franchise best and the best record in the WNBA this season.
For a running account of the game from a writer at SBN’s Swish Appeal, click here.
For the AP recap, see WNBA.com.