Looking much sharper defensively after a week of practice since their disappointing loss last week, the Seattle Storm used a 10-2 run in the second quarter to take an 18 point lead into halftime.
In what could be considered largely a defensive battle, neither team made a 3-point shot until Storm point guard Sue Bird launched a buzzer-beating three from just over half-court to take a 37-19 lead into halftime. Prior to Bird's shot, the two teams combined to shoot 0-16 from beyond the arc. But what separated the two teams is that the Storm found other ways to score - while the Fever shot 30.77 percent inside the arc, the Storm managed to shoot 50 percent from 2-point range.
Forward Le'coe Willingham led the Storm with a game-high eight points and three rebounds off the bench while forward Lauren Jackson added a team-high five rebounds and five points to help them control the glass.
The Fever, who shot 19 percent overall in the first half, were led by Katie Douglas and Tangela Smith with four points apiece while Tamika Catchings had a game-high eight rebounds to go with two points. The easiest place for the Fever to start getting back into this game might be ball control: they turned the ball over nine times (nearly 30 percent of their possessions).