2h ago
BRADENTON, Fla – The Seattle Storm lead two to one with a quarter on the left, Breanna Stewart took over
The Big Game Player scored the first 11 points of the fourth quarter and finished with 37 to help the Storm beat the Las Vegas Aces 93-80 on Friday night in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals
“I’m excited for the big moment and the big stage I expect to be here,” said Stewart “I’ve come here, whether it’s his college, the WNBA or the United States, continuing to grasp this moment and enjoy it That’s why I play basketball That’s why I play to have big games to help my team in the big moments «
Jewell Loyd added 28 points and Sue Bird recorded 16 WNBA playoff assists Bird had 10 first half assists to also break that playoff record Sunday
Stewart added 15 rebounds and four blocks She was one point off the WNBA Finals record set by Angel McCoughtry
With Seattle holding a two-point lead heading into the fourth quarter after a massive rally in Las Vegas, Stewart took over
She scored the first 11 points of the period to restore a double-digit advantage and finished with 15 quarterback points The 2018 MVP, who missed last season with a torn Achilles tendon, hit three points at 3 points in the game-changing burst
« She’s got that look in her eyes that she’s going to take over, » Seattle coach Gary Kloppenburg said « Hit some 3, I got in the line it was fabulous across the board
« We kind of lost our focus in the third quarter went into a half court game picked up their defense we didn’t respond in the third quarter and we let them come back proud of how we did refocused and regrouped and solid during that fourth quarter and got a run to stretch it for the win
McCoughtry scored 20 points to lead Las Vegas, which was in the WNBA Finals for the first time since the franchise moved to Nevada city three years ago The team was in the final in 2008 when located in San Antonio League MVP A’ja Wilson added 19 points
The Aces also lost Game 1 of their semi-final series to Connecticut before winning in five games
« We just have to buckle up and lock in from the start, » Wilson said « There’s no guarantee this series will be exactly the same Now we see the looks we get and have to take them down. »
Seattle is looking to become the third team to win four titles, joining Houston and Minnesota The Storm were champions in 2004, 2010 and 2018
The Storm trailed 34-31 with 6:26 left in the second quarter before launching 26-6 to end the half-time Stewart and Loyd combined for 17 points during that push as Seattle scored the 14 first points of the burst
Seattle increased the lead to 19 to start the third quarter, but the Aces rallied with a huge run of their own to tie at 67 just before the end of the quarter.
“We came out flat, we worked so hard to get back into the game that it took a lot of us,” said Aces coach Bill Laimbeer
HAND HELP: Bird broke 14 assists record she held with Chicago’s Courtney Vandersloot Eight players had reached 11 assists in a playoff game before Bird’s record-breaking performance She also set her own career record for regular season and playoff assists
“I think Stewie and Jewell were pretty much on fire,” said Bird “The way our team plays and the offense was built goes back to when Jenny Boucek was our coach We’re moving him around in a way that creates an opportunity as a point guard trying to find the open player Assists are a two-way thing and these two have played amazingly «
TOP SELLER: Bird had the best-selling WNBA jersey this season, the league announced earlier on Friday This is the first time in his career that the Storm Guard has led the list
« That’s pretty cool I’m not gonna lie I realized we have new WNBA fans » said Bird « I’ve been here so long, you got this jersey 10 years ago -11-12 years old Maybe it is a sign that new people are interested in the league and they are facing these jerseys and it is pretty cool «
Wilson was sixth on the list and Stewart seventh The Storm was the overall leader in popularity of merchandise The Aces were fourth on the list
MISSING: Both teams will be unreservedly key in the final Dearica Hamby, WNBA’s sixth Woman of the Year, suffered a knee injury in the semifinals against Connecticut and is not expected to play in the Le Seattle sniper Sami Whitcomb left the bubble to be with his wife as she gives birth to the couple’s first child
Seattle Storm, Las Vegas Aces, 2018 WNBA Finals, Sue Bird, Breanna Stewart
World News – CA – Breanna Stewart and Jewell Loyd lead Storm past the Aces in Game 1 of the WNBA Final – TSNCalifornia
SOURCE: https://www.w24news.com
