[ad_1]
The Seattle Storm cruised to a 2-0 lead over the Washington Mystics in the WNBA Finals this season, beating the Mystics by double-digits in the first two games.
Wednesday's Game 3, while not at Key Arena in Seattle, was no different.
The Storm rolled past the Mystics 98-82 on Wednesday night at EagleBank Arena at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, to complete the series and win their third WNBA title.
The Storm rolled to a 16-point lead after the first half behind MVP Breanna Stewart and center leader Natasha Howard. Howard finished the first half with 17 points and eight rebounds, shooting 5-of-6 from the field. Stewart dropped 17 points in the first half, too, going to perfect 4-of-4 from behind the arc.
The Mystics, on the other hand, did not have a single player score in double figures, and only had two points off the bench.
Washington did mount a 6-0 run late in the third quarter, and capitalized on a technical foul on Seattle coach Dan Hughes, to cut the lead to 10 points. Yet, the Storm had the lead back to 15 points, completely shutting down the Mystics down.
Washington had one last push in the fourth quarter, cutting through a huge 3-point bucket from Tierra Ruffin-Pratt.
Yet the Storm answered with a quick 8-0 run behind a Stewart-and-one Sami Whitcomb 3-pointer put the game right back in Seattle's control. From there, it was smooth sailing to the 16-point win.
The win for the Storm marks their first WNBA championship since 2010, and the first WNBA title for Hughes.
Stewart, Howard combines for big offensive night
Things did not slow down for Stewart and Howard after their big first half.
Stewart led the Storm on Wednesday night, finishing the game with 30 points – 11-of-22 shooting from the field – and eight rebounds. Howard was right behind her, dropping a double-double 29 points and 14 rebounds in the win, shooting 11-of-14 from the field. Their combined 59 points alone accounted for more than 61 percent of the Storms' points.
Alysha Clark finished with 15 points and nine rebounds for the Storm, and veteran Sue Bird finished with 10 points and 10 assists.
Mystics star and former MVP league Elena Delle Led Washington with 23 points, shooting 9-of-18 from the field. Point guard Kristi Toliver was right behind her, adding 22 points.
Breanna Stewart unanimously named to All-WNBA First Team, WNBA Finals MVP
Stewart was unanimously selected to the All-WNBA First Team on Wednesday, the league announced at halftime of the game, the only player in the WNBA to be named on 39 bales.
Stewart, who was named the WNBA MVP, ranked second in the WNBA in scoring, averaging 21.8 points per game, and was third in rebounding with 8.4 rebounds per game.
The 24-year-old was also named the WNBA MVP Finals on Wednesday following her 30-point performance. She became the sixth player in the league and won the MVP award in the same year.
Delle Donne was named to the All-WNBA First Team on Wednesday. The pair are joined by Liz Cambage of the Dallas Wings, Diana Taurasi of the Phoenix Mercury and Tiffany Hayes of the Atlanta Dream to round out the team.
<p class = "canvas-atom-canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "This story will be updated with more information shortly."data-reactid =" 47 ">This story will be updated with more information shortly.
<p class = "canvas-atom-canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "More from Yahoo Sports:
• Dez apparently caught using burner account
• Mexico's offensive singing just will not go away
• MLB Power Rankings: Astros Have Eyes on Red Sox
• Boxing legend considering White House run
"data-reactid =" 48 ">More from Yahoo Sports:
• Dez apparently caught using burner account
• Mexico's offensive singing just will not go away
• MLB Power Rankings: Astros Have Eyes on Red Sox
• Boxing legend considering White House run
Source link
