Storm clinch playoff spot with victory
Published 1:30 am Sunday, September 18, 2016
Associated Press
SEATTLE — Breanna Stewart scored 18 points, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis added 16 and the Seattle Storm clinched the seventh seed in the WNBA playoffs with an 88-75 victory over the Chicago Sky on Sunday night.
Seattle plays at Atlanta on Wednesday in the opening round of the playoffs. Game time is 5 p.m.
Stewart also grabbed 11 rebounds, including her 277th defensive board of the season, to pass Lisa Leslie’s WNBA record of 276 set in 2004.
The Storm led just a 63-61 at the end of the third after Allie Quigley hit Chicago’s first 3-pointer of the game with 1.3 seconds left in the quarter. But Mosqueda-Lewis made back-to-back 3-pointers and Stewart added another 3 as Seattle opened the fourth quarter on a 16-2 run to take a 79-63 lead much to the delight of the 12,186 fans. Chicago scored just six points through the first eight minutes of the fourth.
Sue Bird had 14 points and five assists for Seattle (16-18).
Stewart made two free throws early in the third quart to pass Candace Parker for third place on the WNBA’s rookie scoring list. She has scored 621 points and trails only Seimone Augustus (744) and Cappie Pondexter (624).
Jamierra Faulkner and Jessica Breland each scored 14 points for Chicago (18-16). The Sky played without injured star Elena Delle Donne for a fifth straight game.
