Storm keep things close against Liberty but lose Jewell Loyd to injury

After having one of the worst offensive showings of the season in Thursday’s loss to the Connecticut Sun, the Seattle Storm kept pace with the one of the top teams in the WNBA during a 80-76 loss to the New York Liberty on Saturday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

The Storm will be more concerned with the WNBA’s leading scorer, Jewell Loyd, walking gingerly off the court with a left ankle sprain in the third quarter. Loyd did not return. She scored 14 points on 3 of 17 shooting.

Jumping out to a fast start offensively is an area where the Storm have struggled throughout the course of the season, but in Saturday’s game, the offense was a strong suit.

An 8-0 run saw the Storm take the lead after a high arcing shot off the top of the backboard by Loyd tied the game at 22-22. They took the lead on the next possession after she sank a pair of free throws.

Converting on second-chance points and keeping turnovers to a minimum, the Storm held a 36-35 lead going into halftime.

Rookie forward Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu made her first start for the Storm and she delivered with a double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds.

The Liberty took the lead back in the third quarter with a 10-4 run. They stretched it to their first double-digit lead of the game late in the fourth as the Liberty scored on five consecutive possessions to lead 78-68.

The Storm stayed close as Sami Whitcomb scored 12 of her team-high 19 in the final quarter.

Former Storm star Breanna Stewart led the Liberty with 25 points, and Gonzaga great Courtney Vandersloot had nine points and seven assists.