The Seattle Storm finally got back into the win column.
The Storm snapped a six-game losing streak by holding off the Atlanta Dream 80-78 in front of an announced crowd of 15,892 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, B.C., as Seattle won the first regular-season WNBA game played outside the U.S.
Though it was a short drive from Seattle and the crowd leaned that way, Friday’s tilt was a Dream home game. Those who made the trip decked out in green and yellow left relieved as Seattle delayed disaster in the third quarter, melted down during the fourth yet gritted out a needed victory.
The Storm led 67-55 after the third quarter ended, but watched it evaporate over four minutes. Atlanta’s 12-0 run to start the fourth erased the deficit and the Dream pulled ahead.
The Storm tied the game at 76 with two minutes to go. Three critical blocks from Ezi Magbegor held them in it. The score was settled when Magbegor stepped up to the free-throw line and Seattle held on for eight tense seconds.
“These are moments that maybe, in previous years, wouldn’t have come to fruition,” coach Noelle Quinn said. “Big blocks by Ezi, big defensive stops by the group. Just willed ourselves to this victory.”
Skylar Diggins shook off her recent struggles and kept the Storm afloat at the other end of the court with 21 points and 11 assists. For a long second-half stretch, Diggins was the only one scoring for the Storm.
“If it was adjustments that needed to be made … we addressed them right away,” Diggins said. “And I think because we have been (in several recent) close games, at the end, we didn’t panic. We didn’t waver.”
While the Dream won six straight, rising to second place in the league standings, the Storm were free-falling. Seattle was in sixth place 10 days ago, but Friday’s L.A. Sparks win over the Dallas Wings dropped the Storm to ninth place, just outside the playoffs if the season ended there. The Sparks had the first tiebreaker with a better head-to-head record.
“We were playing some decent basketball,” Quinn said. “Just weren’t successful in that way.”
Coming off Wednesday’s home loss to Atlanta and desperate to change course, the Storm led by 10 in the first half while the Dream never led by more than one.
The Storm went ahead 40-34 at the half, in no small part due to Dream turnovers, which led to seven Storm points. Seattle countered with just one.
Seattle’s Gabby Williams was off to a hot start when she left the game after falling on her wrist. She returned for the second half and finished with 11 points in 25 minutes.
That six-point Storm lead was down to one just about a minute and a half into the third quarter. Instead of spiraling, as they had during other gut-check moments during the losing streak, the Storm responded. A Diggins steal sent Williams the other direction. Diggins sank a three-pointer, then recent trade acquisition Brittany Sykes pushed the lead to nine.
Dominique Malonga scattered six points throughout an 18-2 Storm run that pushed the team far out in front. The 2025 first-rounder was 6 of 8 from the field before a fourth personal foul sent her to the bench. She totaled 12 points and eight rebounds.
This was the third WNBA Canada game, but the previous two were preseason games.
That number is about to shoot up as Canada gets an expansion team of its own next season. The Toronto Tempo, the first team based outside the U.S., is set to enter the WNBA as a member of the Eastern Conference in 2026. Retired tennis superstar Serena Williams joined the new team’s ownership group in May.
Friday’s teaser drew praise from Storm players.
“It was electric out there,” Diggins said. “The atmosphere was amazing. It felt like a playoff game, almost.”
