Nneka Ogwumike hits milestone in return to L.A. as Storm beat Sparks

Nneka Ogwumike returned to Crypto Arena for the first time as a visitor Tuesday afternoon and etched another chapter in her storied career in the place she called home for the first 12 years of her WNBA career.

Not only did she lead the Seattle Storm to a 89-80 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks in their final game before the All-Star and Paris Olympic breaks, she also surpassed Lisa Leslie — one of the two players with a jersey retired by the Sparks — to secure the 12th spot on the WNBA career scoring list.

“This is a very familiar court for me” Ogwumike said. “I feel very comfortable playing here. The energy is just loud, which is really good. It’s great for us to be able to work on that kind of playoff atmosphere where we’re communicating at a high level. It was really just about coming in and finishing out three-fifths of the season.”

With Leslie among the 18,724 fans and enjoying a front-row seat to witness the achievement, Ogwumike tied her career high with six steals and added her seventh double-double of the season with 23 points — 17 in the second half — and 10 rebounds.

“Anything I’ve done, whether it’s in a Sparks jersey, the WNBA or in a Seattle Storm Jersey is because I was raised in the house that Lisa built,” Ogwumike said. “Then of course CP (Candace Parker) was able to sustain that foundation. I really just thanked her for all of the times that she inspired me.

“She’s just someone that’s always inspired me and my sisters. She’s continued to be someone who mentors and continues to help build the game. I’m just really grateful to have someone like that in my life.”

Jewell Loyd contributed 30 points, while Jordan Horston added 14 to help her team win eight of their last 10 games.

“The two things that I kind of hold my head on is just be epic and create forever,” Loyd said. “Those are the last two things that Kobe said to me. Just come into here and just respect the game. I wanna make sure that I’m doing exactly what Kobe told me to do.”

Storm coach Noelle Quinn has been hoping the team will improve their three-point shooting, as hitting from downtown usually signifies victory for the Storm. Shooting 30.4% on seven made threes, the Storm moved to 14-0 when shooting over 25% from beyond the arc.

“Threes become separators in a lot of games,” Quinn said. “If we can get six to 10 makes and stay in that 35% range, I think that we can really have some more balance to our offense.”

The 42 points in the paint, 26 free-throw attempts, 21 assists and 13 turnovers — marking 18 straight games with 15 or fewer turnovers — have helped offset some of the shooting struggles.

Despite committing six turnovers in the first quarter, Horston sparked the offense by hitting two three-pointers and finished the quarter with eight points.

With the Storm up by two at the end of the first quarter, Sparks guard Ray Burrell, standing at 6-foot-2, came off the bench and couldn’t miss, giving the Sparks their first lead of the game at 8:10, in the second quarter with a right-wing three-pointer. She followed with a layup and an emphatic block on guard Victoria Vivians to eventually put them up seven with 7:10.

After sitting out the entire second half of Sunday’s win because of a charge from Atlanta Dream All-Star Allisha Gray, Skylar Diggins-Smith became the catalyst for a 19-8 run in the second quarter following Quinn’s decision to reinsert the starters with seven minutes remaining and rely on them for the rest of the period.

Held scoreless for almost four and a half minutes after Vivians hit a three on the first play of the second quarter, Diggins-Smith and Ogwumike’s defensive play — three steals on three consecutive possessions as the half wound down — helped them secure a four-point lead heading into the break.

Loyd opened the second half by hitting a fading left jumper over guard Kia Nurse after running a ghost screen with Diggins-Smith.

Successfully connecting once, they decided to try it again. This time, after Loyd hit a right-wing three-pointer a possession earlier, Diggins-Smith became the screener, setting an off-ball screen on the baseline. Loyd read the defender, faded to the corner, and nailed another three-pointer.

The Storm surrendered the lead after Azura Stevens, who finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds, scored an and-one to put the Sparks up by one with 7:26 remaining in the fourth quarter and hit a three-pointer on the next possession to make it 73-71.

Holding the Sparks scoreless for a little over three minutes and reinserting all the starters by the time the score was 75-73, the Storm went on a 11-0 run.

Ogwumike and Loyd combined for 20 of the team’s 25 points in the fourth quarter.

“I’m just staying aggressive,” Loyd said. “Nneka kept telling me to get to the line and get down hill. That’s an aspect of my game that, depending on certain match ups, that I’m able to take advantage of. I kept doing that and stayed in my sweet spots.

“Same with Nneka, her ability to run the floor and the two-man game with me and her has helped us a lot. She’s so active so we know if shots go up, she’s going to rebound the ball. We always tell each other, ‘You stay aggressive, stay in that pocket, keep doing what you’re doing and things will fall.’ That’s how we like to play.”

The Storm will resume play on Aug. 16 on the road against the Dream.

Jewell Loyd and the U.S. Women’s National Team face off against Nneka Ogwumike and the WNBA All-Stars during Saturday’s All-Star Game.