Natasha Howard’s career night powers Lynx to seventh win in a row
Howard shot 12-of-16 from the field as Minnesota held Seattle to 35% shooting in an 88-68 win
Natasha Howard posted a season-high 27 points on 12-of-16 shooting Saturday. The Minnesota Lynx beat the Seattle Storm 88-68 at Target Center, pushing their winning streak to seven games. Six of those wins have come by double digits.
Howard and Miles set the tone early
Olivia Miles finished with 19 points, six assists and six rebounds. Courtney Williams and Kayla McBride each scored 11 points. Howard and Nia Coffey shared the defensive load, with each recording three steals. Together, they helped Minnesota reach a season-high 13 steals as a team.
A third-quarter run closed the door
The Storm held a one-point lead late in the second quarter. Then Coffey hit a three-pointer to give Minnesota a 39-38 advantage it never gave up. Howard followed with two straight layups. Coffey and Maya Caldwell each hit threes. That sequence turned into a 10-0 run that pushed the lead to 55-43 inside three minutes of the third quarter. After that, Seattle never got within single digits again.
Storm had a rough afternoon on both ends
Seattle turned the ball over a season-high 21 times. The Storm also shot just 35% from the field, making 22 of 63 attempts. Natisha Hiedeman and Jade Melbourne led Seattle with 14 points each. Flau’jae Johnson added 10. Dominique Malonga returned from an eight-game absence due to a concussion and played 14 minutes off the bench, finishing with seven points.
What comes next for both teams
The Storm drop to 3-9 and have now lost five straight. They travel to Las Vegas on Monday. The Lynx improve to 9-2 and host Dallas on Tuesday.
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