Seattle Storm See 5 Players Score in Double-Figures in 97-85 Win Over Washington Mystics
By Teren Kowatsch
SEATTLE - Sunday marked a day of returns and debuts for the Seattle Storm, who took down the Washington Mystics 97-85 at Climate Pledge Arena.
All 10 players who recorded game time for the Storm (3-4) scored in the win, with five players - guards Natisha Hiedeman, Flau’jae Johnson and Zia Cooke, forward/center Awa Fam and center Stefanie Dolson - scoring in double-figures.
Hiedeman (24 points) and Johnson (17) matched their respective career-highs in the victory. Hiedeman scored her 24 on a 7-for-12 clip from the floor (4-for-6 from 3-point range, 6-for-6 on free-throw attempts) and added five assists and a rebound.
Johnson scored her 17 on a 4-for-14 mark from the floor (7-for-7 from the charity stripe in addition to having six rebounds, an assist, a steal and a block.
Just like Seattle’s last win, a 77-59 result against the Connecticut Sun on Friday, the home team started out with a deficit in the first quarter before calling a timeout.
Also, just like the win against the Sun, the Storm called a timeout after their early deficit and attempted to make adjustments down 14-7 with several ticks under seven minutes left in the first quarter.
Seattle took the adjustments in stride and outscored Washington 19-10 the rest of the first quarter to go into the second frame up 26-24.
“It’s a long game,” Hiedeman said in a postgame interview. “They’re gonna go on runs, we’re gonna go on runs. But it’s important to try and start off the game. We’ve been starting off slow, but credit to the team, just fight back. It does stink fighting back right from the jump like that, but just staying the course. That’s kind of been my thing, just staying the course. It’s a long game.”
The two sides were tied 28-28 with 8:31 left in the first half before the Storm went on a run to take a lead they never let go of.
Seattle outscored the visitors 21-9 the rest of the first half to go into halftime with a 49-37 lead. Hiedeman, who scored a step-back 3-pointer with one second left in the first quarter, hit a one-footed floater with one second left in the first half.
The Storm kept the Mystics at a double-digit deficit for the entire second half, with the former’s lead being as large as 26 points.
Washington made one final push in the fourth quarter, mainly by getting to the charity stripe. The Mystics drew 19 of their 41 free-throw attempts in the fourth quarter alone.
Even still, Washington was unable to overcome the deficit and wasn’t able to get closer than the 12-point final.
In addition to Hiedeman and Johnson’s career-high nights, the third-overall pick in the WNBA draft, Fam, made her WNBA debut after coming over from Spain over the weekend. She finished with 10 points on 4-for-7 shooting, had two rebounds and a steal.
“I feel good,” Fam said after the game. “It was amazing. It was another dream come true. It was very good. So I feel very, very, really good.”
Guard Katie Lou Samuelson made her season debut after missing all of the 2024 and 2025 seasons due to a pregnancy and a torn ACL, respectively.
Samuelson wasn’t one of the players who scored in double-figures, but showed no fear getting involved despite her two-year absence and finished with three points and two rebounds.
“Lou’s a pro,” Seattle head coach Sonia Raman said in a postgame interview. “She’s a really smart basketball player. She knows where to be. And I think one of the things that she brings to us is her unselfishness. When she’s on the floor, that ball moves, and we’ve seen it in these live sessions that we’ve had in practices. Whatever team she’s on, that ball’s moving.”
Quick notes from Storm PR
10,559 was the announced attendance at Climate Pledge Arena for this WNBA regular-season game between the visiting Washington Mystics and our Seattle Storm.
The Storm recorded a season-high 97 total points.
The last time Seattle scored more than 97 was in August 2025.
Seattle shot 32-for-34 from the free-throw line for 94.1%, setting a season high for free throws made.
Multiple players went 100% from the line, including Stefanie Dolson (8-for-8, a season high), Flau’jae Johnson (7-for-7), Natisha Hiedeman (6-for-6), Zia Cooke (2-for-2), and Awa Fam (2-for-2).
The Storm’s 13 three-pointers mark a season high, and the team finished shooting 46.4% from downtown.
Seattle held Washington to just 13 points in the second quarter, marking the Mystics’ lowest scoring second frame in a game this season.
Natisha Hiedeman tied her career high for points with 24. She shot 7-for-12 from the field, including 4-for-6 from three, and dished out five assists.
Flau’jae Johnson tied her career high with 17 points and recorded a game-high six rebounds. She added one steal and one block.
Stefanie Dolson contributed 16 points (tied season high) on 100% shooting from the field, beyond the arc and the free-throw line. She tallied the highest +/- on the team at +16 and swatted a team-high two shots.
Zia Cooke finished in double figures for the fifth time this season with 10 points on 50% shooting from downtown and added two assists.
Awa Fam made her WNBA debut as she generated 10 points, shooting 4-for-7 from the field, and brought down two rebounds.
The Storm will look to close out their four-game homestand with a third-straight win and will take on the Mystics again at 7 PM PDT on Wednesday at Climate Pledge Arena. The game will be broadcast locally on the CW Seattle and available to stream on Prime for users in Washington state.
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Check out our previous Seattle Storm articles here.
This is our first article written by Teren Kowatsch! Check out his work covering the Seattle Mariners here and the Washington Huskies athletics here, both with Roundtable Sports!
Check out our previous articles with photos by Bryant Garduque here, and his portfolio here.
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