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San Antonio, TX -- In an effort to get their first consecutive win of the season, the San Antonio Stars fought tirelessly in Friday's game against the Seattle Storm, but Breanna Stewart and company's second half clinic, proved to be too much to handle, and the Storm took home a 78-68 victory.
Seattle shocked San Antonio with a 6-0 run to start the game in the first and led 16-7 with 3:39 left in the quarter after an Alysha Clark layup. But the Stars regained their footing and answered, by closing out the quarter on a 10-4 run to only be down 20-17 heading into the second.
A pair of Sydney Colson free throws tied the game at 24 points apiece at 8:39 in the quarter, but things then began to get interesting, and a battle ensued. After a Colson shot put San Antonio up 28-24, Seattle answered with seven-straight points for a 33-28 lead.
Another 7-0 run, this time by San Antonio, helped tie the game again at 35, but back-and-forth shots and lead changes, kept the game close throughout the rest of the quarter until yet another run by Seattle gave the Storm a 47-38 lead heading into the half.
At the half, Seattle shot 53.1 percent on 17-for-32 shooting, while San Antonio shot 57.1 percent. However, Seattle held the edge at the free throw line, making nine trips (8-9) to San Antonio's two (2-2).
A Stewart pull-up jumper gave the Storm their first double-digit lead at the start of third after the forward scored 13 points in the first half. Both teams then began to struggle to score, until a Monique Currie three-pointer ended the scoring drought with 6:22 left in the quarter.
The Storm held a 51-43 lead with 4:48 at the first official timeout of the quarter, but San Antonio cut the lead to four after a jumper by Haley Peters brought the score to 58-54 at the end of the third, as the Stars outscored Seattle 16-11 in the quarter.
The Stars felt the pressure to hold their own on their home court at the start of the fourth, but five quick points by Seattle began to put the game back out of reach, forcing a San Antonio timeout with only two minutes into the quarter.
Peters came out the break with a three-pointer, but Alysha Clark answered with a three-ball of her own, keeping Seattle out in front 66-57. A cutting finger roll layup by Stewart put the nail in the coffin early, and gave the Storm back their 11-point lead with 5:35 left to play.
San Antonio moved back within nine, but never got over the hump, failing yet again, to win back-to-back games this season.
Stewart finished the game with 21 points, seven rebounds, and four assists, followed by Jewell Lloyd and Crystal Langhorne with 15 and 12, respectively. Moriah Jefferson led the Stars with 16, as Peters pitched in 15.