If the Seattle Storm need a game to help them forget their worst loss of the season, they might have found a suitable opponent in the hapless San Antonio Stars, their foe on Tuesday at the AT&T Center in San Antonio.
Seattle (4-2) heads to the Alamo City on the heels of a 100-77 home loss Saturday to Minnesota, the WNBA's top team in the early stages of the season.
The Storm led only once in the game -- after the opening basket -- and trailed by 25 points at halftime after surrendering 64 points to the undefeated Lynx in the first half.
"Minnesota pretty much set the tone for the game right from the start," said Seattle guard Sue Bird, who finished with a season-high nine assists and eight points. "I don't know if we ever had a chance, to be honest."
The Storm, who entered that game with the second-best record in the Western Conference, shot 46 percent from the floor and featured balanced scoring. Crystal Langhorne and Alysha Clark each had 16 points and Breanna Stewart added 14.
"They came out really determined to show they're No. 1 for a reason, and we came out flat," Storm coach Jenny Boucek said. "It's kind of like getting punched in the face and getting the wind knocked out of you. We definitely got the wind knocked out of us."
The Stars (0-7) have lost 11 consecutive home games dating to July 2016, including an 85-77 defeat at the hands of the Connecticut Sun on Saturday. Kayla McBride was one of San Antonio's bright spots, scoring a game-high 27 points. It was also her most prolific scoring output of the young season.
The 0-7 start for San Antonio is the worst in franchise history.
The loss marked the first start of the season for the league's No. 1 overall pick, guard Kelsey Plum, who set the NCAA Division I career record for most points in her four years at the University of Washington.
Plum, who missed San Antonio's first three games with an ankle injury and played as a reserve in the next three games, scored eight points.
"It's a learning experience and I have to take it and just get better in the next game," Plum said. "You got to wreak havoc on the opposition, put more pressure on those guards and then just be more aggressive."
Plum will get her first chance to play against the team with which she shared a fan base in Seattle.
The Stars are 4-4 against the Storm in the previous two seasons, with their last win a 77-70 decision at the AT&T Center on June 14, 2016.
