SEATTLE — Jewell Loyd converted a three-point play with 13.1 seconds left and the Seattle Storm rallied past the Atlanta Dream 68-67 on Thursday night.
Loyd finished with 19 points on 5-of-20 shooting for Seattle (8-21). Ezi Magbegor had 17 points and 12 rebounds and Sami Whitcomb had 11 points, six rebounds and five assists.
Seattle, which trailed by as many as 16 points, opened the fourth quarter with a 13-2 run to get within 62-60.
Following Loyd’s go-ahead basket, Atlanta turned it over and Whitcomb made two free throws with 5.1 seconds left to give Seattle a 68-64 lead. Rhyne Howard capped the scoring with a 3-pointer.
With losses by Atlanta and Minnesota, New York clinched a playoff spot for the third consecutive season. The Liberty became the second team to secure a playoff spot — with 12 games remaining in the regular season.
Howard scored 20 points and Allisha Gray added 17 points for Atlanta (15-14). Aari McDonald had 10 points off the bench.
Seattle announced Wednesday that forward Gabby Williams would be sidelined for at least a month with a stress fracture in her left foot.
STORM 68, DREAM 67
ATLANTA (67) — Coffey 1-8 0-0 3, Howard 6-20 4-5 20, Parker 3-7 0-0 6, Gray 5-13 7-9 17, Robinson 1-6 1-1 3, Billings 1-6 1-2 3, Hillmon 0-1 0-0 0, Jones 1-3 0-0 2, Rupert 0-1 0-0 0, Durr 1-3 0-0 3, McDonald 4-5 0-2 10. Totals 23-73 13-19 67.
SEATTLE (68) — Horston 1-7 2-3 4, Magbegor 6-13 3-4 17, Fankam Mendjiadeu 2-5 1-2 5, Loyd 5-20 8-8 19, Whitcomb 2-7 6-8 11, Russell 4-8 1-4 9, Melbourne 1-2 1-2 3, Nurse 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 21-63 22-31 68.
Atlanta 17 17 26 7—67
Seattle 13 14 20 21—68
3-Point Goals—Atlanta 8-21 (Howard 4-10, McDonald 2-2, Durr 1-1, Coffey 1-4, Parker 0-1, Rupert 0-1, Gray 0-2), Seattle 4-14 (Magbegor 2-3, Loyd 1-4, Whitcomb 1-5, Horston 0-1, Melbourne 0-1). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Atlanta 45 (Billings 11), Seattle 45 (Magbegor 11). Assists—Atlanta 12 (Gray, McDonald 3), Seattle 14 (Whitcomb 5). Total Fouls—Atlanta 23, Seattle 20. A—7,649 (15,354)
