Sami Whitcomb came off the bench to sink six 3-pointers and score a team-high 18 points as the Seattle Storm opened a three-game road trip with an 83-69 win over the host Phoenix Mercury on Tuesday.

Seattle (2-6) came into the contest on a two-game losing streak, but the Storm jumped ahead of the Mercury early and never trailed.

The lead grew to 11 points in the first quarter, then 17 in the second when Whitcomb sank one of her 3-pointers. She shot 6-for-10 from beyond the arc, and she missed her lone 2-point attempt of the night.

Phoenix (2-6) cut the deficit to single digits a little more than four minutes into the third quarter, but Whitcomb hit from deep on two of the next three Seattle possessions to quash any hope of a Mercury comeback.

Seattle failed to top 66 points in any of its three games preceding Tuesday, but the Storm had 50 by halftime in Phoenix.

Storm star Jewell Loyd, who came into Tuesday leading the WNBA in scoring at 26 points per game, finished with 17 points. She led the Seattle starters, all five of whom scored at least eight points.

Ivana Dojkic scored 14 and shot 3-for-7 from 3-point range. Rookie Jordan Horston finished with 13 points and a career-high 14 rebounds for her first career double-double. Ezi Magbegor added nine points, and Kia Nurse scored eight points.

Phoenix’s Sophie Cunningham led all scorers with 21 points, while Sug Sutton added 15 points and Michaela Onyenwere finished with 10 points. Shey Peddy came off the bench to contribute nine points and seven assists.

Mercury center Brittney Griner scored two points in just nine minutes, coming out in the second quarter with an apparent hip injury. Diana Taurasi went scoreless on 0-of-6 shooting.

–Field Level Media