What a wild night at KeyArena as the Storm got a critical victory and snapped a three-game losing streak in a record-setting performance against the Phoenix Mercury. Let's list off the Storm records set or tied tonight:
Most points allowed in a quarter (35, fourth; previously 32 many times)
It doesn't exactly fit, but Anne Donovan also recorded her 135th career win as a WNBA head coach, breaking a tie with Richie Adubato for second on the WNBA's all-time list.
If this is indeed a playoff preview - and the Mercury is now tied with San Antonio atop the Western Conference - then my, what a series this would be. The Storm has gotten big contributions in all three games against Phoenix (two of them wins) from Lauren Jackson and Betty Lennox. They and Iziane Castro Marques scored 20-plus points tonight, while Sue Bird had 18 and Katie Gearlds 13 in her best game to date at KeyArena.
The Storm closes out its road schedule next week, playing at Minnesota on Tuesday and at Detroit on Thursday before returning to the Key a week from tonight to face the Washington Mystics. I hope you'll join us for Back to School Night. 
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Storm Still Hanging On
Fourth Quarter: Storm 101, Phoenix 92
Still a little more dicey than the Storm might prefer. With 1:04 left, the Mercury trails by nine with Cappie Pondexter headed to the free-throw line. Lauren Jackson fouled out a moment ago with 23 points and 12 rebounds on 6-of-9 shooting. Ho hum; another night at the office.
Time on Storm's Side
Fourth Quarter: Storm 98, Phoenix 87
After falling way behind in the first quarter, the Phoenix Mercury has refused to go away the rest of the night. The clock may take care of that, however. The Storm leads by 11 with 2:50 left with possession, but it looks like that will be too little, too late.
Breast Health Awareness Night
Fourth Quarter: Storm 92, Phoenix 78
One of the best annual nights here at KeyArena is Breast Health Awareness Night, when the Storm and the WNBA salute survivors and educate fans about the importance of early detection and fighting breast cancer. There is tons of pink throughout the arena. The Storm Dance Troupe and Storm employees are wearing pink BHA T-shirts and plenty of fans have dressed up. All of the coaching staff has some pink on, including a pink blazer sported by Anne Donovan. Of course, when it comes to dressing up for theme nights, nobody beats Clarence, who has on pink from head to toe.
Before the game, the Storm had a couple of BHA presentations, including honoring a special survivor - team chaplain Nancy Cahill. During this timeout, survivors throughout the arena were asked to stand as the rest of KeyArena applauded in unison.
Storm Holding Off Mercury
End Third Quarter: Storm 81, Phoenix 66
The third quarter wasn't always pretty, but the Storm surrendered just three points to the Mercury in the period, maintaining a 15-point lead as we head to the final period.
Got plans for tomorrow? If not, why not head down to the Woodland Park Zoo? Tomorrow will be Storm day at the Zoo. Sue Bird, Iziane Castro Marques, Ashley Robinson, Shyra Ely and Katie Gearlds will all be there, as will Doppler. After a meet and greet in the zoo’s South Entrance Plaza, Storm players will be doing Upapi (bead making) in the African Village and giving out free carousel rides (for the first 150 riders). It should be a lot of fun.
Storm Weathers Run
Third Quarter: Storm 69, Phoenix 55
Some nervousness crept into KeyArena when the Mercury got within 12 on a Diana Taurasi three-pointer with 7:47 left in the third quarter. I liked that Anne Donovan did not respond with a timeout, instead letting her players play through the Mercury run. Lauren Jackson got to the free-throw line a couple of times and Betty Lennox took us to timeout with a gorgeous drive to the basket for the hoop and the harm.
Phoenix has had success with a box-and-one defense putting one defender - usually Diana Taurasi - on Lauren Jackson and taking its chances with the other four players zoning the four Storm players.
Highest-Scoring Half in Franchise History
Halftime: Storm 61, Phoenix 43
The records keep piling up tonight at KeyArena. A Sue Bird three-pointer gave the Storm a franchise-record 59 points in the half and the team got up over the 60-point mark before settling for a total of 61.The Storm shot 61.5% and hit nine three-pointers with just four turnovers. Four players scored double-figures, led by Iziane Castro Marques' 15, and Sue Bird (nine) nearly made it five in that group.
Phoenix got going with 26 points in the second quarter, but only picked up five points on the Storm. That's pretty crazy. Still, the Mercury has more than enough firepower to keep you nervous.
If you're looking for more records that could fall, may I suggest three-pointers? The Storm record is 13 in the only game I can think of that compares to tonight in terms of hot shooting - July 11, 2002 against Los Angeles when the Storm defeated the Sparks 79-60, getting a team-high eight rebounds from one Adia Barnes.
Gearlds Contributes Off Bench
Second Quarter: Storm 54, Phoenix 34
With the Storm a little stagnant early in the second quarter, Katie Gearlds proved the spark the team needed. Gearlds has 10 points tonight on 4-for-4 shooting in her most impressive all-around performance of the season. Gearlds hit her first three attempt and that got her going. She dribbled into a pullup from the top of the key, hit another triple and finished her scoring with another pullup in the lane. Gearlds also had a gorgeous touch pass that Ashley Robinson wasn't able to finish.
The Storm's 40 first-quarter points tied the WNBA record, set against the Mercury last month (July 8) by Detroit.
Mercury Awakened
Second Quarter: Storm 40, Phoenix 25
Phoenix has opened up this second quarter with an 8-0 run to get back within ... 15. Still, there's nobody who makes a 15-point lead serve more nerve-wracking than the Mercury because of Phoenix's ability to put points on the board in bunches.
Sizzling
End First Quarter: Storm 40, Phoenix 17
I can't say I've ever seen a quarter quite like that first period. The Storm set a franchise record - no, blew by the franchise record - by piling up 40 points. Never before had the team scored more than 32 in a quarter. Granted, this is only the second season of quarters in the WNBA, but that's still pretty incredible. The Storm shot 16-of-21 from the field (76.2%) and hit 6-of-8 three-pointers with just two turnovers in the period. Iziane Castro Marques (15) nearly matched the entire Phoenix team's production, while Betty Lennox added 11 and Lauren Jackson eight.
The defense ought not get overshadowed by the offense. The high-scoring Mercury shot just 7-of-18 from the field.
Quick Start
First Quarter: Storm 12, Phoenix 4
The Storm is clicking on all cylinders in the first three-plus minutes of this game, hitting 5-of-7 shots so far to take a 12-4 lead. Iziane Castro Marques has five early points, while Lauren Jackson has looked plenty healthy. It's worth watching that on multiple occasions this season - including the last matchup in Phoenix - we've seen the Storm get off to a quick start only to fade against increased defensive intensity after a timeout. I hate to be a pessimist, but let's keep an eye on whether the Storm can keep it up.
Jackson to Play
Pregame
The big question before tonight's game was the status of Storm All-Star forward Lauren Jackson, who left last night's game in Sacramento early after straining her groin. Jackson is on the court for pregame warmups and is expected to give it a go.
"We'll see when she gets out there how exactly she feels," said Donovan. "You can do a lot of testing but the real test is going to be up and down, quick stops and starts. She says she feels better than she felt last night, so we'll give it a go."
Given Jackson has scored 64 points in two games against Phoenix this season, her presence in the lineup is a very welcome sight for the Storm.
Signing On
Pregame
Welcome to KeyArena, where the Seattle Storm is completing a series of games against fellow Western Conference Playoff contenders by hosting the Phoenix Mercury. The Storm has been in the first three games of this stretch - one against San Antonio and then a home-and-home series with Sacramento - but has been unable to pull out any of the three close games. The Storm will try to snap that stretch tonight against the current leaders in the Western Conference.
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