Lynx use bench to earn victory over Seattle

Last season she was hesitant. Tricia Liston will admit that. She was new to the WNBA. And, even though her long-range shooting was the reason she was a first-round draft pick, sometimes, with the ball in hand, she didn't pull the trigger.

This has changed.

Determined to shoot this season, Liston started slowly, missing seven of her first eight three-pointers. But Thursday against Seattle it clicked. Liston hit on four of seven three-pointers, scored a game-high 15 points and helped lead the Lynx to a 94-70 blowout of the Storm.

"It was new for me last year," Liston said. "New team, new league, new everything. It was getting my feet wet last year.''

Perhaps now it's about putting the best foot forward. But, Thursday, she wasn't alone. Liston led a Lynx bench that scored 46 points — the most since the 2008 season. Rookie Jennifer O'Neill, a late addition to the team's training camp roster, scored 12 points.

Veteran center Asjha Jones, making her Lynx debut after missing the first two games while being treated for a blood deficiency, scored eight points with five rebounds in 16½ minutes that she said felt like 40.

Devereaux Peters added nine points, including the first three-pointer of her career.

But Thursday that didn't matter.

Liston hit a three-pointer in a 9-0 run to end the first quarter that broke a 9-all tie. In the second quarter Jones had four points, Damiris Dantas six and Liston three as the Lynx lead grew to 10.

But it was the third quarter that broke things open. The Lynx outscored the Storm 30-19, with the bench scoring 18 of those points. Liston had nine, O'Neill seven and Peters two.

That lead kept growing as the second half went on. The Lynx (3-0) are the only undefeated team in the WNBA's Western Conference. The Storm (1-2) shot 38.1 percent, with only one starter, Sue Bird, scoring in double figures with 12.

In the end, the Lynx got at least seven points from nine players and double-figure scoring from five. Seimone Augustus and Rebekkah Brunson had 12 each, Dantas 10.

As a result, heading into a difficult three-game road trip, the Lynx starters didn't have to play as many minutes.

"It's not going to get 46 points every night," coach Cheryl Reeve said of her bench, "but we'll take it when it's there. I feel like our starting group is kind of forcing the game right now, rather than letting it flow.''

The bench, at least one night, did just the opposite.

For Liston, it was a welcome breakthrough after two difficult games. But the key is, she kept shooting.

"As a shooter you know you're going to miss a few," she said, "but you just have to stay mentally strong.''

Reeve loves her confidence, her willingness to learn. You could see that learning curve Thursday. Shortly after having her shot blocked, O'Neill faked and fed Brunson for a layup.

And Jones? She figures to move into the starting lineup when she gets her conditioning back. But, for a night, it was nice to just play.

"I felt I was a part of the team," she said. "Just sitting over there watching all the time gets annoying.''