The Seattle Storm shot to the top of the Western Conference standings in the 2025 WNBA Commissioner’s Cup race on Wednesday, taking the lead after handing the Minnesota Lynx their first loss of the season.

Forward Nneka Ogwumike led the Storm with a 21-point, 10-rebound double-double, with new Seattle signing Erica Wheeler adding 20 points and nine assists to help blank the 25-point, nine-rebound performance put up by Minnesota star Napheesa Collier.

“If you want to win on the road, especially a place like Seattle and a team like Seattle, you’ve got to play a hell of a lot better,” said Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve following the 94-84 loss.

Currently sitting level with the Lynx with a 3-1 Cup record, Wednesday’s victory gives Seattle the head-to-head advantage in the in-season competition.

With a $500,000 prize pool on the line — including $5,000 for each player in the July 1st title game — the annual 36-game contest raises the early-season stakes.

Even more, each game in the 2025 WNBA Commissioner’s Cup carries double the impact, counting toward both regular-season and Cup records.

Due to Minnesota’s loss, the reigning champion New York Liberty now stand alone as the WNBA’s only undefeated team in both regular-season and Commissioner’s Cup play, holding a 3-0 Cup record alongside a steep +75 point differential.

Bueckers scores career-high in return to Dallas

Scoring a massive individual win on Wednesday was Dallas rookie Paige Bueckers, who put up a career-high 35 points in her return to action.

However, the 2025 No. 1 draft pick’s stellar night failed to lift the Wings over the Phoenix Mercury, whose 93-80 victory gave last-place Dallas a 1-10 regular-season record while falling to 0-4 in Cup play.

Bueckers will next go toe-to-toe with Aces guard Jackie Young on Friday, as the 2019 top draft pick comes off her own 34-point performance in Wednesday’s 97-89 Las Vegas loss to the LA Sparks.

The LA win marked the second straight Las Vegas stumble, sending the Aces skidding to a 4-4 regular-season tally and a 1-2 Cup record.

With plenty of runway remaining, teams will look to climb the ranks before 2025 WNBA Commissioner’s Cup play winds down on June 17th.

How to watch WNBA Commissioner’s Cup games this week

With two games on tap, WNBA play returns to action on Friday, beginning with the third-place Atlanta Dream hosting a Chicago Sky team still hunting their first Commissioner’s Cup win at 7:30 PM ET.

Then at 10 PM ET, Bueckers and the Dallas Wings will tip off against Young and the Aces in Las Vegas.

Both Friday WNBA games will air live on ION.