Sparks-Lynx Preview

By KATE HEDLIN
Posted Jul 26 2010 5:07PM

When Los Angeles played Minnesota last month, the Sparks lost their star player for the season, placing their hopes for a playoff berth in jeopardy.

Los Angeles, however, can move into a tie with the Lynx for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference when the teams meet Tuesday night.

Sparks coach Jennifer Gillom will be making her return to the Target Center. Gillom was named Minnesota's coach three days before the start of the 2009 season with the team looking for its first playoff appearance since 2004. After a promising start, the Lynx struggled when Seimone Augustus went down with a torn ACL and finished 14-20.

Gillom has faced similar adversity with the Sparks (7-16), who lost Candace Parker to a dislocated shoulder in an 88-84 win over Minnesota (7-14) on June 13.

The Sparks improved to 4-9 since losing their star with an 89-80 win over Connecticut on Saturday. They hit a franchise-record 15 3-pointers and had five players score in double figures.

DeLisha Milton-Jones led the team with 20 points and went 4 of 7 from 3-point range.

The win moved Los Angeles within a game of the Lynx for the final postseason spot.

"We'll take any win that we can get right now," said point guard Ticha Penicheiro, who scored 17 points. "We play well in spurts but we never put a 40-minute game together. Today was the same thing. We took a 17-point lead and they came back and got within three points and I said to myself, 'Uh oh, here we go again.' But we were able to stick it out, make shots when we needed to and get stops when we needed them."

Los Angeles improved to 2-10 on the road. It plays its next two away from home, closing out its four-game trip against New York on Friday.

The Sparks appear to be facing the Lynx at the right time. Minnesota has dropped three straight and is coming off a 127-124 double-overtime home loss to Phoenix on Saturday, the highest-scoring game in WNBA history.

Augustus scored a season-high 36 points and Charde Houston added 21, but the Lynx missed six free throws in the final 1:16 of regulation.

Their three straight losses have come by a combined seven points.

"It's tough because we feel like we're almost there, but we can't get over the hump," said forward Rebekkah Brunson, who had 19 points and a franchise-record 17 rebounds Saturday.

The Lynx have dropped a half-game behind San Antonio for third place and 2 1/2 behind second-place Phoenix. They visit the Mercury on Thursday.

Minnesota has lost four in a row to Los Angeles.

Los Angeles uses defense to defeat Minnesota

Posted Jul 27 2010 11:04PM

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) For Los Angeles Sparks coach Jennifer Gillom, Tuesday night's 71-58 victory at Minnesota was very significant.

Not only were the Sparks a game back of the Lynx for the final playoff spot in the WNBA's Western Conference. Not only was Los Angeles looking for its first winning streak of the season. But Gillom was playing against the team she coached just a year ago.

And that's why Gillom had a huge smile on her face afterward.

``You don't even know, a lot of satisfaction,'' said Gillom, who led Minnesota to a 14-20 record last season. ``I'm not going to lie, it's a great feeling to be back here with familiar faces and it's where I got my start. To come back and win is pretty amazing. It was a little emotional for me tonight, but it's a great win.''

Because besides securing a little vindication, Gillom watched her team play the way she would like - limiting turnovers, sharing the ball, rebounding and playing stingy defense.

Three days after using offense to win at Connecticut, Los Angeles (8-16) used its defense to win at Minnesota. The Sparks limited the Lynx (7-15) to 26 percent shooting overall and only 42 points over the final three quarters. In the second quarter, Los Angeles' zone defense contributed to Minnesota going only 2-for-20 from the floor.

Most importantly, Los Angeles held Minnesota star Seimone Augustus to a season-low six points. Minnesota's leading scorer, Augustus missed her first seven field goal attempts and was held without a basket before making a 3-pointer with 8:12 left in the third quarter.

``That's very rewarding, especially limiting Seimone because that's very hard to do,'' said Sparks center Tina Thompson, who led all scorers with 24 points. ``In my opinion, she's the most versatile player in the WNBA. She does a little bit of everything well, she has every shot you could think of on the court. Our guards did a great job on her and our zone helped.''

Thompson and Noelle Quinn (17 points) provided much of the offense for a Los Angeles team that trailed by as many as 12 points in the first quarter. Marie Ferdinand-Harris added 12 points for the Sparks.

It was clear that the Sparks, who now have two victories over the Lynx, knew the playoff implications of this game.

``We're a good team and sometimes when you can't put a string of wins together, your confidence can go down and you can start looking at each other,'' Quinn said. ``It's very satisfying to know that we have our first winning streak of the season.''

Leading 29-26 at halftime, the Sparks steadily stretched their cushion in the second half. Ferdinand-Harris scored 10 of her points in the third quarter and her transition basket with 2:54 to play in the third quarter gave Los Angeles a 46-39 lead. The lead grew to double digits in the fourth and the Sparks led 68-56 when Quinn drove to the basket and scored with 2:36 to play.

Lindsay Whalen and Monica Wright each finished with 12 points to lead Minnesota.

``I don't know where I can even start with any one thing,'' Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve said. ``Probably the most frustrating thing is our inability to get the ball in the hole. In a game with this magnitude, you know (against) a team that is fighting for a playoff spot, we just haven't quite grasped how to win those kind of games.''

For the Sparks, a victory in an important game provides some much-needed confidence and momentum.

``This team is capable of making the playoffs and that is something we have really picked up lately,'' Gillom said.

• Sparks: --
• Lynx: --

• Sparks: --
• Lynx: --

• Lead Changes: 1
• Times Tied: 4

• Arena: Target Center, Minneapolis, MN
• Officials: #17 Scott Twardoski, #13 Cameron Inouye, #43 Brenda Pantoja
• Attendance: 6215
• Duration: 1:42