STORM: Insider Preview - Storm at Los Angeles (Game 2)

Insider Preview - Storm at Los Angeles (Game 2)

HEAD-TO-HEAD

84.0	PF	72.0
112.0	Off. Rat.	96.0
25.0	RPG	36.0
.384	Reb %	.616

Storm (1-0 Lead) at Los Angeles
Game 2
Sunday, August 20, 2:00 p.m.
Staples Center
TV: ESPN 2
Radio: KJR AM 950

Kevin Pelton, storm.wnba.com

After Game 1 of the Seattle Storm-Los Angeles Sparks Western Conference Semifinals, much of the analysis focused on Sparks Coach

Joe "Jellybean" Bryant's surprising decision to go away from the starting lineup that had been so successful for his Sparks during their 25-win regular season. Bryant benched guard

Tamara Moore - who did not play a single minute - and forward

Mwadi Mabika in favor of a supersized lineup featuring

Chamique Holdsclaw (who had thrived in a sixth woman role during the regular season) at guard and

Murriel Page at small forward.

It's impossible to say how Game 1 would have played out with the Sparks staying to their regular-season strengths or whether the lineup change played a factor in the team's slow start (more likely caused by the raucous atmosphere at KeyArena), but we can look at how various lineup combinations fared for the Sparks in Game 1.

Bryant played traditional backcourts for a total of just 8:10, mostly during the second quarter. With these lineups on the floor, the Sparks were -1, meaning the Storm outscored Los Angeles by one point combined. Supersized lineups - essentially any one that had Holdsclaw in the backcourt - played 19:26 and were +7. The Sparks were +4 with Holdsclaw at shooting guard and +3 during a brief stretch in the first half where she played alongside rookie Lisa Willis in the backcourt and essentially served as the WNBA's tallest point guard. So where was this game lost? It was with a hybrid lineup that featured Mabika at shooting guard alongside one of the Sparks normal point guards, either Temeka Johnson or Doneeka Hodges-Lewis. Mabika at shooting guard isn't extremely unorthodox, but she's typically a small forward, and Los Angeles was an astounding -18 in the 12:24 that these lineups played, including nearly all of the decisive fourth quarter. However, Mabika played decently, scoring 11 points and hitting 3-of-10 3-pointers, so the result may have been more about the lineups the Storm had the floor and the randomness of a 12-minute sample size.

While the Storm's Game 1 victory over the Sparks was monumental, the task of defeating Los Angeles is hardly finished. Now the series shifts to the Staples Center, where the Sparks were a dominant 15-2 this season. The good news is the Storm was one of two teams to go into Staples and win this season, earning a 75-67 victory in late June despite playing without Lauren Jackson because of soreness in her left shin.

Entering this season, the lower-seeded team had won Game 1 of a best-of-three series on its home court 21 times. These teams rarely enjoyed a sweep, however, going a dismal 3-18 in Game 2 of the series. They had much more success in Game 3, going 5-13 for an overall 8-13 record needing one road win to take the series. What explains teams having less success in Game 2 than the pressure-packed, do-or-die Game 3? It may be due to the fact that losing teams usually have more and better adjustments available to them than winning teams. Potential Sparks adjustments, presuming Bryant wants to continue his big lineup ploy, seem somewhat limited. The Storm could still stand to improve its rebounding in this game after allowing the Sparks to rebound 47.2% of their own misses in Game 1.

During today's game, check out storm.wnba.com's inaugural "Live From My Couch," with Kevin Pelton live-blogging off of ESPN 2's and KJR's coverage.

G U A R D S
Anne Donovan spoke before Game 1 about the importance of Sue Bird dominating the smaller Johnson to overcome the absence of Jackson when the MVP candidate is resting. Wittingly or not, Bryant scuttled those thoughts with his own substitution pattern; Holdsclaw was at the point against Bird when Jackson rested in the first half and Hodges-Lewis matched up with Bird in the fourth quarter when the Storm went on a 7-0 run in Jackson's absence without the point guard playing a key role. Still, Bird's 12 first-half points were critical. Johnson made some big buckets in the third quarter, but ended the game shooting 4-for-11.

Holdsclaw was limited to a little more than nine minutes in the first half after straining her left foot, but she gamely played the first 18-plus minutes of the second half before the game was decided, scoring 13 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Betty Lennox was never able to find a scoring groove in Game 1, shooting 3-for-10 from the field, so she played playmaker by handing out seven assists - one shy of her regular-season career high.

F O R W A R D S
Murriel Page was a relatively quiet 2-for-8 from the field for the Sparks, finishing with eight points, but she did play a key role in Los Angeles' domination of the glass with four offensive boards. Iziane Castro Marques made only one basket in the entire game, but it was an enormous one - a 3-pointer to put the Storm up seven after the Sparks had gotten back within four. Castro Marques followed it up with a steal and assist on a Jackson three-point play that essentially sealed the game.

Jessica Moore saw all her playing time with the Sparks starting lineups and did not play in the second or fourth quarters. Moore hit a couple of shots, including a jumper, showing range that could make the Storm think twice about leaving her in Game 2, but otherwise was not a major factor. Jackson, of course, was a major factor, putting in a game-high 22 points on 7-for-13 shooting along with nine rebounds and an ego-crushing block of Lisa Leslie.

C E N T E R
Leslie, bothered much of the game by foul trouble, had a team-high 15 points but committed five turnovers and scored just two points in the final period. Leslie was most effective on the offensive glass, getting five offensive rebounds and turning them into nine points for the Sparks (seven herself). Janell Burse took advantage of the Sparks zone to score 17 points on 7-for-12 shooting. Burse will look to hit the glass harder after grabbing one rebound in 30 minutes of play.

B E N C H
Mabika (right) took on the role of zone-buster in Game 1, attempting 10 3-pointers in 25 minutes of action. Mabika brought the Sparks back in the game late in the second quarter, but her only score in five post-halftime attempts came in the final seconds with the game long decided. Christi Thomas gave the Sparks some productive minutes up front, scoring nine points and grabbing three rebounds. Tiffani Johnson (left) stepped up with a huge game for the Storm, scoring 10 points on 4-for-6 shooting and grabbing four rebounds in 21 strong minutes. Barbara Turner did not score in her 18 minutes, but her two assists included setting up Castro Marques' 3-pointer.

G U A R D S
	Anne Donovan spoke before Game 1 about the importance of Sue Bird dominating the smaller Johnson to overcome the absence of Jackson when the MVP candidate is resting. Wittingly or not, Bryant scuttled those thoughts with his own substitution pattern; Holdsclaw was at the point against Bird when Jackson rested in the first half and Hodges-Lewis matched up with Bird in the fourth quarter when the Storm went on a 7-0 run in Jackson's absence without the point guard playing a key role. Still, Bird's 12 first-half points were critical. Johnson made some big buckets in the third quarter, but ended the game shooting 4-for-11.
	Holdsclaw was limited to a little more than nine minutes in the first half after straining her left foot, but she gamely played the first 18-plus minutes of the second half before the game was decided, scoring 13 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Betty Lennox was never able to find a scoring groove in Game 1, shooting 3-for-10 from the field, so she played playmaker by handing out seven assists - one shy of her regular-season career high.
F O R W A R D S
	Murriel Page was a relatively quiet 2-for-8 from the field for the Sparks, finishing with eight points, but she did play a key role in Los Angeles' domination of the glass with four offensive boards. Iziane Castro Marques made only one basket in the entire game, but it was an enormous one - a 3-pointer to put the Storm up seven after the Sparks had gotten back within four. Castro Marques followed it up with a steal and assist on a Jackson three-point play that essentially sealed the game.
	Jessica Moore saw all her playing time with the Sparks starting lineups and did not play in the second or fourth quarters. Moore hit a couple of shots, including a jumper, showing range that could make the Storm think twice about leaving her in Game 2, but otherwise was not a major factor. Jackson, of course, was a major factor, putting in a game-high 22 points on 7-for-13 shooting along with nine rebounds and an ego-crushing block of Lisa Leslie.
C E N T E R
	Leslie, bothered much of the game by foul trouble, had a team-high 15 points but committed five turnovers and scored just two points in the final period. Leslie was most effective on the offensive glass, getting five offensive rebounds and turning them into nine points for the Sparks (seven herself). Janell Burse took advantage of the Sparks zone to score 17 points on 7-for-12 shooting. Burse will look to hit the glass harder after grabbing one rebound in 30 minutes of play.
B E N C H
	Mabika (right) took on the role of zone-buster in Game 1, attempting 10 3-pointers in 25 minutes of action. Mabika brought the Sparks back in the game late in the second quarter, but her only score in five post-halftime attempts came in the final seconds with the game long decided. Christi Thomas gave the Sparks some productive minutes up front, scoring nine points and grabbing three rebounds. Tiffani Johnson (left) stepped up with a huge game for the Storm, scoring 10 points on 4-for-6 shooting and grabbing four rebounds in 21 strong minutes. Barbara Turner did not score in her 18 minutes, but her two assists included setting up Castro Marques' 3-pointer.