Silver Stars get revenge on Sparks, clinch playoff spot

Sep 6, 2008 - 4:37 AM By PA SportsTicker

SAN ANTONIO (Ticker) -- The San Antonio Silver Stars are back in the WNBA playoffs.

The Silver Stars clinched their second consecutive playoff berth on Friday as they avenged last Saturday's loss to the Los Angeles Sparks with a 76-58 victory in the rematch.

The team not only tied the franchise record with its 20th victory of the season but moved into a tie atop the Western Conference standings in the process.

Edwige Lawson-Wade scored 14 points off the bench, hitting 4-of-4 from 3-point range, and veteran center Ruth Riley posted nine points and eight rebounds as the Silver Stars (20-10) used a huge second quarter to pull away.

The Sparks (18-13), who remain in the No. 3 spot in the West, had won four games in a row, including a 58-53 victory over the Silver Stars on Saturday. But after scoring just 12 points in Friday's second quarter to fall behind by 16, they couldn't catch up.

Candace Parker led the way with 17 points on 6-for-10 shooting and eight rebounds, but Lisa Leslie struggled from the floor, scoring seven points on 3-of-11 shooting.

Prior to 2007, when the Silver Stars re-tooled with the additions of Riley, Becky Hammon and Erin Buescher, they had not made the postseason. That changed last season, when they advanced to the conference finals before falling to the Phoenix Mercury. With Friday's victory, they are in a dead heat with the Seattle Storm for the top spot in the West.

In Friday's other games:

CONNECTICUT 80, CHICAGO 75: At Uncasville, Connecticut, the Connecticut Sun extended their winning streak to seven games, holding off the Chicago Sky at home.

Reserve guard Barbara Turner scored eight of her 16 points in the fourth quarter and hit 4-of-5 from the arc to help the Sun hold on, while Tamika Whitmore scored 17. The Sun knocked down 10-of-22 3-pointers on the night, while the Sky never got going from long range, missing on all five of their attempts.

With the victory, the Sun (20-10) solidified their grasp on the top spot in the Eastern Conference standings. They remain two games up on the Detroit Shock.

Jia Perkins, Candice Dupree and Sylvia Fowles did most of the damage for Chicago (11-19), combining for 47 points on 21-of-35 shooting.

DETROIT 90, INDIANA 68: At Auburn Hills, Michigan, Plenette Pierson had 20 points, six boards and four assists off the bench to lead the Detroit Shock to an easy victory over the Indiana Fever.

It was Pierson's first game since serving a four-game suspension for her role in a July 22 brawl with the Los Angeles Sparks.

Thanks to a 17-point first-half showing from Deanna Nolan, the Shock (18-12) held a 17-point advantage at halftime and cruised from there. Tamika Catchings led Indiana (15-15) with 20 points and 10 boards, but shot just 4-of-13 from the floor.

PHOENIX 81, SACRAMENTO 69: At Phoenix, Diana Taurasi had 26 points and eight boards to give the Phoenix Mercury an 81-69 victory over the Sacramento Monarchs.

Thanks to Taurasi's All-Star performance, the already-tight playoff race in the Western Conference just got a little bit tighter. Phoenix (14-16) is in last place in the West but is just two games behind Sacramento (16-14), which currently holds the fourth and final playoff position.

Mercury guard Cappie Pondexter added 19 points off the bench but was just 6-of-20 from the field. Kara Lawson led the Monarchs with 19 points.

NEW YORK 82, ATLANTA 71: At New York, the New York Liberty clinched a playoff berth on berth when the Connecticut Sun finished off the Chicago Sky earlier in the night, but it wouldn't have mattered anyway, as the Liberty held off the Atlanta Dream, 82-71, for their seventh win in a row.

Despite the win, the Liberty (17-12) didn't have their best performance, as they had to fend off the league's worst team. Atlanta (3-28) is within one loss of tying the WNBA record for most setbacks in a season.

Betty Lennox knocked down six 3-pointers and scored 28 points to pace the Dream.