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Thomas' career high leads Sparks past lowly Mystics

Jun 16, 2007 - 2:58 AM WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- Christi Thomas had a career-high 25 points to lead the Los Angeles Sparks to an 89-80 victory over the Washington Mystics on Friday night.

LaToya Thomas started in place of Chamique Holdsclaw, who retired from the WNBA on Wednesday, and added 12 points and six rebounds for the Sparks, who won their third straight game.

Former Mystics guard Keisha Brown scored seven of her 11 points in the final 46 seconds for the Sparks, who improved to 14-4 all-time against Washington.

Alana Beard's 3-pointer pulled the Mystics to 79-77 with 1:07 remaining but that was as close as they got down the stretch.

The Mystics survived a scare when Beard turned her right ankle with 2:30 remaining in the second quarter and was carried off the court. She returned to start the second half and finished with 11 points on 4-for-17 shooting.

Nakia Sanford's tough follow pulled the Mystics to 71-68 with 5:50 remaining. After Sparks coach Michael Cooper was assessed a technical foul, Monique Currie converted a layup on the run off an assist from Beard that got Washington within 71-70 with 5:09 left.

Currie had 20 points on 8-for-10 shooting and Sanford added 17 points and six rebounds for the Mystics, who just got their first win of the season Wednesday.