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Jackson, Lennox help Storm cruise by Mercury

May 24, 2007 - 4:23 AM SEATTLE (Ticker) -- Lauren Jackson and the Seattle Storm wanted to win a game in more conventional fashion this time.

Jackson scored 31 points and Betty Lennox added 22 as the Storm posted a 100-87 victory over the Phoenix Mercury on Wednesday.

Sue Bird had 13 points and five assists and Janell Burse added 13 and a career-high 19 rebounds for Seattle, which reached the century mark for the first time in franchise history. The Storm's previous scoring high was 97 vs. Phoenix in a win on June 2, 2006.

The Storm (2-0), who led by 11 after the first quarter and 22 at halftime, have won their initial two games for the first time since their 2004 championship season.

It was a far cry from their season-opening victory on Saturday, when they trailed the Houston Comets by 22 points with 15 minutes remaining, before closing out the game on a 44-9 run to come away with an 82-69 win.

Jackson, who had 23 points and 10 rebounds in that contest, was 8-of-17 from the floor, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range against the Mercury. The five-time All-Star was also 12-of-12 from the free-throw line.

Lennox was 9-of-11 from the field and Burse came within one rebound of becoming the ninth player in WNBA history to haul in 20 boards in a contest.

Cappie Pondexter scored 31 points and Diana Taurasi scored 14 for Phoenix (1-1), which lost for the first time in eight games. The Mercury ended the 2006 regular season with seven straight victories before opening 2007 with an 81-72 win against the San Antonio Silver Stars on Saturday.