Los Angeles takes Game 1 of series against Storm, 70-63

LOS ANGELES —

LOS ANGELES — In the shadow of all the hoopla surrounding Lisa Leslie's impending retirement and reigning MVP Candace Parker's achievements post-pregnancy was Tina Thompson.

Returning to her native Los Angeles to end her career after Houston folded in 2008, she preferred not to be the focus of a franchise. Especially not during a season where she repeatedly told reporters her play was below average.

Not on Wednesday.

Displaying her standard postseason magic, Thompson deflated the Storm with dazzling baskets to help her Sparks win 70-63 in Game 1 of the best-of-three opening round Western Conference series. Seattle will host a decisive Game 2 on Friday at KeyArena.

The Storm faced a similar situation last season, winning 64-50, but dropping the overall series. Seattle is trying to avoid a fifth consecutive boot from the playoffs in the opening round.

"We played all season for this and I didn't want to let the opportunity pass," said Thompson, who led the Sparks with 16 points.

Trailing 58-54 after a three-pointer by Storm guard Tanisha Wright, Thompson quickly answered with a trey of her own to ignite a 10-2 run. After a Leslie free throw, Thompson stole the ball from Wright and made a picturesque turnaround jumper while fouled by Swin Cash to get the 7,919 in attendance on their feet.

"That was a backbreaker for us because it killed our momentum," said Wright.

Anyone viewing the game might say Seattle never had any momentum. The Storm opened the game shooting 1 of 9 from the field, and committed endless fouls to help the Sparks lead 22-6 at the end of the opening quarter.

As expected, the interior battle with Leslie and Storm center Janell Burse caused the most problems. Burse picked up her fourth foul in the second quarter, benching herself until the fourth.

The positive was Australian Suzy Batkovic-Brown, who continued her solid play in place of Burse. She was 3 of 4 from three-point range in the opening half to help the Storm pull to 34-28. But guard Sue Bird, returning to play after an MRI showed a bulging disk in her neck that caused her to miss the team's final two games, was 1 of 9 from the field and backup Shannon Johnson was 0 of 4 from three-point range.

"We were very hesitant from the start and did not play well at all," said Batkovic-Brown, who finished with 16 points and seven rebounds. "It was a shocker. But we were able to stay with them. That's a positive."

Off-court friends with Thompson, who's 6-foot-2, Cash (6-1) had trouble defending the fellow Olympian. That ultimately was the difference in the game as Parker took until the fourth quarter to get her offense going and Batkovic-Brown kept Leslie honest.

The Storm lacked depth, missing forward Lauren Jackson due to two stress fractures in her lower back. Jackson missed last postseason due to right ankle surgery.

Coach Brian Agler said she's going to be out for weeks as the area heals.

"With Lauren being out, we have to do it by committee," said Cash, who finished with a game-high 24 points. "We have to get more post touches and make them guard us inside. There are a lot of things we could have done down the stretch to steal the game."

Sparks 70, Storm 63

SEATTLE		fg	ft
min		m-a	m-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Cash	39:29	7-14	8-9	0-1	1	4	24
Little	31:59	2-6	0-0	0-3	2	4	4
Burse	11:30	0-3	2-4	1-4	0	6	2
Wright	32:54	4-10	4-4	3-5	5	4	13
Bird	35:47	1-9	2-2	1-3	5	3	4
Johnson	16:57	0-5	0-0	0-2	1	2	0
Batkovic	30:31	6-8	1-2	0-7	0	3	16
Robinson	0:53	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	1	0
Totals		20-55	17-21	5-25	14	27	63

Percentages: FG .364, FT .810. Three-point goals: 6-19, .316 (Batkovic 3-4, Cash 2-5, Wright 1-2, Little 0-1, Bird 0-3, Johnson 0-4). Team rebounds: 12. Team turnovers: 15 (19 PTS). Blocked shots: 4 (Batkovic 2, Burse 2). Turnovers: 14 (Batkovic 3, Wright 3, Bird 2, Burse 2, Cash 2, Little 2). Steals: 8 (Cash 3, Batkovic 2, Bird, Johnson, Wright). Technical fouls: Coach Agler, 4:29 third.

LOS ANGELES		fg	ft
min		m-a	m-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Thompson	37:34	4-10	6-6	2-3	0	4	16
Parker	32:49	3-8	6-8	5-10	2	2	13
Leslie	36:09	3-11	8-10	1-10	1	5	14
Milton-Jones	34:33	3-7	1-2	2-7	2	4	7
Harrower	21:32	3-5	0-0	0-1	5	0	7
Quinn	18:44	1-7	2-2	2-4	2	0	4
Lennox	16:17	3-7	2-2	0-2	0	4	9
Bobbitt	2:22	0-1	0-0	0-0	0	1	0
Totals		20-56	25-30	12-37	12	20	70

Percentages: FG .357, FT .833. Three-point goals: 5-9, .556 (Thompson 2-3, Harrower 1-1, Parker 1-1, Lennox 1-2, Milton-Jones 0-1, Quinn 0-1). Team rebounds: 6. Team turnovers: 14 (22 PTS). Blocked shots: 4 (Parker 2, Leslie, Thompson). Turnovers: 14 (Leslie 4, Lennox 2, Milton-Jones 2, Thompson 2, Bobbitt, Harrower, Parker, Quinn). Steals: 10 (Leslie 3, Harrower 2, Milton-Jones 2, Thompson 2, Parker). Technical fouls: None.

Seattle	6	22	19	16 — 63
Los Angeles	22	12	18	18 — 70

Attendance: 7,919 (19,000). Time: 2:07. Officials: Daryl Humphrey, June Courteau , Tony Dawkins.