Storm
Storm playoff foe: Minnesota

By Jayda Evans
Seattle Times staff reporter

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Anne Donovan stopped the interview short.

"Wait, did I hear that you're happy about practice?" the Storm coach asked forward Lauren Jackson during a radio interview.

She was talking about practice. And Jackson has been excited about it since her team secured a playoff spot last weekend.

"I want to get in some good, hard workouts to get back to where we were," said Jackson earlier of her team that closed the season ranked 11th in rebounding (26.8) and second in turnovers (17.0) in its past five games.

Yesterday, she discovered today's session would be preparation for a best-of-three playoff series against Minnesota. The Storm (20-14) will play the Lynx (18-16) Saturday at the Target Center. Seattle will return for Game 2 on Sept. 27 at 6:30 p.m. at KeyArena. If necessary, the third game is scheduled for Sept. 29 at KeyArena.

"I know it's the time of year where it's time to play basketball," said forward Sheri Sam after scoring a season-high 21 points in the 83-80 loss to Los Angeles on Saturday that ended its regular season. "You just have to step up your game and our goal is to win a championship."

WNBA Playoffs Western Conference Seattle vs. Minnesota Saturday: at Minnesota, 11 a.m. Sept. 27: at Seattle, 6:30 p.m. Sept. 29: at Seattle, 7 p.m., if necessary Los Angeles vs. Sacramento Friday: at Sacramento, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 26: at Los Angeles, 1 p.m. Sept. 28: at Los Angeles, 7 p.m., if necessary Eastern Conference Connecticut vs. Washington Saturday: at Washington, 9 a.m. Sept. 27: at Connecticut, 4 p.m. Sept. 29: at Connecticut, TBD, if necessary New York vs. Detroit Friday: at Detroit, 5 p.m. Sept. 26: at New York, 9 a.m. Sept. 28: at New York, 5 p.m., if necessary

The Storm has to learn how to win a playoff game first. The Storm fought its way into the playoffs as a back-door team in 2002, playing the Sparks in the first round as the fourth seed. Seattle was swept 2-0, losing by an average of 13.5 points.

Only five players and none of the coaching staff remain from that season.

In her second season in Seattle, Donovan has guided the Storm to a 2-1 record against the Lynx this summer and kept Seattle in second place despite injuries and shaky play that led to a 3-6 post-Olympic-break record.

One of those losses was 64-61 at Minnesota. The Lynx swarmed Jackson, and Seattle's perimeter scorers couldn't spread the defense by making outside shots. Rookie Nicole Ohlde, a 6-foot-5 forward/center, had her way with the 6-5 Jackson, making a strong up-and-under move to put her team ahead for good. In May, Ohlde recorded her franchise's first double-double, finishing with 16 points and 10 rebounds against Jackson at KeyArena. The Storm won and Jackson had 31 points.

If it weren't for Phoenix rookie Diana Taurasi, Ohlde might have had a chance at the WNBA rookie award. The Lynx are without Olympian and leading scorer Katie Smith, and Ohlde has averaged 14.8 points and 5.2 rebounds to keep her team in third place in eight post-Olympic games.

In that stretch, Ohlde outworked both top contenders for MVP, outscoring Los Angeles center Lisa Leslie 19-15 in a win and Jackson 16-12 in a victory.

"They've got something to prove," Donovan said, "that the team is not all about Katie Smith."

Minnesota also is appearing in its second playoff series. The Lynx lost to Los Angeles 2-1 in the opening round last year.

Minnesota players and staff discovered yesterday they were the No. 3 seed after Detroit defeated Charlotte earlier yesterday. before their game against fourth-seeded Sacramento.

"Seattle is a very good team and it will be a great challenge for us," said Minnesota coach Suzie McConnell Serio. "They have two of the best players in the league with Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson and it is a team that we have a lot of respect for."

Jayda Evans: 206-464-2067 or jevans@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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