Storm caps regular season with big win over L.A.

The "Beat L.A." chant from the crowd didn't have the same meaning given the Sparks' lowly record, but it was a command fulfilled by the Storm in a 97-77 victory over Los Angeles on Friday at KeyArena.

The win allowed struggling Seattle to finish the regular season at .500 (17-17) and on a three-game win streak. It also gave the team a chance to work on postseason strategies, hoping to avoid a third consecutive ouster in the opening round. Although the Storm had its ups and downs Friday — building a 10-point lead in the first quarter, only to trail 41-37 at halftime — Seattle outscored the Sparks 30-21 in the third quarter on the way to the win.

More important than the win, however, was Seattle discovering who it will play in the first round of the playoffs. Phoenix (22-11) defeated Sacramento 101-91 to earn the Western Conference's No. 1 seed and a meeting with fourth-seeded Seattle. Game 1 is set for Friday at KeyArena; Game 2 will be Sunday at US Airways Center, with Game 3 there on Tuesday if necessary.

The final two games are scheduled to be shown on ESPN2.

"It's going to be a dogfight, it really is," said Storm forward Lauren Jackson, who scored a game-high 32 points, setting a WNBA record for 30-point games in a season with her ninth. Phoenix guard Diana Taurasi had eight last summer, when she averaged a league-record 25.3 points.

"[The] playoffs is a different thing. They're playing awesome basketball, too. Those guys are just going to come out and ball."

The postseason matchup seems favorable given that Seattle won the regular-season series against Phoenix 2-1, including both games at KeyArena. And there's the familiarity between the rosters.

Storm guard Sue Bird played college hoops at Connecticut with Taurasi, while Jackson plays on the Australian national team with Phoenix's Penny Taylor and Belinda Snell. Bird, Taurasi and Jackson also won a championship together in Russia in May.

But the Storm believed it had an easy first-round matchup against Los Angeles last year, and for similar reasons. Seattle won Game 1 at home, then got swept on the road.

Seattle was 5-12 on the road this summer.

Storm coach Anne Donovan gave the team today and Sunday off to rest and will use next week to prepare for Phoenix. The Mercury (22-11), 9-1 in its past 10 games, plays its regular-season finale against Sacramento on Sunday.

"We definitely have good momentum going into the first home game," said Donovan, whose team was 5-5 in its final 10 games, winning four straight at KeyArena. "This is where it's difficult to determine if the higher seed really has the advantage or not. For us to have four wins at home heading into the postseason and then to have our first game here really bodes well for us. Phoenix understands this is a difficult place to play. Our momentum is definitely here."

After a lackluster conclusion to the first half of Friday's game, the Storm got its offense moving. Bird scored 12 of her 14 points in the game-changing third to help Seattle take a 67-62 lead into the final period.

A 12-0 run ignited by a Jackson block and rebound gave the Storm an 85-66 lead with 6:05 remaining. The Storm received quality play from its reserves and center Ashley Robinson down the stretch.

"This was our last regular-season game and a chance to have fun in front of the fans," Bird said. "I think everyone had it [the playoffs] in the back of their minds since we clinched. But you don't want to look ahead, and that's why I'm proud of how well we played these last few games."

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