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May 31, 2003

The rivalry is back!
Written By Sheila Bachri

Seattle Storm vs. Los Angeles Sparks is one of the sound bites in the WNBA. We all remember their exciting rivalry in 2002, where Storm defeated LA 2 times back to back during regular season, made it to the playoffs for the first time, and bowed to LA in 2 of 3 games series on their attempts to stop LA from their yet another Championship Title.

It could not get any better than facing the rival on the Storm's home game opening night. Considering the physical play of LA and their sometimes viewed as "cheapy" plays by non-LA fans, every meeting is not only based on basketball skills, but also on how well Storm can eliminate any kind of intimidations presented by the Sparks.

Todays game is no different than any other Storm vs. Sparks games in the past, where the "eye-popping", "heart-beating", "floor-stomping" and any other adrenaline exercises are simply unavoidable. Despite the loss, Seattle Storm players have certainly shown a great deal of improvements from their first two regular season games in 2003.

The Storm opened up with a technical foul on Lauren Jackson, where she was letting her elbow swing freely and hit Lisa Leslie in the face, then another technical foul within the same half abrupt from Delisha Milton who tried to trip Adia Barnes. If you did not watch the game, please do not view those technicals as highlights of the game. I truly enjoyed the game, as both teams going at each other from the offensive and defensive ends. The two big guns, Jackson and Leslie did not play as well as they could have. Lauren is still not in her best condition after recovering from her injuries.

On the other hand, Sue Bird blew off my mind by making her statement on why she is the poster child of Seattle Storm and WNBA in general with 22 points, 7 assists, 3 rebounds and 2 steals. Unfortunately, her brilliant performance could not be converted into a victory. Sue had to cope with knee injury through out the game, which got to a point where she had to be benched during crunch times. The team appeared to lose its grip, allowing LA to get back into the scene with Nikki Teasley's winning shot tied the score at 68 a piece with four seconds left on game clock. Seattle was forced to bring the injured Sue Bird back into the game as the team was completely lost without her on the floor. However, 4 seconds and an injured knee were not positive factors to make something happen.

Overtime was pretty much the same story:

(5:00) Jump Ball Jackson vs Leslie
(4:45) [SEA] Jackson Foul: Personal (3 PF)
(4:37) [LAS] Dixon Jump Shot: Missed
(4:35) [SEA] Jackson Rebound (Off:0 Def:5)
(4:15) [SEA] Barnes Jump Shot: Missed Block: Leslie (5 BLK)
(4:13) [SEA] Jackson Rebound (Off:1 Def:5)
(4:12) [LAS] Mabika Foul: Personal (3 PF)
(4:12) [SEA] Bird Substitution replaced by Bevilaqua
(4:03) [LAS] Milton Foul: Personal (3 PF)
(3:36) [SEA] Brondello Jump Shot: Missed
(3:34) [LAS] Mabika Rebound (Off:1 Def:5)
(3:29) [SEA] Brondello Foul: Shooting (2 PF)
(3:29) [LAS 69-68] Teasley Free Throw 1 of 2 (18 PTS)
(3:29) [SEA] Bevilaqua Substitution replaced by Bird
(3:29) [LAS 70-68] Teasley Free Throw 2 of 2 (19 PTS)
(3:03) [SEA] Jackson Turnover: Bad Pass (1 TO)
(2:49) [LAS 72-68] Mabika Jump Shot: Made (16 PTS)
(2:43) [SEA] Team Timeout: Short
(2:43) [SEA] Bird Substitution replaced by Bevilaqua

Sparks grabbed early lead 72-68 while Sue Bird is in and out the game. She certainly could not do much at all playing with injury. Anne Donovan finally made a wise decision by taking her off the game for good with 2:43 left. It was tough, but I am sure the Storm would prefer losing the game instead of losing Sue Bird for the rest of the season.

(2:16) [SEA] Bevilaqua Turnover: Bad Pass (1 TO) Steal: Leslie (4 ST)
(2:16) [SEA] Brondello Foul: Personal (3 PF)
(2:12) [LAS] Teasley Turnover: Palming (4 TO)
(1:52) [SEA] Bevilaqua Jump Shot: Missed Block: Dixon (1 BLK)
(1:49) [SEA] Bevilaqua Rebound (Off:1 Def:0)
(1:44) [SEA 70-72] Brondello Jump Shot: Made (9 PTS)
(1:34) [SEA] Jackson Foul: Shooting (4 PF)
(1:34) [LAS 73-70] Leslie Free Throw 1 of 2 (19 PTS)
(1:34) [LAS 74-70] Leslie Free Throw 2 of 2 (20 PTS)
(1:16) [SEA] Vodichkova Jump Shot: Missed
(1:14) [SEA] Jackson Rebound (Off:2 Def:5)
(0:55) [SEA 72-74] Brondello Running Jump: Made (11 PTS)
(0:42) [SEA] Barnes Foul: Personal (3 PF)
(0:42) [LAS 75-72] Mabika Free Throw 1 of 2 (17 PTS)
(0:42) [LAS 76-72] Mabika Free Throw 2 of 2 (18 PTS)
(0:42) [SEA] Team Timeout: Regular
(0:31) [LAS] Milton Foul: Shooting (4 PF)
(0:31) [SEA 73-76] Jackson Free Throw 1 of 2 (14 PTS)
(0:31) [SEA 74-76] Jackson Free Throw 2 of 2 (15 PTS)
(0:28) [SEA] Brondello Foul: Personal (4 PF)
(0:28) [LAS] Mabika Free Throw 1 of 2 missed
(0:28) [LAS] Team Rebound
(0:28) [LAS 77-74] Mabika Free Throw 2 of 2 (19 PTS)
(0:01) [SEA] Jackson Layup Shot: Missed
(0:00) [SEA] Brondello Rebound (Off:2 Def:4)
(0:00) [SEA] Brondello Layup Shot: Missed
(0:00) [SEA] Jackson Rebound (Off:3 Def:5)

There was still plenty of time for Seattle Storm not to have this game slips away from them. Without Sue Bird on the floor, Sandy Brondello took over and pulled the Storm within 2 points. She then committed a foul, where Mabika made 1 of 2 free throws. It was an obvious dissapointment displayed on Sue's face as she watches her team tumbling down the hill. Before we knew, it was all over.

Heartbreaker, but a good lesson for Seattle Storm to comeback stronger! I do believe that they have the potential to be one of the top teams this year. What's currently on their way? Need more time to build perfect chemistry, injuries, and fierce competition!

WNBA as a whole has definitely grown better and better everyday, the competition gets tighter, and we as fans have the privilege to see high quality basketball games.

GOOD LUCK SEATTLE STORM!