Bird lifts Storm over Mercury in OT win
Sue Bird scored 19 points, including the go-ahead basket with 1:03 left in overtime and two free throws with 2.1 seconds left, to help the Storm recover from blowing a 17point fourth-quarter lead and beat Phoenix 91-87 in Seattle in the second game of their WNBA semifinal series Tuesday night.
Seattle has a 2-0 lead in the best-of-5 series, having won Sunday’s first game by an identical score.
Breanna Stewart led Seattle with 27 points, getting 14 of those in the third quarter to help the Storm build a 19point advantage.
Phoenix, which was still down 73-56 with six minutes left, went on a 23-6 run to end regulation.
The Mercury went up 85-81 with 3:21 left in overtime, and was up 87-85 inside two minutes. Bird drove for a lay-in and a lead at the 1:03 mark. Dream 78, Mystics 75: Alex Bentley came off the bench to score 21 points and host Atlanta evened its semifinal series against Washington. The game was marred in the closing minutes when the Mystics’ Elena Delle Donne went down.
Delle Donne had a huge game with 27 points, 14 rebounds, six assists, two blocks and a steal. Then, with just more than three minutes remaining and Washington clinging to a 70-68 lead, Delle Donne stumbled on a drive to the basket and collapsed, clutching her left knee. After that, Washington struggled. Draft lottery: The Las Vegas Aces will pick first in the draft for a third straight year after winning the draft lottery. The New York Liberty will draft second after moving up from the fourth spot. Indiana will go third and Chicago will pick fourth.