Atlanta gets past Storm

ATLANTA – The Atlanta Dream have gone from expansion laughingstocks to playoff contenders in one season.

Sancho Lyttle scored 20 points to lead Atlanta to an 88-79 win over the Seattle Storm on Saturday night and move the Dream (13-11) into sole possession of second place in the Eastern Conference.

Lauren Jackson scored a game-high 25 points and eclipsed the 5,000-point career milestone, the fourth WNBA player to do so, but the Storm (13-11) lost for the fourth time in five games. Seattle is second in the Western Conference.

“I don’t care about milestone or how many points I score,” Jackson said. “We need wins right now and we’re not playing consistent enough to get them.”

Atlanta took charge with a 14-4 run in the fourth quarter, opening up a 13-point lead with just more than 5 minutes remaining.

Swin Cash and Tanisha Wright each had 12 points for Seattle, while Sue Bird had 12 assists.