The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper The Spokesman-Review
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
Current Temperature
55°F
Current Conditions
Mist
View complete weather report

Color Scheme

Subscribe now

Comets Soar Past Liberty Into First Place

Associated Press

WNBA

Cynthia Cooper scored 15 of her 17 points in the second half to lead Houston to a 70-55 victory over the New York Liberty on Sunday in New York, as the Comets took over first place in the WNBA’s Eastern Conference.

The Comets, who had lost their three previous meetings with the Liberty, won for the sixth in seven games as four other players scored in double figures.

Tina Thompson had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Houston, while Sheryl Swoopes and Janeth Arcain each had 11 points and Kim Perrott added 10. Tammy Jackson had five points and 12 rebounds for the Comets.

Rebecca Lobo had 13 points for the Liberty, who had been in first place the entire season since starting the year with a seven-game winning streak. The loss, before a crowd of 17,499 at Madison Square Garden, was the fourth in five games for New York.

Sophia Witherspoon, New York’s leading scorer at 14.9 per game, was held to eight points on 2-of-12 shooting.

Comets 70, Liberty 55

At New York

HOUSTON (70) - Thompson 4-14 7-8 16, Arcain 2-5 7-8 11, Guyton 0-1 0-0 0, Cooper 5-13 5-5 17, Perrot 4-6 1-2 10, Swoopes 5-6 1-4 11, Jackson 2-6 1-2 5, Moore 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-51 22-29 70.

NEW YORK (55) - Lobo 5-14 1-2 13, Johnson 3-10 0-0 6, Hampton 1-5 2-2 4, Weatherspoon 3-7 3-5 9, Witherspoon 2-12 3-4 7, Ford 1-4 0-0 2, Trice 2-3 0-1 4, Blades 2-5 0-0 6, Wicks 2-5 0-0 4. Totals 21-65 9-14 55.

Halftime-Houston 28, New York 22. 3-Point goals-Houston 4-11 (Cooper 2-5, Perrot 1-2, Thompson 1-4), New York 4-21 (Lobo 2-5, Blades 2-5, Wicks 0-1, Weatherspoon 0-2, Ford 0-2, Witherspoon 0-6). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Houston 41 (Thompson, Jackson 12), New York 44 (Lobo, Johnson 6). Assists- Houston 9 (Perrot 6), New York 14 (Weatherspoon). Total fouls- Houston 14, New York 23. Technicals-Weatherspoon. A-17,499.

Rockers 81, Sting 49

At Cleveland

Eva Nemcova scored 21 points to lead Cleveland to its largest margin of victory this season, trouncing Charlotte.

The Rockers pulled to within one-half game of the Sting in the battle for the league’s fourth and final playoff spot.

Janice Braxton led all players in rebounds with a season-high 15, including 12 defensive boards. Her 12 defensive rebounds were a league-high for a regulation game.

CHARLOTTE (49) - Mapp 5-12 2-3 12, Bullett 2-10 1-2 5, Congreaves 1-1 0-0 3, Suber 2-6 4-6 10, Stinson 1-8 0-0 2, Artis 0-3 1-2 1, Hopson-Shelton 3-5 2-2 8, Levesque 0-0 0-0 0, Manning 2-6 1-4 5, Moore 1-8 1-2 3. Totals 17-59 12-21 49.

CLEVELAND (81) - Nemcova 8-11 2-2 21, Braxton 3-6 0-0 7, Fijalkowski 6-7 7-9 19, Edwards 4-9 2-4 10, Woodard 2-2 0-0 4, Boucek 0-3 1-2 1, Brown 3-5 1-2 7, Johnson 1-5 0-0 2, Jones 3-8 2-2 8, Nicholson 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 31-57 15-21 81.

Halftime-Cleveland 47, Charlotte 21. 3-Point goals-Charlotte 3-10 (Suber 2-5, Congreaves 1-1, Stinson 0-1, Artis 0-1, Moore 0-2), Cleveland 4-9 (Nemcova 3-4, Braxton 1-1, Boucek 0-1, Edwards 0-3). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Charlotte 34 (Mapp 8), Cleveland 52 (Braxton 15). Assists-Charlotte 13 (Suber 4), Cleveland 20 (Nemcova 5). Total fouls-Charlotte 18, Cleveland 19. A-10,555.

Mercury 71, Starzz 63 (OT)

At Phoenix

Tia Jackson scored all four of her points in overtime as Phoenix rallied from a 14-point halftime deficit.

Jennifer Gillom had 15 points and Marlies Askamp added 12 for the Mercury, who opened a two-game lead in the WNBA’s Western Conference.

Michele Timms of Phoenix tied a WNBA record with eight steals. She also had seven points and five assists.

Wendy Palmer had 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Starzz.

Utah (63) - Koss 1-3 0-0 3, Palmer 6-17 9-11 21, Baranova 3-8 2-2 10, Reiss 5-12 4-4 17, Hardmon 1-3 0-4 2, Booker 2-2 0-1 4, Carter 0-3 0-0 0, Williams 3-6 0-0 6. Totals 21-54 15-22 63.

Phoenix (71) - Hagiwara 1-7 0-0 3, Foster 5-6 0-0 10, Gillom 7-16 1-2 15, Pettis 1-6 2-2 4, Timms 2-11 1-2 7, Askamp 5-11 2-3 12, Lieberman-Cline 1-8 2-2 4, Jackson 1-3 2-2 4, Webb 2-6 4-4 8, Williams 2-7 0-0 4. Totals 27-81 14-17 71.

Halftime-Utah 35, Phoenix 21. 3-Point goals-Utah 6-12 (Reiss 3-5, Baranova 2-5, Koss 1-1, Williams 0-1), Phoenix 3-21 (Timms 2-6, Hagiwara 1-6, Gillom 0-2, Pettis 0-2, Williams 0-2, Lieberman-Cline 0-3). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Utah 55 (Koss 11), Phoenix 42 (Gillom, Timms 7). Assists-Utah 12 (Reiss 4), Phoenix 19 (Timms 5). Total fouls-Utah 21, Phoenix 19. A-14,591.