Teetering last-second basket stuns Storm in OT

While the clock ran out and 10 players agonized on the court below, the ball took a slow tour of the rim. It teetered and tottered, nearly falling off the side – before tumbling through.

DeMya Walker ended overtime with a leaning underhand shot, giving the Sacramento Monarchs a 74-72 victory over the Seattle Storm in Game 1 of the WNBA’s Western Conference finals Friday night in Sacramento, Calif.

The game ended with the fans, players and coaches all holding their breath as the right-handed Walker reached around Janell Burse and flipped up an awkward, left-handed scoop shot.

“The whole time, I was just staring at it,” said Walker, who had 13 points. “It was just bouncing, bouncing, and then it started rocking, and then it finally went through.”

“I was trying to blow it in,” said teammate Tangela Smith, who had 19 of her 24 points after halftime as Sacramento rallied from a 14-point deficit.

“I’d let her take that shot nine times out of 10. That’s such a tough, tough shot,” said Seattle’s Sue Bird, who had 10 points and six assists and wore a plastic mask to protect a broken nose.

“Unfortunately, I knew it was going to be good,” Seattle coach Anne Donovan said.

The Monarchs chased Walker to the other end of the court and mobbed her while officials reviewed the basket.

Just like that, Sacramento stole a victory after holding a lead for less than two minutes of regulation. Yolanda Griffith had 15 points and seven rebounds for the fourth-seeded Monarchs, who upset the Los Angeles Sparks in the first round to earn their third trip to the conference finals in four years.

The Monarchs forced overtime on Griffith’s layup with 48 seconds left in regulation, but Kara Lawson missed a jumper at the regulation buzzer.

Game 2 in the best-of-3 series is Sunday night in Seattle.

Lauren Jackson had 31 points and 13 rebounds for Seattle, but she had just three points in overtime – and Ticha Penicheiro stole the ball from her with 16 seconds left.

“I am a pressure player, and I think all that is the confidence,” Walker said. “They trust me in that situation, and today it worked out.”

Betty Lennox had 12 points as the second-seeded Storm blew a big lead with poor second-half shooting. Seattle swept Minnesota in the first round after compiling the best regular-season record in franchise history, but poor second-half shooting doomed the Storm in the opener of their first conference final.

Sun 61, Liberty 51

In New York, Nykesha Sales scored 13 of her 15 points in the first half and Connecticut beat New York in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.

Taj McWilliams-Franklin had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Lindsay Whalen added 12 points for Connecticut, which used a 23-5 run in the first half to build a 16-point lead en route to its third consecutive playoff win.

Crystal Robinson scored 17 points for New York, which lost for the second time in its last seven games.

Game 2 is Sunday at Connecticut.