Storm fall into tie for final playoff spot with loss

After Sacramento clinched its first Western Conference title, there was no letdown Saturday against the defending WNBA champions.

Yolanda Griffith scored a season-high 26 points to help the Monarchs beat the Seattle Storm 75-65 in a matchup of the top teams in the Western Conference in Sacramento, Calif.

The Monarchs, who clinched the conference title Thursday with a win over San Antonio, have won three straight and 10 of 11.

Lauren Jackson had 16 points and 15 rebounds for Seattle. The loss prevented the Storm from clinching a playoff berth and dropped them into a second-place tie with Houston with three games left in the regular season.

Sacramento reserve Kara Lawson scored a season-high 18 points and made four 3-pointers.

“We hadn’t seen Seattle in a long time and they are the defending champs, the team with the title,” Lawson said. “We were excited about matching up with them to see what we could do.”

Ticha Penicheiro added nine assists and six points for the Monarchs, who outscored Seattle 42-34 in the paint.

Janell Burse scored 13 points and Sue Bird had seven points and six turnovers.

“It’s really important for us to finish strong and get some momentum going into the playoffs,” said Seattle guard Tanisha Wright.

Liberty 64, Sun 58: At Uncasville, Conn., rookie Cathrine Kraayeveld scored a career-high 14 points and Elena Baranova grabbed 18 rebounds, also a personal best, to lead New York over Connecticut.

New York dominated from the outside, hitting a franchise-best 12 3-pointers. Kraayeveld, playing in place of the injured Ann Wauters, was 4 of 7 from the perimeter, none bigger than her 3 with 1:54 left to give New York a 60-55 lead.

Fever 62, Sting 53: At Indianapolis, Tamika Catchings had 18 points and matched her career high with 16 rebounds to lead Indiana over Charlotte.

Natalie Williams added 11 points and 10 rebounds for Indiana, and Kelly Miller had 13 points. Sheri Sam had 15 points for Charlotte.