(Sue Bird and the streaking Storm beat the Mystics 79-71 in Washington on Tuesday night. Ned Dishman/NBAE/Getty Images)
TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Rookie Riquana Williams scored a season-high 27 points and Ivory Latta added 21 to lead the Tulsa Shock to a 91-75 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks on Tuesday night.
Temeka Johnson added 11 points as Tulsa (2-11) got its second win in the last 12 meetings against Los Angeles. Williams’ total was a WNBA rookie high this season and helped the Shock win for the second time in four games after opening the season with nine losses.
Kristi Toliver scored 21 points to lead Los Angeles (10-5), which dropped its second consecutive game and lost by 16 or more points for the third time this season. Candace Parker, who tied a season-high with 33 points in a victory over the Shock on June 20, was held to just two points on 1-of-6 shooting.
STORM 79, MYSTICS 71
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sue Bird scored 25 points and Ann Wauters added 14 as Seattle won its fifth straight and completed a home-and-home sweep of Washington.
The Storm (6-7) never trailed and held a 30-17 advantage at the free throw line in the opener of a four-game road swing. Seattle continues racing up the Western Conference standings after opening the season losing seven of eight games.
Crystal Langhorne led the Mystics (2-9) with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Washington, returning home following a winless road trip has lost four straight and eight of nine overall.
After the Mystics tied the score at 36 in the third quarter, Wauters’ 3-pointer put the Storm ahead 45-42 and started an 11-2 run. Seattle’s lead didn’t dip below five in the fourth quarter.
DREAM 70, FEVER 58
ATLANTA (AP) — Angel McCoughtry scored 22 points, Sancho Lyttle added 17 and Atlanta won consecutive games for the first time this season.
Tamika Catchings missed her first six shots from the field and finished with a season-low eight points for the Fever. Katie Douglas and Jessica Davenport each added eight as Indiana did not have anyone score in double figures.
McCoughtry, the WNBA’s scoring leader, went without a point in the first quarter, but had a combined 18 points in the second and third quarters.
The Fever took their biggest lead at eight in the final minute of the first quarter, but their offense all but disappeared — going 1-for-15 from the field — in the second. Cathrine Kraayeveld’s runner in the lane capped a 19-1 run at the 4:37 mark of the second that put the Dream up 29-19.
