After getting shut down inside in their last game, The Charlotte Sting made some adjustments. The changes paid off.
Rhonda Mapp scored a season-high 18 points as the Charlotte defeated the expansion Detroit Shock 71-67 Thursday night in Detroit."Against Houston, we didn't have our spacing inside and it hurt us," Mapp said. "We went out tonight and corrected our spacing. That opened up our inside game."
Vicky Bullett had 16 points for the Sting (3-1) and tied the team record of five steals in a game. Andrea Stinson hit 3-of-4 3-pointers and finished with 13 points.
Sandy Brondello led Detroit (0-3) with 14 points, and Korie Hlede scored 13.
LIBERTY 64, MONARCHS 48: At Sacramento, after opening the season with seven straight wins last year, the New York Liberty were hailed as the darlings of the new WNBA.
That tag soon passed for the Liberty, who finished with an 18-15 record and lost to Houston in the first championship game. This season, the Liberty opened with three straight losses, before routing Sacramento 64-48 Thursday night.
Teresa Weatherspoon scored 13 points and had six assists for New York. Rebecca Lobo played a solid game inside, finishing with 11 points and eight rebounds. Vickie Johnson also had 11 points.
Latasha Byears scored 10 points for the Monarchs and All-Star guard Ruthie Bolton Holifield added six.
COMETS 87, ROCKERS 73: At Houston, Comets coach Van Chancellor doesn't mind his team's slow starts. Just as long as they finish on top.
Sheryl Swoopes scored 25 points and Tina Thompson added 23 as the defending WNBA champion Houston Comets overcame a sluggish start to beat the Cleveland Rockers 87-73 on Thursday night.
Cynthia Cooper added 21 points and seven assists for Houston (3-0). Janice Braxton led Cleveland (2-1) with 13 points, and Cindy Blodgett added 11.