SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Silver Stars have their opening-night jitters out of the way. Now they can just concentrate on basketball.
The Silver Stars won their WNBA opener Saturday night, rallying to beat the Seattle Storm 65-56 behind Marie Ferdinand's 20-point performance.
The San Antonio franchise, formerly the Utah Starzz, relocated during the offseason because of lagging attendance in Salt Lake City. The team, a charter member of the WNBA, advanced to the Western Conference finals last season.
Saturday night's official attendance was 15,593, roughly double the typical turnout for the team last season at the Delta Center.
Margo Dydek, the 7-foot-2 center from Poland, added 15 points and eight rebounds for the Silver Stars, and Jennifer Azzi had 11 points.
"It wasn't a work of art, but it's a win and we'll take it," said coach Candi Harvey, whose team committed 18 turnovers and shot only 20-for-35 (57.1 percent) from the free-throw line. "In the second half, we picked up the defensive intensity and did a better job defending the pick-and-roll."
The Silver Stars struggled to find an offensive rhythm in the first half, scoring only nine baskets and committing 11 turnovers
"We were a bit nervous — the first game, the big crowd," said Ferdinand, who scored 11 of her points in the second half. "We were rushing and turning the ball over. The first thing that coach told us when we got in the locker room at half was to relax."
Trailing 31-28 at the break, San Antonio opened the second half with a 13-4 run, capped by a 3-pointer by Azzi with 14:57 remaining.
The Silver Stars led 57-48 with about five minutes left in the game, but two free throws each by Sue Bird and Kamila Vodichnova closed the gap to 57-52.
Dydek made San Antonio's final basket, a 4-foot jumper with 4:24 on the clock that made the score 59-52. After that the Silver Stars went 6-for-10 at the line and committed five turnovers but managed to hang on.
Lauren Jackson scored 15 points for Seattle (0-2) before fouling out. Bird and Vodichkova each scored 11 points.
"They hit some tough shots — we didn't hit ours," said Bird, whose team went 20-for-64 (31.4 percent) from the floor, compared to San Antonio's 21-for-45 (46.7 percent). "We needed somebody to step up. Unfortunately no one stepped up."
Among those in the large crowd were about two dozen former season-ticket holders for the Utah Starzz, who flew to Texas for the opener.
"This will be my team forever," said fan Glenda Anderson of Salt Lake City. "They're better off here because of the support — too bad for us."
SPARKS 82, SUN 73: At Uncasville, Conn., opening their season in a casino, the Los Angeles Sparks went with the safe move. They got the ball to Lisa Leslie down low.
Last year's WNBA most valuable player had 18 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots to lead the defending champions past the Connecticut Sun 82-73 Saturday.
The Connecticut team, formerly the Orlando Miracle, made its debut at the Mohegan Sun casino. The team was purchased and relocated by the Mohegan Indian tribe, becoming the first independent owner in the seven-year history of the league.
The resort is hoping to capitalize on the strong interest in women's basketball in Connecticut. Geno Auriemma, coach of the four-time NCAA women's champion UConn Huskies, was among the sellout crowd of 9,341.
Mwadi Mabika led Los Angeles with 19 points, and DeLisha Milton added 17. Former UConn star Nykesha Sales had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Sun, and Shannon Johnson and Katie Douglas also scored 16 points.
LYNX 72, MONARCHS 71: At Minneapolis, Katie Smith made a free throw with 8.7 seconds left as Minnesota won its first game under coach Suzie McConnell Serio.
Smith scored 13 of her 15 points in the second half. Svetlana Abrosimova led Minnesota with 23 points, but had only four in the second half. Tangela Smith led Sacramento (1-1) with 24 points.
COMETS 69, MERCURY 62: At Phoenix, Sheryl Swoopes scored 14 of Houston's last 21 points as the Comets beat Phoenix.
Swoopes had 23 points and seven assists for the Comets, who won for the second time despite missing starters Tiffani Johnson and Tina Thompson. Mfon Udoka, starting for Thompson, scored 12 points; and Michelle Snow, Johnson's replacement, had a career-high 16 rebounds and eight points. Snow just missed a dunk when she jammed the ball against the rim with 25 seconds left.