StingRays’ Timing Is Perfect

Long Beach was up and down as usual Saturday night, but this time, the StingRays were at their best early and very late, deploying a hard-charging finish to secure an 82-74 victory over the Atlanta Glory.

It evened the ABL club’s regular season-ending eastern trip at 1-1.

The StingRays (25-17) have a shot at the Western Conference championship, but it’s a formidable formula:

*Long Beach would have to defeat league-leader Columbus (34-8), 19-1 at home this year, this afternoon in Columbus, then win at Philadelphia on Tuesday.

*Portland (26-16) would have to lose at San Jose today and at Seattle on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, before 5,131 in Morehouse Olympic Arena, Teresa Edwards and her Atlantans (15-28) fought back from an 18-0 Long Beach first-quarter run to gain a 38-38 halftime tie, lost much of that, then saw another late-game rally fall short.

Venus Lacy was Long Beach’s principal weapon, repeatedly going up over defenders Tracy Henderson and Katrina McClain for 12-to-15-foot jump shots. She finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds, with Yolanda Griffith adding 22 points.

“When we had to, we went to one of our strengths, Venus Lacy, down low,” Coach Maura McHugh said.

“Our guards did a great job getting the ball to her. The other key was the great defensive job Bev [Williams] did on Teresa Edwards.”

Williams, matched against a fellow all-star game starter, harassed player/coach Edwards throughout. She held her to a four-for-13 shooting night and 15 points. She’d averaged 20.5 per game and has scored 40 or more twice this season.

Everything McHugh saw looked better than the horror of Thursday’s 97-63 beating at New England.

“This time, we’d get down, hit some low spots, but then we’d come back with tougher defense, boxing people out and taking care of the ball,” she said.

With her players scrambling to make a late-night airport dash for a flight to Columbus, McHugh saluted Williams, the 5-foot-9 32-year-old veteran of six Italian pro seasons.

“She’s our best defensive guard, and she really responded to a big challenge tonight.

“Edwards is the whole package. She can shoot the three, she can drive on anyone and she can rebound. That was a huge effort by Bev, holding her to 15.”

After Long Beach’s first-quarter run erased a 5-0 deficit and made it 18-5, Atlanta crept back to 38-31, where it staged a 34-second, 7-0 run to finish the first half and excite the crowd.

Edwards made a three-point basket, Saudia Roundtree made a behind-the-back assist pass to Stacey Lovelace on a fast break and then Roundtree got an interception and layup with four seconds left for a 38-38 tie.

Atlanta pushed that up to 46-40 in the third, but Lacy and Griffith then teamed to lead a 20-8 run to finish the quarter.

The Glory got to within 66-64 with 5:43 left, but Griffith and Lacy put it away after that.

Notes

The StingRays will begin selling $16 and $8 playoff tickets Monday through Ticketmaster and at the Pond box office for the projected Feb. 21, 4 p.m. playoff game there against Colorado.