Surging Sparks Visit the Depleted Storm

On the surface, it seems as if this one really could have been mailed in.

The Seattle Storm (6-24), certifiably the WNBA’s worst team, just lost two starters and a near-starter for the season’s final two games--Edna Campbell (knee), Kamila Vodichkova (Achilles tendon) and Charisse Sampson (knee). Vodichkova and Sampson combined for 28 points when Seattle shocked the Sparks, 69-59, in overtime June 13 at Key Arena.

The Sparks easily avenged that loss, 76-63, at the Great Western Forum on July 27.

Winners of 11 in a row and 23 of their last 24, the Sparks can finish with a WNBA-record 29-3 mark with a win tonight and Wednesday at Salt Lake City.

The Sparks will open the playoffs at Phoenix on Friday, a matchup that was set after the Mercury lost to Houston, 71-54, Monday night at Phoenix.

The Storm didn’t seem like much to worry about in June, when it tripped up the Sparks. Oddly, two of the Sparks’ three losses this year have been to expansion teams, Seattle and Portland (10-19).

Yet, Seattle, which has won two of its last three, shook off its injury woes long enough Sunday to stage a 28-20 second-half rally against Portland and beat the Fire, 66-58, in overtime.

With ballots for the WNBA’s most-valuable-player award due Wednesday, the Sparks’ Lisa Leslie should be able to bolster her numbers tonight.

She has raised her rebounding average to a third-best 9.6 a game, but she has 29 more defensive rebounds than anyone in the league with 218. She is sixth in scoring at 17.9 points a game and, among players with 131 or more free-throw attempts, she is fifth at 83.2%.