Bird Is Expected to Play

The Seattle Storm caught a break Monday when guard Sue Bird’s injury was found to be less serious than first believed. She is expected to play in tonight’s deciding Game 3 of the WNBA Western Conference first-round playoff series against the Sparks, starting at 7 at Staples Center.

The Sparks are hoping Chamique Holdsclaw can get on the court as well, even though the ligament problem in the bottom of her left foot remains extremely painful.

Holdsclaw did not practice Monday, instead receiving treatment on her injured foot. She continues to wear a soft cast.

Coach Joe Bryant said Holdsclaw’s availability would be a game-time decision.

“We won’t risk her health,” Bryant said. “But if she’s out there only two or three or four minutes, she has a presence.”

Holdsclaw said in June she would consider retiring if the Sparks won the WNBA championship. If Los Angeles does not advance, this could be her final game in a Sparks uniform.

Bird left Sunday’s game in the fourth quarter bleeding from the nose after getting hit by an inadvertent elbow. Her nose had been broken during the 2004 and 2005 seasons, and she thought it had happened a third time. But it turned out to be a bruise rather than a break.

Bird will wear a customized face mask during the game. “It feels good today,” Bird said before practice Monday. “I’ve been on anti-inflammatory medication for a little while for other injuries, and that’s helped my nose. It’s not very swollen, and I’m not really black and blue. Because of the blood I was expecting black eyes immediately. There is some swelling, but if I can wear the mask, so be it.”

Injuries, however, are not the only things concerning each team as it tries to advance to the conference finals against Sacramento, starting Thursday.

“We have to make shots,” said Bryant, whose team is shooting 40% against Seattle’s defense. “And we have to get stops. It’s that simple.”

The Storm, on the other hand, must keep its attack going at the start of the second half. Seattle got away with scoring only 15 points in the third quarter in Game 1 but could not recover from scoring 15 in the third quarter in Game 2.

“When we’ve broken down during the season, unfortunately it’s been in the third quarter,” Seattle Coach Anne Donovan said. “I can’t say it’s a consistent pattern for us. I can say that it’s L.A.’s pattern to play strong in the third quarter.”

Each team has used a variety of defenses, the results ranging from sporadic to smothering. Each has had one great defensive night against the other’s leading scorer. Seattle limited the Sparks’ Lisa Leslie to one second-half shot in winning Game 1. The Sparks limited the Storm’s Lauren Jackson to four shots total in winning Game 2.

So what happens tonight?

“I would anticipate we would see a lot of zone,” Donovan said. “We got off to a great start against their man-to-man defense in the first quarter, and all of a sudden we became superheroes. They go to a zone, and your mind-set has to change to a more wait-for-the-right-shot mode. And we just stayed in that high-gear mentality. We have to have better ball movement and better shot selection.”

Bryant said his team must resist the temptation to run with Seattle.

“I don’t know if you all can hear me say ‘Walk the dog!’ from the bench,” Bryant said. “But that means, ‘Slow down, have patience. Let’s not rush up the floor and take a bad shot.’ ”

Neither team can claim the momentum but neither is afraid.

“L.A. vs. Seattle is always big time,” Jackson said. “I said to Betty [Lennox] before Sunday’s game, ‘This is your court, baby,’ even though Lisa’s autograph is on it. We’re going to do everything we can to get to the next round.”

Counters Sparks guard Temeka Johnson, “From where we come from, when this team was first put together, to where we are now shows the growth and maturity of this group. So I’m very confident.”

*

WNBA playoffs

All times Pacific

(* -- If necessary):

WESTERN CONFERENCE

SPARKS VS. SEATTLE

First-round series tied, 1-1

* Game 1: at Seattle 84, Sparks 72

* Game 2: at Sparks 78, Storm 70

* Game 3: at Sparks...Tonight, 7

SACRAMENTO VS. HOUSTON

Monarchs win first-round series, 2-0

* Game 1: Sacramento 93, at Houston 78

* Game 2: at Sacramento 92, Houston 64

EASTERN CONFERENCE

FINALS

CONNECTICUT VS. DETROIT

* Game 1: at Detroit...Thursday, 4:30 p.m.

* Game 2: at Connecticut...Saturday, 1 p.m.

* Game 3: at Connecticut*...Sunday, TBA

Note: Connecticut beat Washington, 2-0; Detroit beat Indiana, 2-0, in the first round.