Game 5 for WNBA Title

The Arco Arena court was quiet and clean, free of any confetti or streamers. The celebratory T-shirts stayed in their boxes, and the WNBA championship trophy remained hidden.

The crowd thought it would see the Monarchs’ coronation Wednesday. Instead, the Sacramento players got tickets back to Detroit for the decisive Game 5 in the WNBA finals.

What a Shock.

Katie Smith scored 22 points, Cheryl Ford had 13 points and 10 rebounds, and the Detroit Shock tied the finals with an emphatic 72-52 victory in Game 4.

Swin Cash and Deanna Nolan scored eight points apiece for the Shock, which made a remarkable mental turnaround after seeming disorganized and uninterested in most of the series’ first three games. After taking a six-point lead into the fourth quarter, the Shock held Sacramento to two points in the final quarter.

“We understand that they had everything ready for a celebration, but we really wanted to get it back to Detroit,” Cash said. “We came together in the last two days.”

Saturday’s finale will be played at Detroit’s Joe Louis Arena because the Palace in suburban Auburn Hills is hosting a Mariah Carey concert.

Although Detroit seemed finished after Game 3, Laimbeer had a couple of motivational tricks up his sleeve, including ripping the officiating and earning a fine from the WNBA.

“You have to hate the other team to win a series like this,” Laimbeer said. “Hating the other team is the natural instinct any time, but you have to take it to the next level in a championship series. All successful championship teams absolutely have to have it.”