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Monday, Jul. 31 7:30pm ET
Weatherspoon's words revived N.Y. | |||||
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BOX SCORE
NEW YORK (AP) -- A pep talk by co-captain Teresa Weatherspoon at the mid-point of the season helped the New York Liberty clinch their third playoff berth in four years. So did a game-high 20 points from Vickie Johnson as the Liberty earned a playoff spot with an 81-56 victory over the Charlotte Sting on Monday night. "We don't want to just get to the playoffs, we want to win the Eastern Conference and get to the finals," Johnson said. The Eastern Conference-leading Liberty (18-10) won their fifth straight game and kept their lead over second-place Cleveland, which beat Detroit 76-65 Monday, at 2 1/2 games. The Liberty, who reached the WNBA Finals in 1997 and 1999, looked far from contention after a 66-65 overtime loss at Cleveland on July 3. That game dropped them to 7-9, including four losses at home. "After the loss to Cleveland, we came off the plane and went to practice," Weatherspoon said. "I said, `Everybody here is going to have to find their spirit.' Everybody was killing us and we weren't playing defense. Defense wins championships." The defending Eastern Conference champions led Charlotte 34-19 at halftime, tying the team record for fewest points by an opponent at Madison Square Garden. With the victory over the Sting, New York has won a franchise-high eight consecutive home games and 11 of 12 overall. Liberty coach Richie Adubato spoke to co-captains Weatherspoon and Sue Wicks after the Cleveland loss, and they relayed the message. "We weren't playing defense like last year," Adubato said, "and the numbers showed it. (Now) the only team that plays better defense than us is Los Angeles. They have the size and athletes to challenge shots and not give up second shots." Andrea Stinson led Charlotte _ who will miss the playoffs for the first time in franchise history _ with 18 points. Rhonda Mapp added 13 points and nine rebounds for the last-place Sting (7-21). "We couldn't get our offense going," said Mapp, whose team outrebounded the Liberty 32-25. "We weren't running the plays and turned the ball over too many times." Charlotte gave up 20 points on 22 turnovers. The Liberty opened a 51-31 lead on Weatherspoon's basket with just over 14 minutes remaining. The Sting could get no closer than 55-39 with eight minutes left. Johnson, who has led the Liberty in scoring seven of the last nine games, finished 6-for-9 from the field and made all five of her free throws. "I talked to Richie, and he stressed to me that I can beat anybody off the dribble," Johnson said. Crystal Robinson had 12 points and Weatherspoon added 11 points and six assists. New York, which won seven consecutive home games spanning the 1997 and 1998 seasons, opened a 10-0 lead before Mapp scored 5:15 into the game. Robinson's 3-pointer extended the lead to 22-8 with eight minutes remaining. The Liberty took a 30-10 lead before Stinson's free throw ended a four-minute scoring drought. Robinson made two 3-pointers in the 8-2 run. Sting forward Charlotte Smith injured her left ankle 10 seconds before halftime but returned to the game. Stinson had 11 first-half points for the Sting, who managed just eight field goals in the opening period. New York is the first team in the East to clinch one of four playoff spots in the conference. Los Angeles and three-time defending champion Houston have clinched in the West. The conference champions earn homecourt advantage in the best-of-3 playoff series that begin Aug. 11. | ALSO SEE WNBA Scoreboard RECAPS Cleveland 76 Detroit 65
New York 81 AUDIO/VIDEO   Tamika Whitmore takes the pass in the lane for the layup.avi: 527 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 | |||||