WNBA Sparks, Shock open championship series

Los Angeles looks for its third straight title.
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The Los Angeles Sparks had the WNBA's best record the previous two seasons and went on to win championships.
This season, they finished a game behind Detroit, giving the Shock home-court advantage in the Finals beginning tonight at Staples Center.
"They have the better record, so I think we are the underdogs," Sparks All-Star center Lisa Leslie said.
Motivation
Leslie and coach Michael Cooper were particularly annoyed that commentators and even Detroit coach Bill Laimbeer picked Sacramento to reach the Finals without mentioning the Sparks.
"We weren't chosen to be here, so that's another motivation factor for us," Leslie said. "We take offense to that because we are the defending champions."
The teams played once during the regular season, and Detroit won 87-78 in overtime at home. The Shock overcame a 16-point deficit, then outscored the Sparks 11-2 in overtime.
"We don't really remember the victory," Laimbeer said. "We're a much more confident team now. Back then, we were just learning about each other."
The victory eventually gave Detroit, which had the league's worst record last season, the WNBA's best this season (25-9).
"We don't panic at all. We get down 10 and we're still plugging away," Laimbeer said. "We make some of the biggest shots and biggest plays because we have great confidence in ourselves and our defense."
Road woes
The Sparks are 0-2 on the road in the playoffs this season, having dropped the first game in each series against Minnesota and Sacramento. They came back to win the final two games at home both times.
"Those two playoff losses don't mean anything to me. I feel comfortable going out on the road," Cooper said, citing the Sparks' better record on the road than at home.
The Shock plans to triple-team Leslie, the MVP of last year's Finals.
"She's the corner of that basketball team. Take that out and then what?" said Shock forward Cheryl Ford, the league's rookie of the year and Karl Malone's daughter.
Leslie said a key for Los Angeles will be staying out of foul trouble.
"Obviously, they have the same quickness that we do with the guards," she said. "They're big and strong inside and we're thin, wiry and quick, so we have to play to our advantage."
Detroit's front line of 6-foot-2 Swin Cash, 6-3 Ford and 6-5 Ruth Riley is taller and bigger than the Sparks' trio of DeLisha Milton, Mwadi Mabika and Leslie.