WNBA ROUNDUP Saturday's game

Shock 92, Mystics 86
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Katie Smith has spent the last decade building a Hall of Fame-caliber career with her shooting. Now, at age 32, the leading scorer in American women's pro basketball history has had to change roles. Smith had her best game as a point guard on Saturday, finishing with 17 points and a career-high nine assists for Detroit. "I feel good about running this team," said Smith, who took over the point after Elaine Powell went to Chicago in the expansion draft. "It was just a matter of getting enough repetition." Detroit (8-4) has won four straight overall and is 5-0 at home this season. The 92 points were its most since a 95-86 victory in Seattle on Aug. 17, 2003. "You could see this coming for the last few games," Shock coach Bill Laimbeer said. "Our key players have been shooting well, and we've been moving the ball." The Mystics (7-5) have lost two in a row. "I wasn't expecting that kind of score with their defense," Washington coach Richie Adubato said. Swin Cash had 19 points, and Nolan and Ford finished with 18 apiece in a game that saw 11 players, including every starter, score in double figures. Alana Beard led Washington with 20 points, including a four-point play in the last minute, and Nikki Teasley added 16. "Beard made every shot, especially at the end, but we really didn't shoot the ball very well other than that," Adubato said. "We missed some big inside shots, and Nolan hit a couple big ones to turn the game around." Washington shot 50 percent in the first half but led only 43-42. Cash had seven points in a 13-2 run to start the third, but the Mystics came right back with a 14-3 surge to take a 61-60 lead late in the quarter. The Shock led 65-63 at period's end, and were still up 73-72 with 5 minutes left. Nolan hit a 3-pointer, then answered Crystal Robinson's jumper with one of her own, making it 78-74 and Detroit pulled away down the stretch. "We have to learn to put people away," Nolan said. "I guess we just like to make things exciting for the crowd, but this was a big game against a team that we're battling for a playoff spot."
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Katie Smith has spent the last decade building a Hall of Fame-caliber career with her shooting. Now, at age 32, the leading scorer in American women's pro basketball history has had to change roles. Smith had her best game as a point guard on Saturday, finishing with 17 points and a career-high nine assists for Detroit. "I feel good about running this team," said Smith, who took over the point after Elaine Powell went to Chicago in the expansion draft. "It was just a matter of getting enough repetition." Detroit (8-4) has won four straight overall and is 5-0 at home this season. The 92 points were its most since a 95-86 victory in Seattle on Aug. 17, 2003. "You could see this coming for the last few games," Shock coach Bill Laimbeer said. "Our key players have been shooting well, and we've been moving the ball." The Mystics (7-5) have lost two in a row. "I wasn't expecting that kind of score with their defense," Washington coach Richie Adubato said. Swin Cash had 19 points, and Nolan and Ford finished with 18 apiece in a game that saw 11 players, including every starter, score in double figures. Alana Beard led Washington with 20 points, including a four-point play in the last minute, and Nikki Teasley added 16. "Beard made every shot, especially at the end, but we really didn't shoot the ball very well other than that," Adubato said. "We missed some big inside shots, and Nolan hit a couple big ones to turn the game around." Washington shot 50 percent in the first half but led only 43-42. Cash had seven points in a 13-2 run to start the third, but the Mystics came right back with a 14-3 surge to take a 61-60 lead late in the quarter. The Shock led 65-63 at period's end, and were still up 73-72 with 5 minutes left. Nolan hit a 3-pointer, then answered Crystal Robinson's jumper with one of her own, making it 78-74 and Detroit pulled away down the stretch. "We have to learn to put people away," Nolan said. "I guess we just like to make things exciting for the crowd, but this was a big game against a team that we're battling for a playoff spot."
Associated Press