Kara Braxton (left, earlier this season) enjoyed her best game of the year Wednes-
day with 25 points, 12 rebounds, three assists and one steal in the Shock's overtime
loss to Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)
Another day, another overtime for the Detroit Shock. Detroit played its fourth OT contest in the last six games against Atlanta Wednesday. Unfortunately for the Shock they’ve dropped three of those overtime contests, including Wednesday’s 98-95 defeat.
The Shock, who had an opportunity to move past the Dream in the WNBA’s Eastern Conference, enter the All-Star break in seventh place with a 5-9 record. Detroit is 1½ games behind Chicago for the fourth and final playoff spot.
The Shock entered Wednesday’s fourth quarter with a 65-62 edge. The lead changed hands nine times during the period with neither team leading by more than four points. Taj McWilliams scored on a short left-hand hook to give the Shock an 86-84 lead with 32.9 seconds left in the period. Offensive rebounding was a key to the Dream’s victory and center Michelle Snow grabbed a big one following a Sancho Lyttle miss. Snow scored on the put-back, was fouled, and sank the free throw to give Atlanta a one-point edge with 15.3 seconds remaining. McWilliams then drove the lane and drew a, sinking one of two free throws to knot the score at 87. Another Snow put-back at the buzzer appeared to end the game, but a review showed that the ball left her hand just after time expired.
A pair of Kara Braxton baskets helped the Shock take a 91-89 lead with 3:06 left in overtime. Then came the decisive sequence as Detroit committed three consecutive turnovers against an aggressive Dream defense, and Chamique Holdsclaw sank a three-pointer for a 95-91 lead with 1:44 left. The Shock had several opportunities to tie the game – including a pair of three-point tries in the final six seconds – but the Dream held on for the victory.
Free throws were a key to Atlanta’s success. While the Shock hit a solid 78.9 percent from the line (15-for-19), the Dream went to the line 39 times and sank 34 (87.2 percent). Atlanta also grabbed offensive rebounds at key times while the Shock committed turnovers at inopportune points. Also, while the Shock shot 48.1 percent from the field, Deanna Nolan – who’s playing with injuries to her shoulder, hamstring and knee – was only 3-for-20 (15 percent). If you subtract Nolan from Detroit’s total, the remainder of the team shot a red-hot 59.3 percent. Nolan is the Shock’s premier ballhandler and dished out nine assists Wednesday. But she’s also Detroit’s most frequent shooter, hitting 70 of 195 shots on the season (35.9 percent). For the Shock to succeed in their final 20 games of the season, Nolan will either have to shoot better or shoot less often.
The Shock seemed poised to succeed early in Wednesday’s game, playing an efficient offense that helped build a 22-16 lead after one quarter. The margin grew to 32-20 as the Shock shredded the zone Atlanta began playing in the second period. The Dream went back to man-to-man and the Shock began committing turnovers, opening the door for Atlanta to roar back and take a 42-38 halftime advantage.
Detroit began the third quarter with an 11-0 run that included three Braxton hoops and a Katie Smith triple. The 49-42 lead was the Shock’s biggest advantage of the third quarter.
Braxton led Detroit with 25 points (on 12-for-16 shooting) and 12 rebounds. Shavonte Zellous scored 20 points off the bench, McWilliams had 15 points, Alexis Hornbuckle 12 and Smith 11. Ivory Latta had 22 points for Atlanta. Read the complete box score.
The Shock played without Cheryl Ford for the second consecutive game as her surgically repaired right knee continues to give her trouble.
The Shock’s next game is July 31 against Minnesota. Smith will represent the Shock in Saturday’s WNBA All-Star game. The team will then travel to Washington, D.C. on July 27 as President Barack Obama honors the Shock for their 2008 WNBA championship.
Comments