Holdsclaw Is Huge Against Her Old Team

Sparks 84, Mystics 75

Before last night's game against Los Angeles, Washington Mystics Coach Richie Adubato stated, with no sense of hyperbole, that the Sparks are the most talented team in the WNBA. To beat the Sparks without the services of star guard Alana Beard, Adubato felt his team would have to play a near-perfect game.

The Mystics weren't exactly perfect, but they did make a league-record 15 three-pointers while holding returning league most valuable player Lisa Leslie to eight points. Still, the Mystics lost, 84-75, in front of an announced crowd of 12,243 at MCI Center.

What made this loss all the more painful was that it was delivered by an old friend. Former Mystics forward Chamique Holdsclaw, who was making her first regular season appearance in Washington as an opposing player after six standout seasons with the Mystics, scored a game-high 27 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and made 13 of 14 free throws in helping the Sparks improve to 2-1.

Holdsclaw did her heaviest damage during the second half, when she repeatedly put her head down and drove to the basket. Two things usually happened: Holdsclaw either scored or she was fouled and went to the free throw line. Either way, the result was not good for the Mystics. Holdsclaw scored 17 second-half points, with her final eight points coming on free throws.

"My foot's been real sore lately so I haven't been able to drive as much, but tonight I felt good," said Holdsclaw, who played 40 minutes for the second consecutive night. "With the new rules and the way they're not letting defenders put their hands on you when you drive, I felt that they couldn't stop me."

The Mystics (1-2) were led by forward Charlotte Smith-Taylor, who scored 17 points. Forward Chasity Melvin added 16 and rookie guard Laurie Koehn came off the bench to make four three-pointers on her way to a season-high 15 points. But the game was really decided at the free throw line, where Los Angeles made 30 of 35 shots while the Mystics made 6 of 12.

One call particularly bothered Adubato. The Mystics trailed 73-70 when DeLisha Milton-Jones was whistled for a foul while attempting to stay in front of Holdsclaw, who was dribbling upcourt. Holdsclaw went to the line and made two key free throws.

"It was a great game," Adubato said. "It's unfortunate that they have a new rule that you can't touch somebody in the back court. It was a 73-70 game. A great game. So maybe you would have the thought that you won't call the touch foul on a great player and foul her out. . . . I know that's the rule, but I just don't know about the timing of the call."

Untimely foul calls were hardly the only factors working against the Mystics.

Los Angeles shot 49 percent and held a 33-25 advantage in rebounding. Those statistical advantages made up for a lack of Leslie, who battled foul trouble, and lessened the impact of the Mystics' red-hot shooting. After making nine three-pointers in the first two games, Washington hit 10 of 19 in the first half last night.

When Melvin, who had made a total of 10 three-pointers in six WNBA seasons, stepped out and hit one from the top of the key to tie the game at 64, everyone in the building seemed to have a feeling that this was to be the Mystics' night.

But Holdsclaw and the Sparks had other ideas. While Holdsclaw was controlling the game by drawing fouls, forward Tamika Whitmore was causing problems with her outside shooting and tenacious rebounding. Whitmore, who scored six points in the first two games for the Sparks, finished with 21 on 8-of-14 shooting while grabbing five rebounds.