There will be a new WNBA champion this
season after the Indiana Fever used four double-digit scorers and a terrific
effort from the free throw line to upend the defending champion Shock, 72-67,
in a decisive Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals.
Tammy Sutton-Brown totaled a team-high 17 points, Katie Douglas notched 14,
and Tamika Catchings and Ebony Hoffman each chipped in 10 for Indiana, which
advanced to the Finals for the first time in franchise history after back-to-
back wins at Conseco Fieldhouse.
The Fever will face Phoenix for the title after the Mercury topped the Los
Angeles Sparks, 85-74, in their winner-take-all matchup Saturday night. The
best-of-five series starts on Tuesday in Phoenix.
The club went 28-for-31 from the stripe, compared to a 12-for-16 effort from
the visitors.
Cheryl Ford recorded 12 points and 11 rebounds for Detroit, which had knocked
Indiana out of the past three postseasons. Deanna Nolan posted 16 points,
while Alexis Hornbuckle ended with 15 in defeat.
The biggest lead in the back-and-forth affair was seven. There were 18 lead
changes and 16 ties.
A Kara Braxton jumper had Detroit within 66-65 with just under 2 1/2 minutes
left. Neither team scored the next two times with the ball, and Briann January
missed a jumper for the hosts with under a minute left.
However, Hornbuckle was called for a foul going for the rebound, allowing
Sutton-Brown to hit two free throws for a 68-65 edge 43.8 ticks left.
Nolan was off the mark on a three at the other end, but Hornbuckle secured the
rebound and banked in a runner to cut the deficit to one with 19.9 to go.
The Shock fouled immediately, and Hoffman hit two clutch freebies to make it a
three-point game again.
Nolan, who shot 6-of-18 from the field, was again off the mark from behind the
arc, and Douglas sank the clinching free throws with 8.5 ticks left to send
the 18,165 fans in attendance into a frenzy.
Indiana led 26-21 after the first quarter, but the Shock trimmed its deficit
to 40-38 at the break.
The hosts made just 3-of-15 from the field in the third quarter but only
trailed 50-49 heading into the frenetic final stanza.
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