There was a lot at stake in the L.A. Sparks' Sunday gameagainst the San Antonio Silver Stars. A win would put us alone in thirdplace in the West. And Tina Thompson needed only 14 points to break theall-time scoring record in the WNBA.SanAntonio won the game 92-83, but Tina hit her shots and set the record -- and thensome.
I have had season-ticket seats for the Sparks since 1997 and havenot missed very many games in the last 14 years, so I have seen most of themilestones: first basket by Penny Toler, first dunk by Lisa Leslie against theMiami Sol, dunks by Candace Parker in back-to-back games.I have seen the court at Staples Center namedafter Leslie and seen Toler’s jersey retired in the rafters of thearena.On Sunday, we were all counting Thompson’s points.She's averaged about 15points a game for the Sparks this season, so we expected the points sheneeded to become the all-time top scorer would come Sunday.It took about four minutes into the game, butshe let loose a three-pointer that went in easily, and the countdown was on.
Behind the scenes, preparing for these moments is always abit nerve-wracking. We were prepared last Friday in case she scored the 26 shethen needed to break the record -- it would not have been unprecedented for her toscore so many points in a game -- but we all believed Sunday night would be thenight.We talked to the referees to makesure that on the next dead ball after she scored the record-breaking points, they would hold the action for amoment so she could get the ovation she deserved.Our marketing group had designed and loadedgraphics into the Jumbotron and ribbon board to celebrate her effort. Now it was just about waiting and counting.
By the end of the first quarter, with Tina only having threepoints and the Sparks getting killed on the boards, and down by 6, I started towonder if Sunday would be Tina’s night.Since the All-Star break, she has only had two games in which she scoredfewer than 14 points, so I decided to just be patient.
The second quarter of the game was almost a carbon copy ofthe first.The Sparks just couldn’t seemto find the ball after it went up toward the basket. In the entire first half,they had only seven total rebounds to San Antonio’s 20, and it showed in thescore.Their eight second-chance points madeup almost the entire 10-point discrepancy in the score, together with their 60%shooting from three-point range.AndTina had scored only three more points, this time the old-fashioned way, on abasket and free throw.The Sparks weregoing to have to do a better job on the glass and shutting down San Antonio’sthree-point game if they wanted to turn it into a game.
The Sparks came out of halftime ready to play. MarieFerdinand-Harris and Tina took turns scoring, cutting into thelead.Halfway through the third quarter camethe moment the entire arena was waiting for.Tina made two free throws, putting her within two of breaking the scoring record,and then she came down court on the next possession, putting up a wide-openjumper and down it went.The Staples Centercrows leaped to their feet cheering. Not only had she broken the all-time scoring recordin the WNBA, but on her next trip down the court, she drained a three to getthe Sparks within one point.San Antoniohad to call a timeout, and we didn’t need to worry about creating time for anovation for Tina.
Unfortunately, that would be the last thing we had to cheerabout in Staples Center on Sunday.The Sparksnever got closer than that one point, and though they made a run of it in thelast couple of minutes of the fourth quarter, San Antonio's second-chancepoints and three-point shooting were just too much.The season is far from over, however.The Sparks still have three home games leftin the regular season and two games against Minnesota, our competition forthe last playoff spot.It was great tobe able to celebrate Tina’s career milestone, and now I am lookingforward to celebrating more milestones before this season is over.
-- Kathy Goodman, co-owner of the Sparks
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