"WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS"
The Shock reclaimed
the lead on Deanna's trey with 53 seconds left, and Detroit was perfect from the line the rest of the way to claim
the WNBA title with an 83-78 win over the two-time defending champion Sparks. Ruth Riley was named MVP of a thrilling three-game
WNBA Finals.
The Detroit Shock won the WNBA Finals, defeating the two-time defending champion
LA Sparks, 83-78, as Ruth Riley dominated
the decisive third game.
Ruth scored a career-high 27 points on 11-for-19 shooting and won the showdown of All-Star
centers as she thoroughly outplayed Lisa Leslie, who managed 13 points on 5-for-19 shooting before fouling out in the final
minute.
After the final buzzer,
confetti fell from the rafters of The Palace of Auburn Hills and Ruth triumphantly hoisted a sign that read, "2003 WNBA champions"
as the crowd of 22,076 -- the largest in league history -- celebrated.
The Shock became the first team in American
pro sports to go from having the worst record in the league to champions the following season.
"He gave us the wisdom
that he had as a player, that we just have a lot of heart, we love to play together," Riley said. "We played so well and we
just played hard."
"We have great leadership, great internal leadership, and our players, if you get to know them,
they are outstanding people, and that's what makes great champions," Laimbeer added.
The Sparks did not go down without
a fight. They erased a 14-point deficit in the first half and an 11-point deficit in the second half, opening a three-point
lead with 3:40 left.
Never in the seven-year history of the WNBA has a team won the clincher on the road.
"I
always thought we would 'three-peat.' I thought we would win it on the road," Leslie said. "That's the way I feel, that's
the way my teammates feel. It's kind of like, wow, it wasn't our team, it wasn't our year."
Leslie made 1-for-2 free
throws to provide a 73-70 lead, but the Sparks went scoreless for more than three minutes. Riley made a short jumper, then
harassed Leslie into a miss at the other end with 1:10 left.
After Deanna's three-pointer
gave Detroit the lead for good, Leslie missed a short banker and fouled out chasing the rebound.
"It was very difficult
to watch the last minute or two from the bench," Leslie said.
That began a parade to the line by the Shock as rookie
Cheryl Ford and Deanna each made 4-for-4 free throws to hold off a last-gasp effort by the Sparks.
Nolan scored 17 points, Swin Cash added 13, 12 rebounds and nine assists and Ford had 10
and 12 boards for the Shock, who won the last two games at home after dropping the opener in L.A.
"It won't be long before the L.A. Sparks are champions again,"
coach Michael Cooper promised.
Detroit regrouped for a 42-37 halftime lead and widened it to 56-45 on a tournaround jumper by Riley with
15:11 to play. Mabika fueled a rally, and a jumper by Milton gave LA a 70-68 lead with 5:07 remaining. Riley's jumper tied
it before Mabika scored inside.
