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Originally Published: September 16, 2009

Sparks never really in danger in Game 1

Regardless of close score down stretch, neither team plays its best

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By Mechelle Voepel
Special to ESPN.com
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Sparks Survive Storm, 70-63

Tina Thompson hit a key 3-pointer with 5:44 remaining and the Los Angeles Sparks went on to a 70-63 victory over the Seattle Storm in Game 1 of their Western Conference playoff series

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Sparks Survive Storm, 70-63

As they might say on "Project Runway," that game was a fierce, hot mess. Los Angeles won Game 1 of it Western Conference semifinal with Seattle. Or should we say, L.A. managed not to lose.

The Sparks beat the Storm 70-63 in the Staples Center on Wednesday. It was a game that had a lot of stars competing, but not exactly lots of sparkling play. Seattle shot 36.4 percent from the field, L.A. 35.7. And a good time was not had by all.

Specifically, Seattle point guard Sue Bird seemed about as happy as if she'd just lost a bet that forced her to wear nothing but Tennessee-orange clothes for the next year. Bird had just four points on 1-of-9 shooting and never really appeared to be her normal self.

Bird has been hurting with neck pain that forced her to miss the last three games of the regular season. On Wednesday, it seemed her interaction with coach Brian Agler wasn't exactly pain-free, either.

Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty ImagesLisa Leslie and the Sparks opened the game with a 22-4 run before allowing Seattle back in the game in the second period.

Whatever was going on there, Agler kept exhorting his team to fight harder. He was convinced that the Storm could still top the Sparks despite not having Lauren Jackson, who is out with a stress fracture in her back.

It appears the LJ "mystery" is cleared up. Unless a space-alien invasion or inexplicable force of nature somehow delays the remainder of the WNBA playoffs to perhaps January, we're not going to see her play in the postseason for the second year in a row.

Well, maybe we should still stick a "probably" in there -- LJ is known for trying to do the near-impossible when it comes to playing with injuries. But it certainly seems this will be a battle that Seattle has to win with its "other" Aussie center. Suzy Batkovic-Brown did well Wednesday, with 16 points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots.

Swin Cash, who missed the last two games after the death of her grandmother, led the way for the Storm with 24 points. Tanisha Wright had 13. It really seemed as if Seattle should have been blown right out of the building, all things considered, but that didn't happen.

It looked like it would early on, as L.A. had a 22-6 lead after the first quarter. But the Sparks' stinker second quarter left them up by just six points at the break.

The second half was sort of like watching a movie for which you've already figured out the ending despite various red herrings. Sure, it might have looked like Seattle was scaring the Sparks, but it never quite felt that way.

Even when the Storm were within three points of the Sparks in the fourth quarter, it still seemed as if L.A. was going to prevail.

Admittedly, it couldn't have been in L.A.'s game plan to have Candace Parker take just eight shots -- which was seven less than the reserve guard trio of Betty Lennox, Noelle Quinn and Shannon Bobbitt combined. Still, Parker finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Lisa Leslie, playing at home for what might be the last time, depending on Seattle's ability to bounce back, had 14 points and 10 rebounds, although her 3-of-11 performance from the field surely bothered her. Tina Thompson had 16 points and hit some big shots when L.A. really needed them.

DeLisha Milton-Jones had seven points and seven rebounds while playing defense that seemed to add to Bird's frustration.

These teams split their regular-season series, with each winning on its home court twice. Jackson played in all of those games, though.

Still, the fact that L.A. let the Storm linger Wednesday gives Seattle hope that even if Friday's game is another aesthetic mess, the green team can prevail.

Mechelle Voepel, a regular contributor to ESPN.com, can be reached at mvoepel123@yahoo.com. Read her blog at http://voepel.wordpress.com.