Comets 74, 
Sparks 82
10:30 PM ET, July 9, 2008
Staples Center
Los Angeles, CA
Parker's 40 points, 16 rebounds power Sparks in overtime
| Top Performers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| HOUSTON | LOS ANGELES | ||
 |
T. Thompson Points: 21 Reb: 7 Ast: 6 Stl: 1 Blk: 0 |
C. Parker Points: 40 Reb: 16 Ast: 6 Stl: 2 Blk: 5 |
|
| Game Leaders | ||
| HOUSTON | LOS ANGELES | |
| Points | T. Thompson 21 | C. Parker 40 |
| Rebounds | T. Thompson 7 | C. Parker 16 |
| Assists | T. Thompson 6 | C. Parker 6 |
| Steals | S. Lyttle 3 | S. Bobbitt 3 |
| Blocks | M. Snow 3 | C. Parker 5 |
| · Team stats: Houston | Los Angeles | ||
| 2008 Season | ||
| » Wed 7/9 | @LA 82, HOU 74 | Recap | Box Score |
| Sat 7/19 | @HOU 75, LA 72 | Recap | Box Score |
| Sat 9/6 | LA 84, @ HOU 66 | Recap | Box Score |
| · Complete Schedule: Sparks | ||
| Next 5 Games | |
| HOUSTON (ET) | LOS ANGELES (ET) |
| 07/12 @MIN 8:00pm 07/17 MIN 12:00pm 07/19 LA 8:30pm 07/22 PHO 8:30pm 07/24 DET 9:30pm |
07/10 @SAC 9:00pm 07/12 @SEA 10:00pm 07/14 SAS 10:30pm 07/17 @PHO 10:00pm 07/19 @HOU 8:30pm |
| · Complete Schedule: Houston | Los Angeles | |
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Candace Parker scored a career-high 40 points and had 16 rebounds, six assists and five blocks to help the Los Angeles Sparks rally for a 82-74 overtime victory against the Houston Comets on Wednesday night.
"She's only getting better," Sparks coach Michael Cooper said of Parker, the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft. "I think she's starting to figure this league out, and she's starting to figure out how our team can function and evolve with her -- not around her, but with her."The reason why she's able to do what she does is because Smooth is still a force in this league.""Smooth" is Lisa Leslie, who had 13 points for the Sparks (12-6), who moved within a half-game of first-place San Antonio in the WNBA's Western Conference."Our coaches really emphasize Smooth and I establishing the inside game," Parker said. "When you start hitting inside then crazy, fall-away, off-balance 3-pointers will bank in."We have great shooters so it's hard for opponents to come at us."Tina Thompson had 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists for the Comets (9-11), who committed 22 turnovers that resulted in 24 points. Sancho Lyttle added 12 points.Trailing 69-68 with 1.6 seconds left in regulation, Parker made the second of two free throws to force a tie and send the game into overtime."I was really mad that I had to go into overtime," Parker said. "But we ended up coming out hot. I knew that when Shannon took the ball from Tina and Michelle Snow [off the overtime tipoff] that we were going to win."Los Angeles used an 8-0 run in the extra period to build a 77-69 lead with 2:50 to play. Marie Ferdinand-Harris led the spree with five points.Houston did not score in the first 2:52 of overtime and missed six of eight shots.Los Angeles, which trailed by as many as 13 points in the first quarter, its first lead at 68-67 on Sidney Spencer's 3-pointer with 3:21 left in regulation.Snow made two free throws to put the Comets ahead 69-68 with 3:01 left, before Parker tied the game.Thompson scored 10 points as the Comets began the game with a 17-4 burst in the first 5:11.