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(Sports Network) - Camille Little scored eight points, including the game-winning layup after she stole the ball in the final seconds, as the Seattle Storm rallied to edge the Los Angeles Sparks, 75-74, and force a decisive third game in the Western Conference semifinals.
Swin Cash scored a game-high 18 points and grabbed five boards for the Storm, who lost, 70-63, in Game 1 on Wednesday. Sue Bird and Tanisha Wright each scored 15 points. Suzy Batkovic-Brown added 14 points off the bench for the victors.
Candace Parker ended with 15 points and nine rebounds for the Sparks. Tina Thompson finished with 14 points and eight boards, while Betty Lennox added 17 points off the bench. Lisa Leslie, trying to win a third championship in her final season, scored 12 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in the win.
Game 3 is scheduled for Sunday in Seattle.
Cash's layup with 53.5 seconds left in the contest deadlocked the game at 70-70. Parker missed a jumper during the Sparks' next possession, but Leslie was there to tip the ball in with 27.9 ticks left on the clock.
A scuffle for the ball during Seattle's next possession resulted in a jump ball with 17.5 seconds left. Wright was whistled for a violation during the jump ball, giving LA the ball.
Thompson made a pair of foul shots to put the Sparks ahead 74-70 with 14.3 ticks to go. Bird answered for Seattle with a three-pointer from the top of the key with 10.7 seconds left.
After a timeout, Noelle Quinn threw a bad inbounds pass that was tipped by Little. Ashley Robinson collected the ball and hit a streaking Little with a perfect pass, and Little completed the play with a layup, giving Seattle a one-point lead with five seconds to go.
Leslie's fade away shot at the other end was off the mark as time expired.
The Sparks, who held a 43-34 lead at halftime, let the Storm get back in the game in the third quarter. After DeLisha Milton-Jones made a layup to begin the frame, Seattle put together an impressive 14-2 run. Wright, who tallied seven points during the spurt, capped the flurry with a three-point play to put the Storm ahead, 48-47.
The remainder of the quarter was a back-and-forth battle that ended with Seattle holding a one-point edge, 56-55.
The Storm ripped off seven straight points to begin the fourth stanza, giving Seattle a 63-55 lead. Los Angeles fought back with 10 unanswered points to go ahead 65-63 with about 4 1/2 minutes remaining.
The score stayed close the rest of the way and set up for the exciting finish.
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