CLEVELAND (AP) -- The Cleveland Rockers picked a great time to
play their best game.
Rockers rookie Ann Wauters scored 12 points as the Rockers
eliminated the Orlando Miracle 72-43 Tuesday night to advance to
the WNBA Eastern Conference finals.
|  | | Ann Wauters showed Tuesday why she was the top pick in the WNBA draft as she scored 12 points to lead Cleveland past Orlando. |
Cleveland held Orlando to 28 percent shooting from the field,
the second lowest total in WNBA playoff history.
"That was the best basketball game we've played this year,"
coach Dan Hughes said of the Rockers, who finished second in the
East this season after going 7-25 a year ago.
"Our ability to sustain defense was very, very important," he
said. "That set the tone."
Cleveland will play host to the Liberty, the regular-season
conference champion, on Thursday night in Game 1 of another
best-of-three series. The second game will be played at New York as
will Game 3, if necessary.
Wauters, the first pick in last spring's draft, made all five of
her shots from the field. The 6-foot-4 center from Belgium also was
a defensive presence inside, keeping the Miracle from completing
passes for easy layups.
"It is fun to play this type of game," Wauters said. "We play
as a team, win as a team and now we step up to the next shelf as a
team."
Orlando had just seven assists. Suzie McConnell Serio had seven
of the Rockers' 24 assists as Cleveland dominated all aspects of
the game.
"Credit Cleveland," Miracle coach Carolyn Peck said. "They
played very strong and physical."
Rushia Brown added 10 points for Cleveland, which lost Game 1 in
Orlando before winning twice at home.
Nykesha Sales scored 13 points and Taj McWilliams added 12 for
Orlando, which lost its 10th consecutive road game.
"McWilliams is one of the best post players in the league,"
Brown said. "Playing defense on her before she even got the ball
was crucial. Once she got it, we had a lot of help from our
perimeter players coming in."
Doubling defense enabled the Rockers to open a 12-2 lead in the
first six minutes. The Miracle trailed 32-21 at halftime.
Unlike Game 2, when Orlando used a 10-0 run at the outset of the
second half to cut into a 21-point deficit, Cleveland continued to
extend its lead after the break.
Chasity Melvin scored four points in a 10-4 run by the Rockers
that gave Cleveland a 42-25 lead.
Orlando won the series opener 62-55 Friday night and the Rockers
rebounded Sunday to tie it with a 63-54 victory.
The Rockers improved to 15-3 at home overall, including a 66-65
overtime victory against New York on July 3. The Liberty won both
meetings in New York easily, 81-67 on July 29 and 57-44 on August
8.
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 Merlakia Jones goes in for two.
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 Helen Darling says she always been a great defensive player.
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