Storm rallies to win 16th straight at home

This one was worth fighting for.

And Camille Little let her Storm teammates know as much in the second half Tuesday night. The 6-foot forward went off in a huddle and everyone, not usually hearing such fire from her, perked up.

"The game wasn't going the way it should have been going, and instead of waiting around for somebody else to do it, why not?" said Little after she scored 12 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in a 68-64 win against Minnesota.

"I just couldn't let it continue," said Little of the Lynx outplaying the Storm. "I was upset and fired up. We can't let people come in here and beat us, and if they did, it wasn't going to be because of me. I was going to do something. I told them (teammates), 'I'll foul out before someone keeps scoring on us.' "

With Little (five) and Lauren Jackson (six) grabbing boards in the fourth quarter, the Storm held Minnesota to two points in the final 4:37 at KeyArena. Forward Swin Cash provided the go-ahead basket with 59.3 seconds on the clock, shaking off Lynx guard Lindsay Whalen for a turnaround layin.

Then Little snagged the biggest rebound of the game, a Whalen missed layup with 38.8 seconds left. Minnesota (12-20) was forced to foul, and Storm guard Tanisha Wright made two ensuing free throws and the Lynx missed two three-point attempts.

"Millie really got us going," said Wright, whose team improved to 13-6 when trailing after three quarters. "In the huddle she was the one demanding things. Demanding to get things done. Demanding to get rebounds. Demanding to get stops. She was serious and aggressive with it."

Serious because too much was riding on the game, even if the Storm (26-6) had clinched the top playoff seed in the Western Conference last month. Seattle was returning from a three-game road trip through the East — the last two losses, in which Storm coach Brian Agler rested his starters for most of the way.

But with only three regular-season games left, including Tuesday, the Storm wanted to get back in gear. And with a 15-game home win streak on the line, Agler again played his normal rotations and the result was closer to the Seattle team that won 13 straight games before losing to the Lynx by one on Aug. 1.

"It was important for us to get the win just for our mentality and for our confidence," said MVP candidate Lauren Jackson, who finished with a game-high 24 points and seven rebounds. "We've relaxed a little bit, too, with having a little bit of time. It does change your head space as much as you don't want it to and it frustrates you."

The win ties the WNBA record for home wins at 16, originally set by Los Angeles in 2001. It also prevented the Storm from losing three consecutive games for the first time this season.

The Lynx jumped to a 20-8 lead and Minnesota was up 39-28 going into halftime, as the Storm had 12 turnovers and 11 fouls.

"We were sort of dysfunctional in the first half and getting frustrated with ourselves," Agler said. "But we worked through it."

Jayda Evans: 206-464-2067 or jevans@seattletimes.com

Storm 68, Lynx 64

MINNESOTA		fg	ft
min		m-a	m-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Augustus	33:43	2-18	2-2	0-1	0	0	6
Houston	35:39	3-10	5-7	4-9	0	3	11
Brunson	31:11	2-6	2-2	2-8	2	4	6
MWright	30:28	3-12	7-8	3-7	1	6	14
Whalen	33:00	9-18	2-2	2-5	5	2	20
Hollingswrth	13:10	0-2	3-4	1-4	0	3	3
Maiga-Ba	8:26	0-1	0-0	0-1	0	2	0
Hornbuckle	14:23	1-2	2-2	1-2	0	0	4
Totals		20-69	23-27	13-37	8	20	64

Percentages: FG .290, FT .852. Three-point goals: 1-12, .083 (M.Wright 1-4, Hornbuckle 0-1, Houston 0-1, Whalen 0-2, Augustus 0-4). Team rebounds: 10. Team turnovers: 12 (9 PTS). Blocked shots: 4 (Brunson 2, Houston 2). Turnovers: 12 (Houston 3, Whalen 3, Brunson 2, M.Wright 2, Augustus, Hornbuckle). Steals: 11 (Brunson 2, Hornbuckle 2, Houston 2, Whalen 2, M.Wright 2, Maiga-Ba). Technical fouls: None.

SEATTLE		fg	ft
min		m-a	m-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Cash	34:48	4-9	5-5	1-7	0	3	13
Jackson	32:19	9-18	2-2	2-7	1	4	24
Little	26:52	4-11	3-7	5-14	2	5	12
Bird	35:42	1-8	0-0	0-2	8	1	2
TWright	29:28	1-5	4-4	2-6	2	4	6
Abrosimova	18:20	4-8	0-0	1-3	1	3	9
Willingham	9:24	1-1	0-1	0-2	0	2	2
Robinson	13:07	0-1	0-2	0-2	1	3	0
Totals		24-61	14-21	11-43	15	25	68

Percentages: FG .393, FT .667. Three-point goals: 6-14, .429 (Jackson 4-6, Little 1-1, Abrosimova 1-3, Bird 0-1, Cash 0-3). Team rebounds: 7. Team turnovers: 19 (13 PTS). Blocked shots: 2 (Cash, Robinson). Turnovers: 18 (Abrosimova 4, Bird 4, Jackson 3, T.Wright 3, Little 2, Robinson 2). Steals: 7 (Jackson 2, T.Wright 2, Abrosimova, Cash, Little). Technical fouls: None.

Minnesota	24	15	17	8 — 64
Seattle	12	16	24	16 — 68

Attendance: 7,394 (9,686). Time: 1:55. Officials: Amy Bonner, Tom Mauer, Eric Brewton.