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BOX SCORE
MIAMI (AP) -- Kara Wolters spent the final six minutes of
Thursday night's game making up for the first 34.
Wolters, outplayed for much of the game, scored six of her eight
points in the final six minutes as the Indiana Fever beat the Miami
Sol 57-54 in both expansion teams' opening game.
The Fever overcame a 17-point second-half deficit, and Wolters
added a key block in the closing seconds for the victory.
"In the first half, the offense was stagnant," said Wolters,
who added five rebounds. "My shots didn't flow. We just all
relaxed in the second half. It took every one of us to win this
game."
But mostly Wolters.
Indiana trailed 39-22 early in the second half, but used a 30-11
run to take a 52-50 lead with about two minutes to play.
"Indiana wasn't a team I recognized in the first half," Fever
coach Anne Donovan said.
The 6-foot-7 Wolters hit two short jumpers, and Rita Williams
followed with a 3-pointer to give the Fever their first lead.
Williams and Wolters added back-to-back baskets with a little
more than a minute remaining to seal the victory. Wolters, who made
her final three shots after a 1-for-5 shooting start, also blocked
Jameka Jones' baseline runner in the final minute.
The Sol had a chance to tie with three seconds to play, but
couldn't get off a shot. Miami shot 30 percent and made just eight
baskets in the second half. Indiana shot 46 percent.
"We had our chances," Miami coach Ron Rothstein said. "You
can look at it two ways: either we gave them the game or they took
it from us."
Wolters had been outmatched by Miami center Marlies Askamp, who
had 13 points and 10 rebounds and dominated the lane. Debbie Black,
the Sol's scrappy on-court leader, added 13 points and four
assists.
Wolters settled for jump hooks, badly missing most of the time.
With little help from Wolters and Stephanie McCarty, the Fever
cut into the lead in the second half. Alicia Thompson led Indiana
with 13 points.
"When you get a win, you get a win," McCarty said.
Much of the spurt came without forward Jurgita Streimikyte. She
left at the 12:17 mark with a sprained right ankle. She had to be
helped off the court after scoring six points.
Moments later, she headed to the locker room. She returned with
a splint and crutches.
"It's not broken," Donovan said. "I've heard two weeks.
Hopefully, it won't be that bad."
The Fever didn't score in the final 6:45 of the first half. But
the Sol also struggled to find the basket, missing an opportunity
to pull away. The Sol outrebounded the Fever 21-13 in the first
half, including 13-3 on the offensive end. They led 33-20 at the
break.
"Coming into halftime, we couldn't play any worse," said
Monica Maxwell, who scored 11 points for the Fever. "Their
pressure defense just shut down our offense, and we got flat-out
outhustled."
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RECAPS
Orlando 82
Charlotte 79
Indiana 57
Miami 54
Utah 83
Minnesota 74
Houston 77
Seattle 47
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