CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- A new center and new confidence has
helped the Charlotte Sting turn the season around.
|  | | Charlotte's Tammy Sutton-Brown, right, going up against Cleveland's Ann Wauters, has been a big catalyst for the Sting. |
Tammy Sutton-Brown, a rookie inserted into the starting lineup
after the Sting set a franchise record with seven consecutive defeats, scored 14 points Saturday night to lead Charlotte to a 58-55 upset of the Cleveland Rockers.
It was the third consecutive victory for Charlotte, improving it to 4-10, and the surge coincides with Sutton-Brown's debut in the
starting lineup.
She also had three blocks against the Eastern Division-leading
Rockers, who had their WNBA-best seven-game winning streak snapped.
"I'm feeling very comfortable with my new role," Sutton-Brown
said. "It's exciting because we've been digging deep and playing
with heart over the past week."
The turnaround started with a 45-minute closed door meeting
following their seventh consecutive defeat. When new coach Anne Donovan
was done talking, the Sting players decided they were tired of losing.
"It was do-or-die time," Donovan said. "We were 1-10 and they
had to make a decision. They decided they didn't want to lose any
more."
Allison Feaster added 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Sting,
contributions the Rockers thought hurt them the most.
"We know Allison is a good shooter and a good player," guard
Merlakia Jones said. "But we didn't know you have to respect her
on both ends at shooting and rebounding."
Five of Feaster's rebounds were on the offensive end, helping
Charlotte to a 16-10 advantage on offensive boards.
"I was impressed with Feaster on the offensive glass and was
impressed by the way she went after balls," Cleveland coach Dan
Hughes said. "I also liked her toughness."
The defeat wasn't the only bad news for the Rockers -- forward Mery Andrade suffered a concussion in a collision with Andrea Stinson
late in the game and is day-to-day.
Rushia Brown led Cleveland with 16 points. Jones added 15 and
Chastity Melvin scored 11.
The Sting led by 10 in the second half, but Cleveland rallied and
cut it to 56-55 when Jones rebounded Andrade's missed free throw
and tossed it in with 28 seconds to play.
Dawn Staley was fouled on Charlotte's possession and hit one
free throw to make it 57-55.
Andrade missed at the other end, Stinson got the rebound and the
two collided as Stinson turned to run up the court. It appeared the
two players smacked foreheads and Andrade had to be helped from the
floor, wobbling as she walked.
Stinson waved off help and calmly made one of two free throws to
seal Charlotte's victory.  Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
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ALSO SEE
WNBA Scoreboard
Cleveland team page
Charlotte team page
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