[0] SPARKS CONTINUE TO HAVE PROBLEMS : CLEVELAND 89, SPARKS 85.Byline: Kristen Davis Daily News Staff Writer After Monday's loss to Charlotte, Sparks coach Julie Rousseau said the team could do no worse. She was wrong. The Sparks, who have 13 games remaining in their first season, lost to Cleveland 89-85 in front of 6,815 at the Forum. ``We've been probably through the worst part of the season,'' Rousseau said before the game. ``I don't think we can get any worse. . . I'm just hoping we can get a string of wins together and just move forward.'' The Rockers led by 14 with 15 minutes left, but the Sparks fought back with the help of Lisa Leslie With two seconds left and the Sparks trailing by three, Mwadi Mabika Mwadi Mabika (born July 27, 1976 in Kinshasa, Zaire (present Democratic Republic of the Congo)) is a Congolese basketball player and an All-Star in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She studied biology and chemistry at the Massamba School in Kinshasa. committed a flagrant foul A flagrant foul is a serious contact foul involving unnecessary and/or excessive and/or intentional contact in sport. There is a specific National Basketball Association foul termed a flagrant foul. on Merlakia Jones after getting stripped of the ball near the Sparks' three-point line. Jones went on to make one of two free throws. Rousseau changed the starting lineup For the line of action figures, see . A starting lineup in sports refers to the set of players actively participating in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes for the first time since taking over the team last Wednesday. Katrina Colleton, a forward, made her first start of the season. She finished with seven points and five rebounds in the Sparks' loss to Charlotte on Monday. Also, Zheng Haixia
Zheng Haixia (Simplified Chinese: 郑海霞, Traditional Chinese: 鄭海霞, born March 7, 1967 in Tuocheng, Henan Province) was a professional women's and Tamecka Dixon, who had each started seven games under former coach Linda Sharp, returned to the starting lineup. The trio combined for three of the Sparks 13 first-half rebounds and 11 first half points. ``I'm trying to make some adjustments to maximize the talents,'' Rousseau said. She also confirmed the Sparks trade talks were dead. The team was reportedly talking to Noun 1. talking to - a lengthy rebuke; "a good lecture was my father's idea of discipline"; "the teacher gave him a talking to" lecture, speech rebuke, reprehension, reprimand, reproof, reproval - an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to Sacramento about trading forward Heidi Burge Heidi Burge (born November 11, 1971 in Palos Verdes, California) is a retired professional basketball player. She is the twin sister of Heather Burge. Both graduated from Fairfax (Va. for former USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. All-American Pam McGee. Rousseau, who said she didn't feel any pressure from the rumors, said the team is going to stick with this roster for the remainder of the season. ``I have really no control over (trades). I'm just the coach. . . . Since I don't have any control over it, I don't worry about it,'' she said. Prior to the game, Rousseau addressed the Sparks continuous poor second-half performances. ``We want to get out of waiting until the latter part of a game to decide we want it because the opponent already knows they can beat you,'' Rousseau said. The Sparks' loss to Charlotte Monday marked the halfway point of the season. The Sparks watched game tapes from their win over Houston last week and compared it to Monday's loss to Charlotte. ``I wanted to let the players know how I want them to play and the different energy levels.'' CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Sparks forward Tamecka Dixon chases a loose ball during the first half of L.A.'s loss to the Cleveland Rockers at the Forum. Gus Ruelas / Daily News |
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