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©Associated Press
© St. Petersburg Times, published June 28, 2001
Orlando falls to Cleveland 65-41
ORLANDO -- The Eastern Conference-leading Cleveland Rockers built a 21-point first-half lead and cruised to a 65-41 victory over the Orlando Miracle on Wednesday night.
Cleveland picked up a half-game over idle New York in the Eastern Conference.
From 4-4 in the opening moments, the Rockers ran off nine straight points.
After a layup by the Miracle's Taj McWilliams-Franklin, Ann Wauters and Jennifer Rizzotti each scored four as the Rockers went on a 15-4 surge to push the lead to 28-10. Cleveland went into the locker room with a 37-20 advantage.
Orlando cut the deficit to 47-34 midway through the second half, but the Rockers responded with a 13-0 run that put the game away. They held the Miracle scoreless for 7:35.
Cleveland, which went into the game limiting opponents to a league-best 54.8 points per game and 35.6 field-goal percentage, improved on those numbers against the Miracle, which hit 15 of 57 shots for a season-low 26.3 percent.
PORTLAND 68, INDIANAPOLIS 65: Jackie Stiles scored 26 points, including two free throws with 31.6 seconds remaining, to lead the visiting Fire to victory. Stiles made 10 of 12 field goals, including 3 of 4 from three-point range, as Portland snapped a two-game losing skid by overcoming a second-half Fever rally. Sylvia Crawley added 12 points for Portland.
UTAH 68, MIAMI 63 (OT): Margo Dydek scored a season-high 24 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as the Starzz handed the host Sol its sixth loss in seven games. Marie Ferdinand, a native of Haiti who played high school ball a few miles away at Miami Edison, had 16 points for the Starzz. Kate Starbird added 15 points. Utah missed six of nine free throws in the extra period, but Miami missed 10 of 11 shots in overtime.
CHARLOTTE 74, DETROIT 50: Andrea Stinson scored 23 points and Dawn Staley had a season-high 11 assists as the host Sting ended its franchise-record seven-game losing streak.
Former NCAA heptathlon champion and WNBA player Corissa Yasen died from a self-induced drug overdose May 12 in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho, coroners concluded. The 27-year-old Yasen, a pharmacist, was found to have ingested a combination of prescription drugs that included muscle relaxers, anti-depressants, anti-anxiety drugs and narcotic pain relievers. Yasen played for the Sacramento Monarchs in 1997.