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©Associated Press
© St. Petersburg Times, published July 23, 2001
Miami wins rough one
NEW YORK -- Miami Sol point guard Debbie Black smiled as the boos rained down from the crowd at Madison Square Garden.
Black's tenacious defense helped snap New York's eight-game homecourt winning streak as the Sol won its franchise-best seventh straight in a contentious 68-52 contest on Sunday.
As the first half ended with the Liberty down by 16 points, Teresa Weatherspoon shoved Black to the floor after missing a shot from halfcourt. Black caught up with Weatherspoon near the tunnel, and the point guards were separated by 6-foot-3 Sue Wicks and security guards.
Fans booed Black, who is known for her hard-nosed defense.
"The more you boo me the better," Black said. "It's a compliment as far as I'm concerned. That means I'm doing something right.
"I went up to (Weatherspoon) and said, 'Hey, that wasn't necessary.' I wasn't trying to fight her."
Black scored 14 on 5-for-9 shooting, and had 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals. Sheri Sam led the Sol with 17 points.
The game's seven technical fouls included a pair of double technicals against Black and Weatherspoon and to Tari Phillips and Sam during the halftime argument .
WASHINGTON 69, INDIANA 61: Returning after missing three games with a broken right foot, Chamique Holdsclaw scored 19 as the host Mystics ended a five-game losing streak.
Annie Burgess' layup 1:22 into the second half started a 14-0 run that erased a 34-33 Indiana lead. Burgess had six of her nine points in the run as Washington exploited seven turnovers in the opening five minutes of the half.
Nadine Malcolm scored 14 and Rita Williams 10 for Indiana, which has lost four straight road games.
Nikki McCray added 15 points for the Mystics.
Holdsclaw's 12 first-half points helped Washington to a 33-29 halftime lead.
Niele Ivy's three-pointer with 11:05 left in the first half capped an 8-0 Fever run that gave Indiana an early 16-8 lead. But Holdsclaw had six points in a 9-0 burst as the Mystics took a 17-16 lead on Holdsclaw's basket off a fastbreak pass from Burgess.