Lauren Jackson scored 19 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead the Seattle Storm past the host Houston Comets 75-67, in the opener of their Women's National Basketball Association first-round playoff series.
Despite a sore back Tuesday, Jackson made six of 13 shots and helped the defending champions take a 1-0 lead back to Seattle for Thursday's Game 2 in the best-of-three series. Michelle Snow scored 15 of her 21 points in the second half for Houston.
Meanwhile in New York, Tamika Catchings had 19 points and 12 rebounds, and Tully Bevilaqua added 14 points to lead the Indiana Fever past the Liberty 63-51 in Game 1 of their best-of-three Eastern Conference series.
Indiana took control late in the game, finishing with a 14-2 run including 11 of 12 free throws in the final three minutes. Game 2 will be played Thursday in Indianapolis.
Some information for this report provided by AP.