YPSILANTI, Mich.
The Detroit Shock won its third WNBA title in six seasons yesterday, beating the San Antonio Silver Stars 76-60 in Game 3.
Detroit swept the league's best regular-season team, winning the clincher at Eastern Michigan University's Convocation Center, a venue forced upon them because of a scheduling conflict.
For Katie Smith, the finals MVP, the win meant a league championship less than two months after she and her U.S. teammates took gold in the Beijing Olympics.
"Everybody battles on this team," she said.
Smith was lifted from the game with time running out as Coach Bill Laimbeer emptied his bench to the ear-splitting delight of the crowd.
A few minutes later, she was sprinting back on to the court with her teammates to celebrate yet another championship as confetti rained down.
Detroit became the second team in league history to win a third championship. Only the Houston Comets, who won the first four (1997-2000), have more. Los Angeles (2001, 2002) is the only other team with more than one.
Top scorer Becky Hammon of San Antonio was held to five points on 1-for-10 shooting.
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