Bird scores 21 to lead Storm past Atlanta

ATLANTA — Sue Bird scored 21 points and had nine assists to lead the Seattle Storm to a 83-69 victory over the woeful Atlanta Dream on Tuesday night.

Camille Little, who was traded from Atlanta to Seattle in June, scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds to help the Storm (19-10) move into a first-place tie with San Antonio in the West. Yolanda Griffith also had 16 points and Tanisha Wright added 11.

In the games Little has played in since being acquired, the Storm have had a 10-3 record. With reigning MVP Lauren Jackson out for the remainder of the season due to an ankle surgery, coach Brian Agler has applauded Little’s presence while in Jackson’s place.

“Her athleticism has been great,” said Agler of Little. “She maybe a little undersized, but she makes it up with how she can move around the court. With Lauren going down, Camille has been a great addition for us.”

The expansion Dream (3-27) lost their eighth straight game with only four games left in the season, hoping not to finish with the worst record in WNBA history. The Chicago Sky went 5-29 in 2006 in their inaugural season.

“We just couldn’t hold them,” Atlanta coach Marynell Meadors said. “We had no way of keeping them off the boards. They just had their way with us on the glass, getting most of the rebounds from us.”

Jennifer Lacy hit a short jumper to give the Dream a 40-39 lead with 7:36 left in the third quarter. But Seattle answered with a 15-3 run, capped Cash’s breakaway layup after a steal.

Swin Cash, who finished with 11 points, had six during the spurt for the Storm. Bird, who entered the game averaging 14.1 points, got the run started with a 3-pointer and a short jumper.

“Sue sets the table for us everytime,” Agler said. “To be honest, I don’t know who is a better candidate for MVP than Sue.”

Betty Lennox scored 25 points to lead the Dream. Iziane Castro Marques scored all of her 12 points in the first half.