Pondexter scores 23 to help Liberty beat Storm

SEATTLE (AP) -- Although the New York Liberty still haven't solved their turnover problems, it didn't matter against the Seattle Storm.

New York overcame 22 turnovers as Cappie Pondexter scored 23 points to help the Liberty beat the Storm 67-62 Friday night for their first road win of the season.

''That's the most frustrating thing as a coach to ever go through to see the players just turn the ball over and many of them were just ridiculous turnovers,'' New York coach Bill Laimbeer said. ''But our defense again is carrying us at the moment and, hopefully, it doesn't catch up to us at some point.''

New York, which had 17 turnovers in an 87-74 loss at Chicago on Wednesday, entered the game averaging a league-worst 19.5 per game.

Kara Braxton added a career-high 14 rebounds and eight points for the Liberty (5-4), who were 0-3 on the road. New York also snapped an eight-game losing streak at Seattle, with its first road win against the Storm since 2002.

The Liberty used defense and their height to outrebound Seattle 46-26.

''They're not very big,'' Laimbeer said. ''That's going to be their problem all year long is rebounding. We knew that going in that we could dominate the glass if we put our mind to it.''

Temeka Johnson had a season-high 22 points to lead Seattle (4-5), which shot just 1 for 18 on 3-pointers and lost its second straight. Camille Little added 12 points and Tanisha Wright had 10.

The Liberty led 52-45 early in the fourth quarter before Seattle pulled to 60-58 with 1:02 left. However, Pondexter made an outside shot and the Liberty held on for the win.

''It was an ugly game, but a much-needed win for us, especially on this long West Coast road trip,'' said Pondexter, who came into the game averaging a team-high 17 points per game, including an average of 20 in her last three contests. ''This was one of those games we thought we could steal.''

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Pondexter scores 23 to help Liberty beat Storm

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