Jackson leads Storm past Mystics

Lauren Jackson had 18 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Seattle Storm to a 73-71 victory over the Washington Mystics on Sunday night at Washington.

Betty Lennox added 14 points and five assists for the Storm, who are 2-1 on their four-game road trip.

Sue Bird made two free throws with 38.3 seconds left to give Seattle a 69-64 lead after Mystics coach Richie Adubato drew a technical foul – his second of the game – for stomping onto the court to argue DeLisha Milton-Jones’ sixth foul.

“It was obviously unforgivable,” Adubato said. “I tell my players not to get them, and I can’t get them in those situations. It’s an emotion that I let get out of hand. I have never gotten a technical foul inside 2 minutes. … It’s the first time I’ve ever done it and it’ll be the last.”

After Alana Beard hit a jumper for her career-high 30th point, Bird made two free throws with 11.7 seconds left.

Coco Miller’s 3-pointer pulled Washington to 71-69 with 9.3 seconds left.

Barbara Turner made two free throws with 6.4 seconds remaining to seal it for Seattle.

Chasity Melvin, who had 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Mystics, added a layup with 0.9 seconds left.

The Storm had to hold off Washington one night after Seattle routed the Liberty 91-54 in New York.

“On a back-to-back with our limited personnel, that’s exactly what we thought we would have to do in the second half,” Storm coach Anne Donovan said. “I’m really proud of the effort. We really had to struggle to contain them.”

The Mystics took their first lead since 2-0 on Melvin’s two free throws that made it 60-59 with 3:33 remaining.

Melvin’s follow pulled Washington to 56-55 with 6:35 left. Bird, who had 12 points on 2-for-10 shooting, countered with a 3-pointer for Seattle.

Beard scored 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting in the third quarter, including a buzzer-beater that pulled the Mystics to 54-49. She finished with 30 points on 13-for-21 shooting.

Lynx coach, assistant resign

Suzie McConnell Serio resigned as coach of the Minnesota Lynx, the last-place team in the Western Conference.

McConnell Serio, the league’s coach of the year in 2004, guided the Lynx to a 58-67 regular-season record and two playoffs appearances in three-plus seasons.

Assistant coach Susan Yow, who was brought in at the beginning of the season, also resigned. Another assistant, Carolyn Jenkins, will serve as interim coach for the remainder of the season.