this sucks

third straight road loss. grrr.

sue bird: 13 points 7 assists. but not enough to win over sheryl swoopes and the aging comets. blech

AP Story Recap:

Seattle (7-7) has lost three straight and five of eight overall. Houston had lost four in a row before beginning its winning streak.

Reserve Suzy Batkovik scored 16 points for the Storm, and Sue Bird added 13 points and seven rebounds.

Forward Lauren Jackson did not play most of the second half, finished with six points and took just four shots.

Visibly upset during postgame interviews, Jackson repeatedly said she didn't know why she was taken out of the game.

``I honestly have no idea, why,'' she added.

Coach Anne Donovan declined to comment on Jackson's status.

Seattle Storm's Suzy Batkovic (9) drives to the basket as Houston Comets' Kristen Rasmussen (52) defends in the second half in Houston Tuesday, June 28, 2005. Batkovic scored 16 points , but the Storm lost to the Comets 71-67.
(AP Photo/Donna Carson)

Jayda Evans of The Seattle Times tells more:

Jackson, who had just blocked a shot by Comets center Michelle Snow, did something that got her benched, but Storm coach Anne Donovan refused to comment about it after the game. Fellow Australian Suzy Batkovic replaced Jackson and was 6 for 9 from the field in the second half, scoring all of her 16 points, including a layup that put the Storm ahead 50-45.

Not even then did Donovan turn to her All-Star, who was a paltry 2 for 4 from the field, to help Seattle drag out a much-needed win. Instead, Donovan remained with the post rotation of Batkovic, Simone Edwards and starter Janell Burse, who played with a cast around a sprained right ankle suffered during shootaround.

After the media spoke with Donovan, they were allowed into the Storm locker room, where Jackson sat in a corner locker trying to quickly wipe away tears. She finished with six points, her second in a row and third overall this season in which she didn't reach double figures.

"I guess I got in trouble," Jackson said. "I honestly have no idea. The other girls, they really stepped up. Suzy and Simi and J.B. and the rest of the girls played a really, really hard game. But I really didn't expect it [to be benched]. I don't know what I did. I felt like I was more aggressive."

Jackson said she hadn't spoken with Donovan to discuss the benching. Fellow co-captain Sue Bird said she sensed something was going to happen.

"I had a clue, but you never know, stuff happens," Bird said. "Anne was upset and she [Lauren] was at the end of the bench. It's not like I had a clue she wasn't going to play the whole rest of the game, but once she didn't come in after a couple minutes, it was like, all right, let's try to win this."