SEATTLE (AP) — Renee Montgomery made two free throws with 14.4 seconds left to help the Connecticut Sun beat the short-handed Seattle Storm 60-58 on Sunday night.
Montgomery drew a foul against Camille Little to set up the free throws that made it 59-58.
Connecticut improved to 23-9 and moved two games ahead of Indiana atop the Eastern Conference.
Kara Lawson led the Sun with 13 points, Tina Charles added 12, and Mistie Mims had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Shekinna Stricklen scored 12 points to lead Seattle (13-18), but the rookie missed two shots in the final seconds. The Storm have lost four straight.
Tina Thompson and Katie Smith hit consecutive 3-pointers to give the Storm a 56-54 lead with 2:21 remaining, and Smith added a 13-foot jumper to make it 58-54 with 1:22 left.
Lawson hit a 3 to cut the lead to 58-57 with 51.5 seconds left.
The Storm played without regular starters Sue Bird (strained right hip flexor) and Lauren Jackson (strained hamstring). Seattle, fourth in the Western Conference, has clinched its ninth consecutive playoff berth.
