Last year, Phoenix shocked everyone by beating Detroit at The Palace. Last night, the Connecticut Sun pulled off a similar feat, defeating the LA Sparks, 82-73.

A perspective from a Sun fan in attendance can be found here.

As for my thoughts, Katie Douglas has blossomed since the departure of Shannon Johnson. She is shooting 58% from three and is taking more shots, both good signs. For the Sun to have more victories, Nykesha Sales will need to play like she did last night, rather than shooting 38% from the floor as she is on the season. Taj McWilliams-Franklin is one of my favorite players...a true blue collar worker in the post who uses her court savvy and good body positioning to be effective against more highly-regarded post players.

And lets here it for Lindsay Whalen, who had 10 points and 7 assists last night after struggling mightily during her first few games. Whalen is playing the point full-time and was going to go through an adjustment period. Hopefully last night's game gives her more confidence.

As for Los Angeles, the Sparks have never been great defensively. But in three games this year, they have yet to hold an opponent below 79 points. Nikki Teasley is not a good defender, while Tamecka Dixon is an average one. But what is hurting Los Angeles is that DeLisha Milton's mobility has been severely hampered by the torn ACL. Milton can defend anyone in the post, but her length and athleticism allows her to defend small forwards as well. She cannot do that this year. Cheese or no cheese, Milton is going to have to have surgery at some point. And if the Sparks cannot figure a way to become a better defensive unit, then their chances of regaining the WNBA title are slim to none.