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MINNEAPOLIS -- Candace Parker and the Sparks jumped with joy on the court, joined in celebration by a guy named Magic Johnson who once made basketball championships a habit in Los Angeles.Parkers old college coach, the late Pat Summitt, was there in spirit, too.Nneka Ogwumikes short jumper with 3.1 seconds left, off the rebound of her blocked shot, gave the Sparks a 77-76 victory over the defending champion Minnesota Lynx in the deciding Game 5 of the WNBA Finals on Thursday night for the franchises first title in 14 years.Parker had 28 points and 12 rebounds to earn MVP honors of the Finals and her first WNBA title, capping a trying year marked by the death of the beloved Summitt, with whom she won two NCAA championships at Tennessee. Parker also was left off the U.S. Olympic team after helping them to a gold medal in the previous two Games.The journey to get here, I wouldnt have wanted to do it with anybody else, Parker said. Its amazing, when you surround yourself with good people, how fun it is.Sparks coach Brian Agler started his postgame news conference by playing a recording of the Tennessee fight song, Rocky Top, from a phone in front of him at the podium. Parker cried as she leaned over to hug her coach.Ive never been around somebody that has been critiqued so hard, Agler said, and Ive never been around anyone Im happy for than Candace.Said Ogwumike: Shes been through so much. Shes probably the most misunderstood person in the league. I told her I wanted her to get one.Parker said she heard Summitts voice in her head, recalling the time-worn advice to focus on defense and rebounding.You cant control if shots go in or shots dont, but what you can control is defense and rebounding, Parker said.Rebekkah Brunson made one of two free throws with 23.4 seconds left to give the Lynx a 74-73 lead. Parker answered with a layup on the other end that Maya Moore countered with a jumper. Then Ogwumike hustled her way over to the loose ball after Sylvia Fowles blocked her first attempt. She coolly swished it.Lindsay Whalens heave from just inside halfcourt bounced high off the backboard, setting off the celebration for the Sparks and silencing the sellout crowd of 19,423.Moore had 23 points and 11 assists for the Lynx, who fell short of matching the WNBA record of four championships. The Houston Comets won four straight titles from 1997-2000. The Lynx played in the finals for the fifth time in the last six years. They won three.The team that won this game deserved to win the game, Moore said, so its just hard to have it come that close.Chelsea Gray reeled off 11 consecutive points for the Sparks, capping that run with a smooth up-and-under layup to put them in front 60-59 early in the fourth quarter. Parkers putback with 3:06 left gave L.A. a 71-63 lead.But Moore seized the moment with a 3-pointer that brought Minnesota within four points, and Parker forced an off-balance 3 on the other end. Whalen stole the ball from Kristi Toliver and finished the fast break with a layup to tie the game at 71, setting up the final flurry.On the next play, Ogwumike hit a jumper that appeared to come after the shot clock expired. The officials signaled for a review but never looked at the basket. Los Angeles led 73-71 with just over a minute left. Seimone Augustus answered with a jumper, but those points proved to be critical.Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve, making sure to credit the Sparks for their performance, was livid about the non-call afterward.Its not enough just to apologize and send out a memo that they got something wrong, OK? These players are so invested, and something must be done about the officiating in this league. Because it is not fair to these great players that we have, Reeve said.The WNBAs new postseason seeding format based on overall record regardless of conference worked well, leading to this classic matchup between the two teams that fought all summer for the top seed and featuring several of the leagues biggest stars.I hope that we gained a lot of fans from around the world and around this country, Augustus said.The game was remarkably close, with 24 lead changes, 11 ties and no team ever leading by double digits.CHAMPIONSHIP ATMOSPHEREThe sea of green T-shirts donned by almost everyone in the crowd produced a deafening soundtrack from start to finish, befitting a game for the WNBA trophy.Johnson, a part-owner of the Sparks, wore all black while sitting courtside to root for his team. The Hall of Famer gave the players a pep talk after their loss at home in Game 4 on Sunday. His presence was all the more impressive considering the Dodgers, the other pro club hes invested in, also played Thursday night in Los Angeles in Game 5 of their National League championship series.They had to believe they could do it on a tough home court. This team Minnesota is tremendous, Johnson said. We just beat the champions, so I give them a lot of credit, too.WOLF TRACKSThe Lynx had celebrity backing, too. Timberwolves players at the game included Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Ricky Rubio, Cole Aldrich and Nemanja Belica.---This story has corrected spelling to Fowles in 11th paragraph. Cheap MLB Jerseys . I cant pinpoint a date, but I do remember a player from my youth. Brian Downing was with the Chicago White Sox at a time when I listened to every game I possibly could on the radio. That particular season the late great Harry Caray was calling the White Sox games. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys . -- Former San Diego Chargers safety Paul Oliver was found dead at his Atlanta-area home Tuesday night, and a medical examiner said Wednesday that the ex-player committed suicide. https://www.cheapnfljerseysjustwholesale.com/ . -- Arizona raced out to a big lead and did not back off, hitting the accelerator instead. Cheap Football Jerseys .Y. - Free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, fresh off winning the World Series with Boston, reached agreement with the rival New York Yankees on a seven-year contract worth about $153 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday night. Cheap NFL Jerseys . Now tied for second in the league in shootout goals, the 24-year-old likes to see what the opposing goaltender has in store before he ultimately lands on a move. WASHINGTON -- Wilmer Difo hit his first major league homer, and Pedro Severino his second, helping the injury-depleted NL East champion Washington Nationals move closer to clinching home-field advantage in the Division Series by beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-3 at a near-empty stadium on a dreary Thursday.Second baseman Difo and catcher Severino, both rookies, were in the lineup instead of Daniel Murphy (last started 12 days ago) and Wilson Ramos (out for the season), respectively.Last in the NL West, Arizona has nothing at stake the rest of the way. The Nationals, while already assured of winning their division and of facing the Los Angeles Dodgers to open their postseason, still are trying to lock up a higher seeding for that series.Washington began Thursday with a two-game lead over NL West champion LA for the right to host more games in the best-of-five NLDS. The Dodgers, though, hold the tiebreaker because of a 5-1 advantage in the teams season series.Nationals starter Joe Ross, working his way back from a stay on the disabled list with right shoulder inflammation, allowed one run in four innings, throwing 90 pitches. Washington wants to stretch him out to be able to start at some point in the playoffs.Reliever Reynaldo Lopez (5-3) was credited with the win. He pitched 3 2/3 innings, letting up Socrates Britos two-run homer in the ninth before being lifted.Mark Melancon got the last two outs for his 45th save.Robbie Ray (8-15) allowed five runs in 4 2/3 innings, including solo shots by Severino in the third and Difo in the fifth, along with Michael A. Taylors two-run single in the fourth.TRAINERS ROOMDiamondbacks: RF Yasmany Tomas was a late scratch from the starting lineup because of a stiff neck.Nationals: 2B Murphy (glute muscle) and RF Bryce Harper (left thumb) sat out again. Manager Dusty Baker said he expects to get Murphy back in the startting lineup for Game 1 of the NLDS against the Dodgers on Oct.dddddddddddd 7. Murphy last began a game on Sept. 17. He might get a pinch-hit, but I dont want to take him backwards, Baker said. Well probably have an intrasquad game or something to get him some live pitching.Harper, meanwhile, was out of the lineup for a fourth consecutive day, but mainly as a precaution on a wet day. Im still a little afraid. If he hits the ball solid, its not going to hurt. But if he gets rattled or hits one on the end or gets jammed on one, its going to send electric shocks through his body, Baker said.RAMOS STOPS BYRamos, out for the rest of 2016 because of a torn ACL in his right knee, stopped by the home clubhouse before Thursdays game. He is waiting for the swelling in his knee to go down before having surgery. Asked whether he would be around the Nationals during the playoffs, Ramos said: Im going to have to support the team from home, because its going to be very difficult for me to get around with the knee after the surgery.Ramos can become a free agent this offseason, and reportedly turned down a contract offer before he got hurt.If its up to me, he said Thursday, I definitely would like to keep playing for the Nationals and play as long as I can.UP NEXTDiamondbacks: Open a season-closing, three-game home series against the San Diego Padres, with RHP Braden Shipley (4-5, 5.26 ERA) starting for Arizona on Friday. The Diamondbacks and Padres are two of the four worst teams in the NL.Nationals: Their final regular-season series begins Friday against the visiting Miami Marlins. RHP A.J. Cole (1-2, 5.09) is slated to pitch for Washington, but he is waiting to hear the outcome of his appeal of a five-game suspension for throwing at a batter. ' ' '