MINNEAPOLIS -- Candace Parker was about to pour some champagne over Nneka Ogwumikes head in a beyond-jubilant Sparks locker roo

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MINNEAPOLIS -- Candace Parker was about to pour some champagne over Nneka Ogwumikes head in a beyond-jubilant Sparks locker room.Candace ... please, no! Ogwumike said, grinning, to which Parker acquiesced, OK, I wont because I love you.Ogwumike, the league MVP, was thrilled to celebrate the first WNBA championship for herself, Parker and the rest the Sparks. But Ogwumike just got her hair done a couple of days ago. She protected it with a shower cap and a plea to her teammates for no direct hit from the bubbly.And just as she did so much else well in this amazing Game 5, Parker made the right move again. It was that kind of night for the Sparks, who are champions again after back-to-back titles in 2001-02.Ogwumike made the winning basket -- a putback with 3.1 seconds left -- as the Sparks stunned the defending champion Lynx and their 19,423 fans at Target Center with a 77-76 victory for the WNBA title Thursday.In a series that went back and forth -- punch, counter-punch -- the Sparks got the biggest rebound and the biggest shot when it counted most. And if you know anything about the personal histories of the Sparks players, you knew that their explosion of emotion at games end was built on many years of craving a moment like this.Parker, who was named the WNBA Finals MVP with 28 points and 12 rebounds, kept the Sparks afloat during stretches of the game when Ogwumike was in foul trouble.Parker didnt talk a great deal about all the things that fueled her this season -- not being selected to the U.S. Olympic team;?losing her college coach, Pat Summitt;?not making the all-WNBA first or second teams -- but they definitely kept her fire stoked throughout.Parker, the No. 1 draft pick in 2008, won two NCAA titles with Summitt at Tennessee. On June 24, Parker left immediately after the Sparks victory in Minnesota during the regular season and flew to Knoxville to say goodbye to Summitt, who died four days later from the effects of early-onset dementia, Alzheimers type.Parker, who turned 30 in April, had only one thing left to add to her vast résumé: a WNBA title. She would have loved to do it with Summitt at courtside, cheering her on. Still, Summitt was the first person on Parkers mind when the horn sounded and Los Angeles began to celebrate.Sparks coach Brian Agler played Rocky Top on his cellphone to open the postgame news conference. And Parker talked about how the things Agler implored her to do this season -- especially in the WNBA Finals -- sounded like a cherished voice from the past.This series really was about defense and finishing plays [by] rebounding, and I heard that for four years at Tennessee, Parker said. I think in years past, maybe I was doing a lot and maybe I could have used a little help. But this year, it was on me. My teammates were doing their part, I had to step up and do mine.Actually, Parker had a very good series overall, as she also led the way in the Sparks Game 3 victory. But shes a perfectionist who wasnt happy with how she played in Game 4, when the Lynx prevented the Sparks from celebrating a title on their home floor at Staples Center. Parker came out Thursday determined to return the favor.I think shes one of the most misunderstood players out there, Ogwumike said of Parker. She has a huge heart, and she always wants to do her best. But she needs the right people there to be with her. You know, it wasnt always peachy from the beginning -- but weve grown to develop a relationship and understand each other.Ogwumike was also a No. 1 pick, in 2012, but unlike Parker, she didnt win an NCAA championship. She came agonizingly close, going to the Final Four with Stanford four times. What raced through Ogwumikes mind at the end of Thursdays game was the 2011 national semifinals, when she made a late shot, but eventual champ Texas A&M followed with a basket to win 63-62.This time, though, Ogwumike had the last score for a perfect ending to her MVP season.You always have to keep looking on the bright side, and thats something Im really good at doing, said Ogwumike, who finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds. People think Im a little too optimistic, but I dont care. This is why you do it. You have to visualize things before they happen.How many times did this scenario run through Alana Beards head in her 13 years in the WNBA? Beard also did not win a college championship while she was Duke but went to the Final Four twice. Her college career ended, in fact when the Minnesota Gophers -- led then by current Lynx players Lindsay Whalen and Janel McCarville -- upset the Blue Devils in the 2004 regional final.The Sparks Essence Carson also came close to a college title, making the NCAA final with Rutgers in 2007. She lost to Parkers Lady Vols.You carry those things in your heart, Beard said of tough losses that she and her teammates have dealt with. But at the same time, it teaches you how to handle those situations in the future. If I didnt learn from my past experiences, I dont think Id be satisfied with who I am now.Beard missed two WNBA seasons dealing with foot and ankle injuries, and then signed with the Sparks in 2012 hoping to get the title that she never had a chance to win while with the Washington Mystics.This feels exactly like I thought it would, said Beard, who hit the winning shot at the buzzer in Game 1 and had eight points and six assists Thursday. This is something Ive dreamt about for years. Since we started this series, I couldnt sleep. I was waking up at like 4 oclock in the morning with tears in my eyes, like I was starving for something like this.Beard also gave kudos to Parker for what she did this season in empowering the rest of the team.Ive played with Candace for five years, and this was the most growth that Ive ever seen from her, Beard said. She consistently worked on it. And openly worked on it -- she was vulnerable in situations, and thats when you grow. She proved she can be a team player, and she did it this entire season.Sparks guard Kristi Toliver won a college title, hitting a key 3-pointer for Maryland in the 2006 championship game. She made similar huge shots all season for the Sparks. And as pleased as Toliver was to get her first WNBA title, she also was particularly happy for Parker.Now shes won on every level, Toliver said. When I dove on her at the end of the game, I said, You did what you needed to do to get us here. She delivered today.This year, more than any year, Ive seen a change in her with her selflessness, knowing that she cant do it on her own. Understanding that it takes 12. Not all great players will do that. She did, and reaped the benefits.Afterward, everyone with the Sparks -- players and coaches -- wanted a photo with Parker, and she obliged with a huge smile. She had said going into Game 5 that the Sparks always seem to do things the hard way, but it was all worthwhile as she held the championship trophy.Everybody on this team has a story, and this last year has been really tough for me personally, Parker said. My teammates and my coaches were always there for me.I think Im excited because we won a championship, but the journey to get here ... I wouldnt have wanted to do it with anybody else. Mike Person Jersey . 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"Hes going to have hip surgery on Jan. 7, and hell be expected to rehabilitate for four to six months beyond that," Canucks general manager Mike Gillis said Friday in an interview. BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- Tim Kempton scored 15 points with 10 rebounds, blocked three shots and sank a late free throw that gave Lehigh the final lead in a tight win over Robert Morris 64-58 on Saturday.Kahron Ross and Kyle Leufroy each scored 11 points and Austin Price 10 for the Mountain Hawks (3-4). Price had seven of Lehighs 14 assists.Isaiah Still led Robert Morris (2-7) with 17 points and Kavon Stewart added 13.In a game that saw nine lead changes and nine ties, Kempton converted a thhree-point play to forge a 50-50 tie, and his free throw with 4:11 remaining put Lehigh ahead for good, 51-50.dddddddddddd He punctuated the final surge with a dunk for a 55-50 lead.A Stewart drive with 12 seconds remaining pulled Robert Morris to 60-58. But Price sank two free throws, stole the ball and fed to Ross for a bucket in the final seven seconds. ' ' '