Leslie leads Western Conference to victory

Another win in the WNBA All-Star game for the Western Conference, another MVP trophy for Lisa Leslie.

Leslie took over in the second half Monday night, scoring 13 of her 18 points to lead the West to an 81-76 victory over the East.

The Western Conference has won all four all-star games and Leslie has left as MVP in all but one of those games.

The West took the lead for good on two free throws by Tina Thompson, who finished with 20 points, that made it 77-76 with 51 seconds remaining. Sheryl Swoopes, her teammate with the Houston Comets, added two more free throws with 19 seconds left to make it a three-point lead.

The East had a chance to tie it with 7 seconds left, but Tamika Catchings could not handle an inbounds pass, and turned the ball over. Thompson then hit two free throws for the final margin. -- AP