Last night's Eastern Conference games brought nothing but surprises.

1. Charlotte won. The worst team in the league won at home against a supposedly-resurgent Detroit, for the second time this year.

Last time Cheryl Ford missed all her free throws; this time she missed all her field goals, going 0-7 in 40 minutes. She did, however, pull down 16 boards-- more than half the Shock's total rebounds (31 to the Sting's 33).

For Charlotte, Tan Smith missed the game (bruised knee). McCarville started. Teana Miller came off the bench to score 12.

2. Connecticut lost. At home. Again, this time to Indiana. Catchings had 18.

Both teams shot well (though Whalen did not), but the Fever earned their frequent-flyer miles with 22 trips to the line: the Sun got just eight, none in the second half. Coach Thibault got ejected, picking up his second technical in a late dispute over timeouts.

Sun fans remain irate. So do Sun players. Nykesha Sales: ""Mike is very frustrated with us and a lot that's going on, and I don't blame him. We're not playing the basketball we need to play in order to win a championship."

3. In DC, the Mystics took the Liberty to overtime and then ran away with the game. Chas Melvin scored 30, tying her career high.

If Washington wins on Thursday in Connecticut, or if both Detroit and Washington lose, the fourth Eastern playoff berth will go to the winner of Washington vs Detroit on Saturday. Mystics fans have been AWOL for much of this season (last night's 6,010 may be a franchise low): perhaps that matchup can fill the Phone Booth once more.