Portland, Ore. ? Nikki McCray scored 30 points and Tamika Catchings had 22 points, five assists and nine rebounds as the Indiana Fever snapped a three-game losing streak with an 81-72 victory over the Portland Fire on Thursday night.

Olympia Scott-Richardson added 10 points and nine rebounds for the Fever (5-5).

LaQuanda Barksdale scored a career-high 13 points and DeMya Walker had 12 for Portland (4-6). Ukari Figgs added 11 points for the Fire, who had won four of their last five and were looking to reach .500 for the first time since last July 24.

Catchings had just five points as Indiana trailed by eight at halftime, but the Fever opened the second half with a 22-8 run. Indiana scored 59 points in the second half, seven off the WNBA record.

Neither scored over the game’s opening 2:19 and Portland didn’t score until nearly four minutes had gone by.

The Fire closed the first half by outscoring Indiana 19-7 over the final 8:19. Portland finished the half shooting 35.5 percent after starting 1-of-10.

Monarchs 72, Storm 64

Sacramento, Calif. Tangela Smith scored 16 of her season-high 20 points in the second half and the Sacramento Monarchs pulled away to a 72-64 victory over the Seattle Storm on Thursday night.

Kedra Holland-Corn scored 14 points, Lady Grooms had 13 and Ticha Penicheiro added 11 points, 10 assists and six rebounds for the Monarchs (2-6), who are 7-0 all-time against Seattle.

Lauren Jackson had 15 points and 11 rebounds for Seattle (4-6), which has lost three straight games.

Reserve Kate Paye, who had not scored entering the game, made three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points before fouling out in the final minute. Rookie Sue Bird was held to seven points.

The Monarchs made 11 of 14 free throws over the final four minutes to hold off the Storm.

Monarchs 72, Storm 64

SEATTLE (64)

Lassiter 1-6 0-0 3, Jackson 6-20 3-6 15, Vodichkova 4-8 0-0 8, Randall 1-2 4-4 6, Bird 3-9 0-0 7, Paye 4-6 0-0 11, Edwards 2-5 3-4 7, Redd 1-1 0-0 3, Marciniak 1-2 0-0 2, Ragland 1-3 0-1 2. Totals 24-62 10-15 64.

SACRAMENTO (72)

Grooms 5-10 3-4 13, Frett 2-5 2-2 6, Smith 8-15 4-6 20, Holland-Corn 6-11 0-1 14, Penicheiro 1-3 8-12 10, Bolton 2-9 2-3 7, Bauer-Bilodeau 1-2 0-0 2, Nagy 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-55 19-28 72.

Seattle 31 33 64

Sacramento 30 42 72

3-Point GoalsSeattle 6-19 (Paye 3-4, Redd 1-1, Lassiter 1-3, Bird 1-5, Randall 0-1, Ragland 0-1, Jackson 0-2, Vodichkova 0-2), Sacramento 3-12 (Holland-Corn 2-6, Bolton 1-5, Penicheiro 0-1). AssistsSeattle 13 (Vodichkova 4), Sacramento 19 (Penicheiro 10). A7,259.

Fever 81, Fire 72

INDIANA (81)

Moore 0-2 1-2 1, Catchings 4-10 12-14 22, Scott-Richardson 4-6 2-2 10, McCray 11-13 6-7 30, Ivey 0-2 6-6 6, Thompson 1-3 0-0 2, Schumacher 1-2 0-0 2, Williams 2-5 4-6 8, Pettis 0-0 0-0 0, Klimesova 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-44 31-37 81.

PORTLAND (72)

Walker 5-7 1-3 12, Burras 0-1 1-2 1, Crawley 2-5 0-2 4, Figgs 4-11 0-0 11, Jackson 4-8 1-1 10, Barksdale 5-11 2-4 13, Folkl 1-1 1-2 3, Stiles 1-8 5-6 7, Thomas 2-2 0-2 5, Bevilaqua 2-2 0-0 6, Totals 26-56 11-22 72.

Indiana 22 59 81

Portland 30 42 72

3-Point GoalsIndiana 4-11 (McCray 2-3, Catchings 2-4, Thompson 0-1, Ivey 0-1, Williams 0-2), Portland 9-22 (Figgs 3-8, Bevilaqua 2-2, Thomas 1-1, Walker 1-2, Barksdale 1-2, Jackson 1-4, Stiles 0-3). ReboundsIndiana 33 (Catchings, Scott-Richardson 9), Portland 35 (Thomas, Crawley, Barksdale 4). AssistsIndiana 16 (Catchings 5), Portland 14 (Walker 4). Total foulsIndiana 21, Portland 28. A6,465.