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The highly anticipated matchup between Suzy Batkovic-Brown’s Sydney Uni Acuvue Flames and Lauren Jackson’s Canberra TransAct Capitals needed an extra session to decide a winner. After Batkovic-Brown missed the potential winning shot at the end of regulation, Jackson put Canberra ahead for a good by knocking down a three-pointer with 18 seconds left to play. Canberra got a stop and went on to complete the 81-78 victory, pulling even with Sydney in the loss column and just a half-game back in the race for second place in the WNBL.

The two stars held each other well below their lofty averages. Jackson had 25 points and 13 rebounds, making 11 free throws in 13 attempts. Baktovic-Brown was held to 10 points, her lowest scoring output of the season after eight consecutive games with 20-plus points. She added six rebounds and four steals. See a photo gallery and video highlights from the game.

The Flames did get a win from their trip to the capitol, crushing AIS 87-51 on Friday night. In that game, Batkovic-Brown had 20 points and seven boards in just 22 minutes of play before calling it a night and preparing to face Canberra on the second half of a back-to-back set.

Sunday was the final of the Cup of Russia and a showdown between rivals UMMC Ekaterinburg and Spartak Moscow Region, the first meeting of the two sides since Spartak got Sue Bird back in the lineup and Ekaterinburg added Candace Parker. It took the full 40 minutes to decide things. With five seconds left and Ekaterinburg up three, Bird was fouled. She intentionally missed the second shot and got her own rebound, but could not connect at the buzzer to force OT as Spartak fell 77-75.

Bird scored 24 points, tying Diana Taurasi for game-high honors and making five three-pointers, and grabbed nine rebounds. Parker led Ekaterinburg with 23 points. Spartak reached the final by beating Vologda-Chevakata 102-72 in Saturday’s semifinal. Bird had 10 points and three assists in 19 minutes of action.

An odd game for Swin Cash’s Guangdong Asia Aluminum team. Guangdong trailed by 14 at the half before outscoring Yunnan 47-17 in the final 20 minutes to win going away, 80-64. Cash led all scorers with 19 points, knocking down a pair of three-pointers and seven free throws. She added six rebounds and three assists.

Liomatic Umbertide lost at home to Lavezzini Parma 61-52. Chelsea Newton, who played the full 40 minutes, scored six points and grabbed three boards.

Both teams with Storm ties in the Polish PLKK scored victories over the weekend. Lotos Gdynia remained atop the league with a 63-47 win over UTEX Row Rybnik on Friday. Tanisha Wright contributed 11 points, five assists and four rebounds for Gdynia. Wisla Can-Pack toppled AZS Poznan 84-65 behind 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists from Janell Burse.

On the final day of the Euroleague’s group play, Lotos Gdynia and Storm guard Tanisha Wright got bad news, then good news and the net result appears to be a mixed blessing. While Lotos Gdynia lost to Spartak Moscow Region 85-60 in Vidnoje, Russia, Gdynia’s fate also depended on the outcome of the other two games in Group D. When Tarbes BG and Szeviep also fell, Lotos advanced to the knockout rounds as the fourth seed from the group. The team’s reward? It appears Lotos – which had the worst record of any team to make the eighth-finals – will be matched up with undefeated Spartak in a best-of-three series starting Feb. 2.

“We were outplayed, especially in the first quarter,” said Lotos coach Jacek Winnicki. “If as it seems we finally will play against Spartak in the playoffs we need to improve our game.”

Tanisha Wright had a tough shooting night but finished with seven points and seven boards for Lotos. Sue Bird, meanwhile, was part of a balanced Spartak scoring effort. Bird, who had 10 points, was one of four players in double-figures. Three others added eight points. Bird also handed out five assists and shot 5-of-8 from the field as Spartak raced out to a 19-point lead after one quarter and cruised from there.

Meanwhile, Wisla Can-Pack sweated out an 85-84 win at Gospic Croatia to finish 9-1 and atop Group B. Gospic had two chances at the winning bucket in the final second, but missed both. Wisla will be either the second or third overall seed heading into the eighth-finals, though the team has struggled since the holiday break after starting the Euroleague season 8-0. Janell Burse had 17 points and 10 rebounds for her eighth double-double in 10 Euroleague games and finished one board ahead of Kosice’s Candice Dupree for the title of leading regular-season rebounder at 11.4 per game. She was also sixth in scoring at 17.2 points per game and fourth with 1.3 blocks per game.

UPDATE: The Euroleague has announced matchups for the eighth-finals, and indeed Spartak Moscow Region and Sue Bird will host Tanisha Wright and Lotos Gdynia in the 1-16 matchup. Wisla Can-Pack, seeded third, will take on MiZo Pecs 2010 in a best-of-three series. MiZo Pecs is led by two members of the Phoenix Mercury, Kelly Mazzante and Nicole Ohlde, and former WNBA player Dalma Ivanyi.

After a lengthy holiday break that featured just one game (Spartak Moscow Region winning a game that was postponed earlier), the Euroleague was back in full swing yesterday and today. Two of the biggest results involved members of the Seattle Storm.

Earlier today, Wisla Can-Pack suffered its first loss in Euroleague play, falling 92-88 in Italy to Beretta Famila Schio. The fourth quarter was filled with taut, back-and-forth action, and Janell Burse brought Wisla within two points with 10 seconds to play. However, Laura Macchi sealed things by making two free throws with three seconds on the clock to push the margin to two possessions. Burse got into early foul trouble and never really found a rhythm, finishing with eight points and four boards – both season lows during what has been an excellent Euroleague campaign for her. But Ewelina Kobryn (27 points), Marta Fernandez (22) and Iziane Castro Marques (17) stepped in to fill the scoring void. Where Wisla really suffered was at the defensive end. Macchi scored 24 points, making all 13 of her free throw attempts.

In practice, the loss is unlikely to have much impact. All Wisla needs to do is beat 1-8 Gospic Croatia next Wednesday to secure first place in Group B. This does mean the lone remaining undefeated team in Euroleague is Spartak Moscow Region, which got a stiff test from Tarbes GB but pulled out a 78-75 road win by holding Tarbes scoreless over the game’s final 2:58. The UConn backcourt was key for Spartak. Sue Bird scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting and Diana Taurasi put up a game-high 33 points, making five three-pointers.

Also in Group D, Lotos Gdynia surprised Frisco Sika Brno 77-73 at home in a game that could carry them into the knockout stages. The rebuilt roster came together to beat a Brno team that entered 5-3. In her debut for Gdynia, Tanisha Wright had four points, four steals, three rebounds and three assists. Erin Phillips had 16 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, while Gdynia’s defense held DeWanna Bonner (4-of-14) and Taj McWilliams-Franklin (3-of-11) in check.

At 3-6, Gdynia is now alone in fourth place in Group D, but will probably still need some help to reach the postseason. Next week, Lotos travels to face Spartak on the road, a likely loss. Barring an upset, Gdynia would need Tarbes to lose to Fenerbahce to advance, while a win by Szeviép would mean a tie that would come down to points scored and allowed. Fortunately for Gdynia, both the 2-7 teams tied for fifth will be considerable underdogs next week.

While we’re focused on Euroleague, All-Star voting is ongoing now. Because they missed most of the season, neither Bird nor Wright is eligible, but Burse is on the ballot and her stats (17.2 points and 11.6 rebounds per game) are certainly worthy of the honor, so be sure to cast your vote.