The Sparks finally snapped their losing streak on Sunday, picking up a win on the road against the Fire, 106-101.
Fresh off trading away Kelsey Plum to the Mercury, LA did not quite start the tank yet, instead opting for a fairly untimely win.
The Sparks shot 52% from the field and 55% from the 3-point line. They outscored Portland 63-52 in the second half.
Dearica Hamby opened the game with a layup for LA. The team was shooting well to start, going on an 8-0 run to take the lead. Rae Burrell and Ariel
Atkins both drained triples early.
Portland began to find its offense thanks to Carla Leite’s seven points. Atkins was leading Los Angeles with nine points on perfect 3-3 shooting from behind the arc.
With 2:40 left, the purple and gold were down by five. The Sparks were extremely careless with the ball, already racking up six turnovers. Burrell knocked down her first triple of the half and had five points.
The first quarter ended with Los Angeles down by seven.
Jihyun Park stole the ball and took it all the way for a layup to start the second period for the Sparks. She was having a strong stretch, scoring on another layup. Bridget Carleton scored seven points for the Fire.
At the six-minute mark, LA was down by eight.
Los Angeles cut the deficit to two thanks to a combined nine points from Hamby, Erica Wheeler and Cameron Brink. Hamby continued to shine, pushing her point total to 11. She was the only Spark in double figures.
At halftime, the Sparks were down by six.
Nneka Ogwumike, who had a slow first half, began the second half with a layup followed by Hamby with one of her own. Nyadiew Puoch responded to LA’s surge with a 3-pointer for the Fire.
Hamby continued her stellar play, upping her point total to 21.
Megan DiLeo added four points for Portland. The game remained physical from both teams with plenty of hard fouls and replay reviews. In the quarter, the Sparks were shooting 53%, and the Fire were shooting 41%. Hamby was a perfect 5-5 from the field.
It was a five-point game before Nneka drained a huge triple with 3:04 left. Wheeler then knocked down a 3-pointer that put Los Angeles in the lead.
LA’s offense was on fire with Nneka and Chance Gray also knocking down triples. Heading into the fourth period, it was a tie game.
The final frame began with Park draining a 3-pointer for the Sparks. Carleton responded with a triple on the other end. Burrell then knocked down a 3-pointer as well. Carleton struck back with another triple. Park then answered with another one herself.
Leite converted on a three-point play to tie the game.
Once again, the game turned into a back-and-forth affair. It was a tie at the 5:55 mark. Atkins and Wheeler drained back-to-back triples for LA. Teja Oblak provided a spark for the Fire with four quick points.
With Los Angeles nursing a two-point lead, DiLeo drained a clutch 3-pointer to put Portland up by one with 1:32 left. The Sparks went up by two after a 3-pointer from Nneka in response.
The Fire missed an opportunity to tie or take the lead, and on the other end, Hamby converted on a layup to extend the lead for the Sparks. Leite was fouled and converted on both free throws to make it a two-point deficit for Portland with 27.6 seconds left.
Nneka was fouled and sent to the line, making both free throws. On the other end, Carleton knocked down a big-time 3-pointer. Wheeler was fouled with 19 seconds left, converting on both free throws.
The Fire turned the ball over on their next possession before Wheeler sealed the win with a pair of free throws.
Key Player Stats
Hamby finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Nneka logged 22 points, 20 of those coming in the second half, with 10 rebounds.
Burrell scored 12 points, Atkins ended with 12 points and Brink notched seven points with five rebounds off the bench. Park and Wheeler both pitched in with 12 points.
The Sparks’ next game will be against the Chicago Sky on Wednesday at 6:00 PM PT.
You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.
