The Sparks ended their three-game losing streak by beating the Fever, 106-92 on Wednesday night. Los Angeles defeated Indiana despite playing without Kelsey Plum and Cameron Brink, who remain out. Rae Burrell and Nneka Ogwumike stepped up big, combining for 46 points.
Dearica Hamby had a hot start for LA with four points. Ariel Atkins was close behind with three points after draining a triple. Kelsey Mitchell was shining early for Indiana with seven points. At the 4:58 mark, the Sparks were down by two.
Los Angeles was shooting 66% from the field, missing only one of their six shot attempts. All five starters scored for LA. Tyasha Harris had a strong showing off the bench for the Fever, scoring seven points. Offense was not an issue for Los Angeles. However, their defense was a struggle.
Alissa Pili, whom the Sparks recently signed to a player development contract, saw her first minutes of the night, scoring two points and grabbing four rebounds. LA’s second unit cut its double-digit deficit to four at the end of the first.
The Sparks started the second period with Hamby getting fouled and converting on both free throws. Atkins knocked down another 3-pointer, making it a perfect 2-2 in the half. After a layup, Mitchell was the first player for either team in double figures with 11 points.
At the 5:41 mark, the purple and gold were down by six.
Both teams were playing well in the paint, scoring 14 points each. Los Angeles held a 4-3 edge in fastbreak points. Nneka Ogwumike was up to four points after a fadeaway jumper. She also had two assists. It was a four-point game with 4:23 left in the half.
LA called a timeout, and out of the break, they went on a 12-0 run, taking the lead.
Lexie Hull stopped some bleeding for the Fever with a layup. The purple and gold kept their feet on the gas pedal and led by seven at halftime.
Caitlin Clark converted on a jumper to start the third period. LA responded with seven points in a row. Hull was now up to 12 points for the Fever after converting on two jumpers.
Mitchell had a scoring burst, knocking down two triples, but Los Angeles was still in full control of the game. They continued to step up their defense, leading to easy offense. Los Angeles built a double-digit lead, forcing Coach Stephanie White to call a timeout.
After the break, Harris was fouled and converted both free throws.
The Fever started to heat up, cutting the deficit to single digits behind Mitchell, but LA responded immediately with two triples in a row. Indiana tried to cut it to a single-digit deficit, but Burrell knocked down another 3-pointer, giving the Sparks an 11-point lead heading into the fourth.
Erica Wheeler started the final frame with a layup off the assist from Burrell. Damiris Dantas responded with a 3-pointer on the other end. Burrell continued her incredible night, scoring on a layup to push her point total to 22.
Clark drained her first triple of the night, out of six attempts, for the Fever.
The Sparks then scored five points in a row, giving themselves a 14-point lead with 5:12 left. That lead went down to 10 as Indiana went on a quick 4-0 run. Out of a Sparks timeout, Nneka scored on a jumper.
The teams exchanged baskets until Wheeler converted on a layup that put LA back up by 14 with 2:50 left. Indiana’s attempts at a comeback failed each time, as Los Angeles had all the answers. Atkins and Hamby put the finishing touches on the great win with five combined points at the end.
Key Player Stats:
Burrell had a huge game, scoring 22 points. Nneka ended with 24 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Hamby finished with 21 points, nine rebounds, two assists and four steals.
Atkins logged 12 points with three rebounds and two steals. Erica Wheeler added 12 points with four rebounds and six assists. Pili pitched in with four points, five rebounds and two assists. Jihyun Park had three points with three steals.
The Sparks’ next game will be against the Chicago Sky on Friday at 7:00 PM PT.
You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.
