The Sparks went toe-to-toe with the WNBA’s hottest team on Friday night, overcoming a 12-point second-half deficit to take a fourth-quarter lead before falling just short.
Reigning WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson had 20 points and 10 rebounds and the league-leading Las Vegas Aces closed on a 12-2 run to beat the Sparks, 66-58, at the L.A. Convention Center.
The Aces (13-4) had defeated the Sparks (6-10) by 20-plus points twice this season, including a 99-75 setback just two nights earlier.
“To see the way the group was fighting on defense, coming back after Wednesday night just says a lot about our players,” Sparks coach/GM Derek Fisher said. “They wanted to come back and have each other’s back tonight.”
Las Vegas had its largest lead at 46-34 in the middle of the third quarter, but the Sparks scored eight straight points in the middle of the fourth to take a 56-54 lead.
Former Spark Chelsea Gray tied it at 56 with a 12-foot jumper and Riquna Williams, another former Spark, made a left corner 3-pointer with 1:53 left, her first basket of the game, to make it 63-58.
Gray finished with 14 points and star center Liz Cambage had 10 to help the Aces remain tied with the Seattle Storm atop the WNBA standings.
Erica Wheeler scored 15 points for the Sparks (6-10), while Amanda Zahui B. had 14 points and 12 rebounds.
The Sparks got stingy on defense, held Vegas well below its scoring average and were able to contain Cambage but Wilson helped close out the game with five free throws down the stretch.
“We want to be disruptive, we want to make our opponent uncomfortable,” Fisher said before the game, and his players responded with five steals and six blocked shots (four by Nia Coffey).
After getting outrebounded by 16 on Wednesday, the Sparks held the Aces to a 34-33 edge on the boards in the rematch.
Fisher said it took a concerted effort by all five positions considering Vegas leads the league in rebounding (38.5 per game) while the Sparks sit at the bottom (29.9).
The arena was perhaps the loudest it has been all season with a sold-out crowd of 959, getting particularly enthusiastic when the Sparks took their fourth-quarter lead.
“We feel that energy so when it does get loud, it does give us an extra boost,” Wheeler said. “We definitely fed off that.”
Veteran guard Kristi Toliver missed her third straight game with an eye injury sustained after getting hit in the face, and the Ogwumike sisters continue to recover from knee issues that have kept them out for several weeks.
To fill the injury gaps, the Sparks signed Lauren Cox on Wednesday after the Indiana Fever waived her earlier this week. The No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 draft, she had five points in a career-high 20 minutes in her Sparks debut.Cox first met her new teammates shortly before Wednesday’s game, then had her first shootaround Friday morning, giving her a chance to get some practice with the team. She helped the Sparks cut the Aces’ points in the paint from 52 on Wednesday to 32 on Friday.
“This team has just been great for me,” she said. “The leadership that this team has and, like I said, just talking me through things, has made things a lot easier.”
Fisher said before the game that they weren’t discouraged after Wednesday’s loss and that they were ready to empty the tank against the same opponent. They’ll hope to put together a similar effort on Sunday when they face Seattle.
"close" - Google News
July 03, 2021 at 12:46PM
https://ift.tt/3xg4YgB
Sparks can’t close out WNBA-best Aces - LA Daily News
"close" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2QTYm3D
https://ift.tt/3d2SYUY
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Sparks can’t close out WNBA-best Aces - LA Daily News"
Post a Comment