LOS ANGELES, CA – The LA Sparks (12-14) are close to securing a playoff spot after winning both home games this week at Crypto.com Arena. Nneka Ogwumike score 35 of the Sparks points in their 79-86 win over the Indiana Fever (5-23).
Scoring for the Sparks was top-heavy against the last-place Fever. Brittney Sykes was the closest to Ogwumike with 11 points. Interim head coach Fred Williams said the team needed a more balanced scoring effort as they pushed towards the playoffs.
There probably isn’t anything that warms the heart of a coach more than a team that listens and executes. Four starters were in double digits in Thursday afternoon’s win over the Atlanta Dream (12-15), and Chiney Ogwumike was three rebounds away from a double-double finishing with 15 points and seven boards.
That win should serve as the biggest lesson for the Sparks as they try to finish the regular season strong: Shut down the big players on the team. While Tiffany Hayes hit her season average scoring 18 points, rookie sensation Rhyne Howard struggled to score from anywhere on the floor. Howard shot an abysmal 2/14 from the field, 1/8 from beyond the arc, and five of her 10 points came at the free throw line. By her own admission, she had clean looks, but the shots just wouldn’t fall.
The race for the sixth and seventh spots is very tight and the road won’t be easy but, as Chiney said, the chemistry has developed right before our eyes. Chennedy Carter is back looking healthy and happy and scored seven points off the bench in the win over the Dream. Liz Cambage seems to be running at full steam, and Nneka is proving she deserves the M-V-P chants.
The Sparks will need that and then some as they try to avoid a season sweep to the Las Vegas Aces (19-8) on Saturday night in Vegas.
