Sparks continue red-hot play with blowout of Fever

The Sparks survived a late surge from the Fever on Tuesday, earning an impressive 100-91 win over the Fever.

Indiana entered the game as the hottest team in the league, sitting at 8-2 in their last 10 games compared to LA’s 7-3 mark in that span.

Dearica Hamby ended with 16 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Kelsey Plum had 25 points and 11 assists. Rickea Jackson pitched in with 25 points.

Azurá Stevens scored 19 points, grabbed five rebounds and had two blocks. Rae Burrell had seven points off the bench.

Cameron Brink had a defensive masterclass with a career-high five blocks in 16 minutes.

Caitlin Clark remained out for the Fever as she recovers from a groin injury.

Both offenses started hot to open the game. Azurá and Kelsey combined for 10 of the first 15 points for the Sparks. Indiana’s Kelsey Mitchell had eight points. Rickea drained two 3-pointers and a layup for LA.

Los Angeles was shooting 55% from the field, and the Fever were shooting 47%.

Rickea ended the quarter with eight points, making her the scoring leader so far for LA. Kelsey was a perfect 3-3 from the field. At the end of the first, the purple and gold were down by one.

The second quarter began with Cam’s second block of the half. On the other end, Sophie Cunningham drained a 3-pointer. Julie Allemand joined in on the scoring with a layup.

Cam then got her third block of the half. While her shots weren’t falling, she was providing strong defense.

Dearica took over offensively with six points. Rae poured in five points off the bench, three of which came from a layup with a foul. The Sparks were playing good defense, causing shot deflections and blocking shots.

Julie Vanloo knocked down a 3-pointer, and as a team, LA was shooting 54% from behind the arc. Dearica and Kelsey were the first two Sparks in double figures. The rest of the quarter belonged to Los Angeles as they extended their lead to 11 heading into halftime.

Rickea started things off in the third quarter for the Sparks with a layup. Azurá ignited for five points. Former Spark Aari McDonald was up to four points. After Mitchell scored five in a row for the Fever, LA called a timeout.

Out of the break, Kelsey drained a 3-pointer. Los Angeles managed to stop Indiana’s mild momentum shift. Rickea converted on a layup and was assessed a technical foul for taunting. The game was getting chippy as both teams battled hard.

With 2:52 left until the fourth, LA was up double digits again. Cam’s defensive presence continued to be on full display as she notched her fifth block in 12 minutes of play.

The Sparks only had eight turnovers, playing a clean game. At the end of the third, they were up by 12. LA outscored the Fever by just one in the quarter.

Los Angeles started the final frame with a turnover. The Sparks then awakened offensively, going on a 14-2 scoring run to push their lead to 22. Rickea was up to 25 points, shooting an impressive 58% from the field.

Mitchell was unconscious from behind the arc, draining two more in this quarter. She was singlehandedly keeping the game interesting for Indiana. The lead dropped to 12 for LA.

The Fever’s spirited comeback saw them close the margin to within single digits. McDonald knocked down two straight 3-pointers against her former team as the Fever were on a massive 18-2 scoring run.

Azurá drained a much-needed 3-pointer in the final minutes that ended up stopping the run and sealing the win.

Key Takeaways:

It got scary in the fourth, but LA managed to get the win, and that’s all that matters.

Los Angeles had 12 turnovers, but they played a pretty clean game up until the final frame where it got messy.

The Sparks’ next game will be Thursday against the Connecticut Sun at 7:00 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.

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Sparks continue red-hot play with blowout of Fever

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