LOS ANGELES — Nneka Ogwumike had 19 points, 14 rebounds and five assists and Dearica Hamby had 16 points, eight rebounds and five steals as the Sparks pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat the Chicago Sky, 77-62, on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena.
Jordin Canada added 16 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Sparks (4-3), who improved to 3-1 at home. Elizabeth Williams added 14 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. Kahleah Copper had 10 points.
Alanna Smith had 19 points, nine rebounds and five blocked shots to pace Chicago (5-4).
The Sparks had a double-digit lead to begin the fourth quarter, but the Sky went on a 10-2 run to cut the margin to 60-58 with 6:45 left. The Sparks still led by just two when Ogwumike made a close-range shot for a 64-60 lead with 5:04 left.
From there, the Sparks leaned on their free-throw shooting (18 for 22 for the night) to help close out the win. Canada made a pair of free throws for a six-point lead with 4:12 left, Hamby made one of two a few minutes later then Canada made another pair for a 69-62 lead with 2:12 left.
A Lexie Brown free throw and a Canada driving layup pushed the margin back to double digits with 1:36 left and when it was over the Sparks had finished the game on an 11-0 run. Chicago did not score over the final 3:07.
The Sparks shot just 38.4% from the field and 3 for 20 from 3-point range, but they took advantage of 17 Chicago turnovers, were better on the boards and outscored the visitors by 14 points at the foul line.
The Sparks started off strong behind Hamby (nine first-quarter points) and Ogwumike and built a 20-12 lead by the end of the first quarter. Ogwumike scored 15 of her 19 team-high points in the first half, but Smith scored five points over the final 71 seconds of the second quarter to get the Sky within 37-33 at halftime.
Former Sparks guard Marina Mabrey made a pull-up 3-pointer to tie the score at 41 early in the third quarter, then Smith buried a 3-pointer to give Chicago a 46-45 lead with 5:05 left. Canada hit two free throws and Zia Cooke sank a 3-pointer as the Sparks regained the lead. Lexie Brown had two baskets during an 8-0 run to close out the period as they took a 58-48 lead into the fourth.
The Sparks play at the Minnesota Lynx (1-7) on Sunday to begin a stretch of six games in a 12-day span, and they got a key contributor back Friday. Sparks coach Curt Miller was happy to have his trusted “quarterback” back with the return of veteran point guard Jasmine Thomas.
The Sparks acquired the former All-Star and a 2023 first-round pick, which turned into rookie Zia Cooke, in an offseason trade with the Connecticut Sun. The 33-year-old, who is in her 13th season, scored five points in 12 minutes in her first league WNBA game since suffering and recovering from an ACL injury in May 2022.
Miller said one of Thomas’ best attributes is her vocal leadership, which he experience for the past seven seasons when they both were a part of the Sun franchise.
“Another voice,” Miller said before the game. “Obviously, Jasmine has already been a voice in the locker room, but it’s always easier to lead when you’re with your peers on the court.”
In addition to her initiating the offense, Miller is looking forward to Thomas being a catch-and-shoot player and a scoring threat off the ball. Her outside shooting should provide the Sparks with additional floor spacing.
Thomas also believes she can provide a defensive spark.
“I’ve been a defensive player my entire career,” she said. “Definitely want to get back to that but also a leadership, composure role. Being able to bring the team together and encourage us when we’re doing well but also being able to point out things that we can do better in game time, instead of after, and being able to make adjustments within the game.”
Now that Jasmine Thomas and Azurá Stevens are back on the court, I asked each of them to define what type of spark they want to provide for the Los Angeles Sparks. #WNBATwitter #WNBA pic.twitter.com/9NRrlajwS5
— John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) June 10, 2023
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