Sparks lose by blowing a double-digit lead at home against Mystics

The Sparks continue to disappoint, losing their eighth consecutive game.

The Sparks lost 82-80 to the Mystics at home, finding a new way to lose by blowing a double-digit lead in the fourth.

Despite this being their eighth consecutive loss, Stephanie Talbot had one of her best games of the season. She went three for five from behind the arc with 17 points, eight rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Dearica Hamby, who was named to the 2024 WNBA All-Star team before the game, scored 16 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and seven assists.

Kia Nurse also received accolades on Tuesday. She was named a player who will represent Canada in the 2024 Olympics. She ended the night with seven points and a rebound.

Rickea Jackson had four assists and 12 points and Aari McDonald dropped 17 points, distributed six assists, and grabbed three rebounds in the defeat.

A 3-pointer by Talbot opened up a strong start for the Sparks. Hamby and Jackson continued their dominant play with the rookie leading the team in scoring early.

Although the Mystics kept it close, the Sparks maintained a four-point advantage at the end of the first.

Both teams began the second quarter slowly, missing their shots. A layup by Li Yueru cut the cold shooting and extended Los Angeles’ lead to six.

Despite mounting a small comeback, Washington went down by seven thanks to a 3-pointer by Rae Burrell and a fastbreak layup by Hamby. LA was answering back each time it seemed the Mystics were going on a run, which is what we’ve seen the Sparks do a lot in the first half of games recently.

The Mystics had tied the game with a minute left, but the Sparks kept their composure and retook the lead and were up by five heading into halftime.

The Sparks were on a 15-2 scoring run since the second quarter. Their lead had grown to 13 and the Mystics were looking lost. As most Sparks games have gone, we’ve seen them dominate, only to lose their spark and have to claw back towards the end. The game wasn’t over just yet.

Washington had done a great job cutting the deficit to single digits, but Los Angeles was locked in and continued to score. McDonald nailed a timely three, and their lead was back to double digits with three minutes left in the third.

A positive for the Sparks was that they were less careless with the ball, which lessened their usual disastrous turnover count. Despite a few comeback attempts, the Mystics couldn’t get over the hump and the Sparks were up 64-52 at the end of the third.

However, in the final frame, the Mystics cut the deficit to single digits by scoring 10 straight points to snatch away LA’s momentum. The Sparks couldn’t knock down shots and suddenly, the game was tied.

Both teams exchanged shots, but Washington grabbed their first lead with a little over two minutes left in the game. It was even until the 1:18 mark when the Mystics jumped ahead by three.

With 20 seconds left in the game, Nurse turned the ball over which led to a foul. Shatori Walker-Kimbrough missed one free throw and made it a two-possession game and sealed the win for the Mystics.

Key Takeaways:

The Sparks couldn’t get out of their way against the Mystics. There were too many turnovers and a lifeless offense to start the fourth, which was their undoing.

Good teams find ways to win and bad teams find ways to lose. Despite being at home and up 14 with under ten minutes left, the Sparks found a way to drop a winnable game.

They’ll try to bounce back on Friday against the Las Vegas Aces at 7:00 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.