Sparks Fizzle, Then Go Out in 58-57 Loss
The huge black curtains hiding unsold Forum seats seemed to reflect the Sparks’ gloom Thursday night.
The Sparks (2-7) collapsed in the closing minutes, failing to score in the game’s last 5:35 of a 58-57 defeat against the Utah Starzz before an announced crowd of 7,115.
It was their fifth straight defeat and the second game in a row in which they lost a lead in the waning minutes. And it left them in last place in the WNBA’s Western Conference.
The game ended with a futile, last-gasp three-point attempt by Los Angeles’ Mwadi Mabika, after Utah’s Russian star, Elena Baranova, had broken a 57-57 tie with a free throw with 3.1 seconds on the clock.
When Mabika’s shot bounced off the rim, Spark Coach Julie Rousseau was crouched on the sideline, staring at the floor.
In the locker room, her voice barely above a whisper, she lamented again missed opportunities.
The Sparks have lost their last two against WNBA tail-enders, Sacramento (2-6) and now Utah (3-7).
“We didn’t finish,” Rousseau said.
“We had chances, and we didn’t get it done. More mental lapses at the finish . . . they killed us.
“We’ve got to keep fighting this, and we will.”
It was a rugged, physical game. At one point, Utah’s 7-foot-2 Margo Dydek, fists clenched, nearly threw a punch. Mabika was called for a a technical foul when she appeared to slap Dydek under the basket.
The officials called 36 fouls and could have called an additional dozen.
Neither team shot well playing combat basketball, with the Sparks shooting 39%, the Starzz 38%.
As it had done at Sacramento, Los Angeles led for most of the game, but the Sparks surrendered the second-half lead for the first time on an Olympia Scott basket with 10:19 left that made the score 48-47.
Three times in the final eight minutes, Los Angeles had three-point leads. So rough was play in the low post during those last eight minutes only 12 points were scored.
The Sparks had only four points in the final 6:48, an Octavia Blue layup and two Tamecka Dixon free throws, at 5:35. They were shut out after that.
Even at that, they seemed ready to snatch a win with eight seconds left and the score tied. Point guard Penny Toler passed to Dixon, who drove across the key but lost control of the ball. She then fouled Baranova trying to retrieve it.
Dydek and the Sparks’ Lisa Leslie each had 15 points. Dydek blocked four shots and had nine rebounds to Leslie’s 10.
Los Angeles had 24 turnovers, its third straight game with 20 or more.
The Sparks had a 33-31 halftime lead, in part due to the team’s best play of the season. On a break, Jamila Wideman passed to Leslie, who made a perfect touch pass in midair to Blue, who made the layup for a 28-25 lead.
Eugenia Rycraw gave the Sparks their slim margin at intermission with two free throws with six seconds left in the half.
WNBA Notes
The Sparks activated Eugenia Rycraw, a former Cal State Fullerton player. She takes the roster spot of Haixia Zheng, who underwent knee surgery Wednesday. . . .
Jennifer Gillom had a career-high 29 points--including four for four from three-point range--as the Phoenix Mercury (7-2) beat the Cleveland Rockers, 76-61, in a WNBA game before 7,990 at Cleveland. Isabelle Fijalkowsi scored 16 points for the Rockers (5-4). . . .
Houston Comet forward Sheryl Swoopes, 27, was hospitalized Thursday after collapsing during practice. She was taken to Methodist Hospital in Houston, where she will remain overnight. She was believed to be dehydrated.