Sparks Clinch Top Playoff Berth
Two minutes into Sunday’s game with Sacramento, the Sparks had nearly everything they wanted.
Seattle had just lost to Connecticut, which guaranteed the Sparks would win the Western Conference regular-season title outright and lock up the league’s best record. The latter guarantees the Sparks will have the home-court advantage as long as they are in the playoffs.
The unfinished business was beating the Monarchs, the WNBA team against which Los Angeles has most struggled this season. It is also a team the Sparks could face in the first round if the Monarchs catch either Minnesota or Phoenix.
So the Sparks completed their afternoon with a 65-52 victory before 10,195 at Staples Center, improving their record to 23-8 and damaging the playoff hopes of Sacramento, which slipped to 15-16, 1 1/2 games behind fourth-place Phoenix with three games to play. The Monarchs and Sparks split their season series, 2-2.
Yolanda Griffith led Sacramento with 17 points and seven rebounds.
Lisa Leslie continued her sterling finish to the season with 23 points, her fifth consecutive game with 20 or more. She also had six rebounds and two blocked shots. But she doesn’t want the Sparks to let up in their final three regular-season games despite having clinched the best record.
“We’re still playing teams we could see in the playoffs, so it’s going to be important for us to try and jump on them the way we did against Sacramento,” Leslie said.
The Sparks benefited from the return of starter Mwadi Mabika, who had sat out three games because of a sprained left knee. Mabika made five of 13 shots, including four of eight three-point attempts, and finished with 14 points.
She said her injured knee is improving although “there are still some things I can’t do because it’s still sore.”
Los Angeles bolted to a 19-9 lead in the first 10 minutes and maintained a double-digit lead much of the afternoon. Their biggest lead, 49-29, came on Mabika’s three-point shot with 11:47 left in the second half.
Sacramento struggled to keep up because too many of its shots went in every direction but the basket. The Monarchs made only seven of 26 shots in the first half, and finished making 20 of 56 (35.7%). Los Angeles made 43.4% of its attempts (23 of 53).
It was a sight Monarch Coach John Whisenant has seen too often. “We have to score off of team movement and execution, and get people open shots,” Whisenant said. “But we just hit dead spots offensively.”
In other WNBA games:
Washington 75, Houston 63 -- The Mystics (15-16) eliminated the Comets (12-18) from playoff contention with the victory at Washington. Houston’s Sheryl Swoopes was sidelined after injuring her eye seven minutes into the first half. Alana Beard’s 21 points led the Mystics, who are 2-0 since three-time All-Star Chamique Holdsclaw announced she would not return this season because of an undisclosed medical problem.
Connecticut 71, Seattle 64 -- The victory at Uncasville, Conn., was the third consecutive for the Sun (16-15), which moved into a tie with Charlotte for first place in the Eastern Conference. The Storm (18-13) lost for the fifth time in its last six games.
New York 64, San Antonio 62 -- Becky Hammon made a layup with 8.4 seconds left to fuel the comeback victory for the Liberty (15-15) at Radio City Music Hall, where the New Yorkers are 4-1. The Silver Stars (8-24) wasted a 41-31 lead with less than 14 minutes left. The victory ended New York’s three-game losing streak and gave the Liberty sole possession of third place in the Eastern Conference.