Turnovers are key to Sparks’ loss

Tamika Catchings had 24 points and eight assists to lead the Indiana Fever to an 83-70 victory over the Sparks on Thursday night.

Chamique Holdsclaw led the Sparks (1-1) with 23 points and six rebounds.

The Sparks, playing without injured starting point guard Temeka Johnson, had 20 turnovers.

Indiana (2-0) led, 49-38, early in the third quarter before the Sparks got hot. A three-point basket by Holdsclaw capped a 12-1 run and tied the score at 50 with 3:15 left in the period.

But Tan White’s three-pointer with less than a second left in the quarter capped a 10-2 run by the Fever.

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The Chicago Sky traded guard Monique Currie, the team’s leading scorer and the first overall pick of this year’s Charlotte Sting dispersal draft, for center Chasity Melvin of the Washington Mystics.