Los Angeles, CA – Dearica Hamby drew an “And 1” driving by her defender to put Los Angeles Sparks up three with 5.6 seconds left, followed by a breakaway steal from Julie Allemand to run out the clock, and seal the win over the Seattle Storm on Sunday at Crypto Arena, 94-91.
“We’re happy, we’re playing for that kind of game, you know? It’s exciting to play that kind of game, and at the end when you make the shot that we need, it’s a great feeling as a team,” Allemand said. “It’s everybody. When we play like that, we have so much fun, and it was tough for us at the beginning of the game, but then we came back…it’s a team win, the feeling is so different, and it’s just amazing to win like that.”
Kelsey Plum led her team with 20 points, seven assists and six rebounds. Hamby added 19 points, which included scoring seven of the Sparks’ final nine points plus two crucial free throws to tie the game at 87 with 1:25 remaining.
“The worst thing you can do is fear losing. The worst thing that can happen is [taking a loss], but you don’t want to think about losing, you want to think about just winning the next play and staying in attack mode,” coach Lynne Roberts said. “Dearica [Hamby] just made a great [play] and then hit her free throws. She was huge. Huge plays. Julie [Allemand’s] steal at the end. I mean, everybody contributed. Just like she said, it was a total team win.”
This game had a total of 10 lead changes and nine ties, as the Los Angeles weathered the Storm for second time this far in a three-game series to take the lead matchup against Seattle.
Storm’s Brittney Sykes kept her team battling with a pair of crafty layups late in the game, including one with 12.7 seconds left to tie it at 91-all after a pair of Plum free throws with 56.5 seconds to go for a Sparks’ two-point lead.
Sykes scored 27 points, rookie reserve Dominique Malonga added 20, while veterans Skylar Diggins and Nneka Ogwumike, poured in 17 and 15, respectively.
“It’s so hard to guard [Dominique Malonga], she’s just so big and athletic. When they [went] really big, we went a little smaller with Rickea [Jackson] at the 4,” coach Roberts explained. “As I always say, the knife cuts both ways – they gotta defend us, so it was a battle of wills. It seems like every time we play them, it’s back and forth…Seattle’s a good team, and they got a lot of powerful vets on that roster, so [I] couldn’t be more proud of the team.”
The Sparks (15-16) trailed 26-14 in the first quarter before finding their legs under them after back-to-back games, and traveling from Northern California, within 24 hours. The second quarter, Sparks’ second wind kicked in to win the period 32-14, and take the lead 46-40 at halftime.
“We played at Golden State, and they put a ton of pressure on the ball, so I was trying to get off of it, and we didn’t make shots and stuff like that, but tonight, I was really proud, Plum said. “There were definitely times where we didn’t make shots, but people just stayed in it. In this league, a lot of times, you just have to stay in it, and then it’s like a one or two-possession game, and anything can happen. I was really proud of the plays people made down the stretch, and it’s a growth moment for me, too, because a lot of times I was like, ‘oh, I’m supposed to shoot it.”
Most of the second half went back-and-forth as neither team led over eight. Seattle (16-16) led 87-80 with 2:52 left off a jumper by Diggins.
Sparks reached balanced scoring among their starters and coach applauded bench production. Azura Stevens dropped in a smooth 15 points and Cameron Brink shined again off the bench with double digits, scoring 14 points.
“I think we’re learning [and] not flinching, I think it took us a quarter to get the legs out from the game last night and the travel,” coach Roberts said. “You climb in bed at midnight, then you get up, and you gotta re-attack. It’s emotionally hard and these guys chose to get up and re-attack. That’s learning how to win, but not getting phased.”
The Sparks wrapped up their first back-to-back of the season, and will continue with three upcoming games in six days as they host coast rival New York Liberty on Tuesday, August 12 (7 p.m. PT) before road matchups against the Dallas Wings Aug. 15 (4:30 p.m. PT) and Washington Mystics Aug. 17 (12 p.m. PT).
