Olivia Miles carves up shorthanded Sparks, leads

The Sparks’ defensive struggles continued on Wednesday during a 99-83 loss to the first-place Minnesota Lynx at Crypto.com Arena.

The Sparks (7-7) had hassle containing Lynx rookie Olivia Miles, who set a WNBA rookie file with 24 first-half factors and completed with a career-high 31. Miles helped the Lynx (11-3) make a strong push for a spot in the Commissioner’s Cup championship, but the Las Vegas Aces snatched the ultimate spot against the New York Liberty with a victory over Phoenix on Wednesday night time.

Sparks guard Kelsey Plum, the WNBA’s main scorer, missed the sport with a decrease leg injury. The workforce also performed without ahead Cameron Brink, who sprained her ankle on Monday.

Rae Burrell led the Sparks in scoring with 19 factors, while Jihyun Park added 13 off the bench. Dearica Hamby was restricted to 12 factors and 9 rebounds, while Nneka Ogwumike added 10 factors and eight boards.

“I thought [Jihyun] was a bright spot. She is really smart out there and knows what she is doing,” Sparks coach Lynne Roberts said. “That’s what you need to do when you get those moments — you take advantage of it, and that’s what she did.”

With Plum and Brink out, Roberts said pregame that it could take a workforce effort to beat Minnesota, but it was a robust climb for 4 quarters.

The Sparks had been practically excellent in the first quarter before committing their first turnover with under 5 minutes to play. The turnover swung the momentum in Minnesota’s favor.

The Lynx erased the Sparks’ 7-3 lead — fueled by fast begins from Burrell and Hamby. Burrell scored 10 factors by being aggressive in all areas and Hamby scored 10 of her 12 factors in the first half.

Miles took a few minutes to get her ft moist. Once her photographs began to fall, the Sparks struggled to comprise her.

“She is good,” Roberts said about Miles’ efficiency. “She is talented. Like I said pregame, she is super skilled, and we were trying to mix things up. We didn’t execute exactly how we’d hoped to all the time, but you just have to tip your cap to her. She is a great player with a lot of skill.”

Lynx took their first lead with a jumper from Natasha Howard with 5:04 left in the first quarter. The lead modified incessantly early, but the Lynx opened the second quarter with a 27-21 benefit.

The Sparks’ scoring hassle flared up in the second quarter just as Miles received sizzling. The Sparks had been outscored 29-18 during the quarter and entered halftime down 52-37.

After trailing by as many as 20 factors in the third quarter, the Sparks cut the margin to 10. Erica Wheeler sank two free throws to cut the deficit to 61-51 with 4:32 remaining in the third quarter.

The Sparks held Miles to 5 factors during the third quarter, but the Lynx received 20 factors from Nia Coffey and 15 factors from Howard.

Fouls and turnovers crushed the Sparks’ rally. After Minnesota constructed a big lead, both groups cleared their benches late in the fourth quarter.

The Sparks haven’t crushed the Lynx at home since Aug. 21, 2018. L.A. is using a two-game dropping streak and will face Eastern Conference chief New York Liberty on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena. The sport will characteristic a celebration of the WNBA’s thirtieth anniversary.

“We are going through adversity right now,” Roberts said. “We just got to get healthy.”