Kelsey Plum sinks buzzer-beater as Sparks win

It was a night time when defenders draped over Kelsey Plum, her path to the rim often crowded. And when she turned to the officers for reduction, the whistles had been elusive.

But when it mattered most — that being with 3.3 seconds to play and the Sparks trailing by one — Plum lowered her shoulder and slipped between swiping arms and lunging our bodies.

One defender stumbled, another bit on a faux and Plum glided nearly untouched into the lane, kissing a floater off the glass as the horn sounded in an 81-80 Sparks escape.

“Just a heck of a finish by her,” Sparks coach Lynne Roberts said.

Plum’s teammates mobbed her, embracing the veteran who appeared unhappy during her seven minutes on the bench and pissed off after Dallas defenders batted away her makes an attempt at the rim. All of it pale, though, once she poured in 10 fourth-quarter factors en route to 20 on the night time.

“I feel like that’s what basketball is all about — putting on a show for [fans],” the Sparks’ Rickea Jackson said. “Both teams truly did that and everyone enjoyed themselves and got their money’s worth tonight.”

But before the buzzer, the night time belonged to Plum, Crypto.com Arena belonged to Paige Bueckers of Dallas. In fact, at occasions Wednesday night time, it appeared as though the Sparks had six gamers on the ground.

Bueckers drew ovations match for a home star. With swaths of followers flaunting her face on a T-shirt and spilling over railings for autographs pregame, the Wings rookie rode that backing into a career-high 44 factors — tying Cynthia Cooper for a most by a WNBA rookie.

“She’s a phenomenal player, point blank period,” the Sparks’ Cameron Brink said.

The Sparks (17-18) entered Wednesday’s affair with a blueprint for Bueckers, Roberts recognizing pregame that “we let Paige get to the middle which is what she wants to do,” in reference to Bueckers’ then-career-high 29-point efficiency last Friday against her Sparks.

But Bueckers solved every look the Sparks threw at her. Double-team her high, and she threaded the ball to cutters. Leave her one-on-one, and she buried mid-range jumpers with a composure that belied her rookie tag.

“Paige was unbelievable tonight,” Roberts said. “Did we make some mistakes defensively? Sure. Was she just unconscious and playing at another level? Yes. Just kind of have to tip your hat.”

Yet across the ground from the rookie, L.A. leaned on a pair who had worn that tag just last season.

They had been a product of the 2024 draft, a haul that featured Brink at No. 2 and Jackson at No. 4. Their pairing never had the possibility to totally bloom last 12 months, Brink struggling a season-ending injury just a month in.

A 12 months later, with Brink healthy and Jackson entrenched in the beginning lineup, the Sparks finally cashed in on their draft night time picks. On Tuesday, the sophomores saved their staff from a five-minute scoring drought to open proceedings against the Wings, spurring a 15-5 spree that stifled the noise that adopted Bueckers.

“On both ends, we just looked like we’ve been off for a couple of days,” Jackson said. “I said, ‘Why does it feel like we haven’t played in a minute?’ But we picked it up. The first five minutes was crazy, but we picked it up.”

Applause adopted Bueckers all sport, but the ultimate phrase — and the ultimate bucket — belonged to L.A.