The Sparks and Mercury teetered and tottered, but Phoenix pulled away late to hand Los Angeles an 86-82 loss on Wednesday afternoon at Crypto.com Arena in the two teams’ final game before a much-needed All-Star break.With the game tied at 60 entering the fourth quarter, Phoenix scored consecutive baskets and never relinquished its advantage. Forward Alyssa Thomas dominated with 19 points, 11 rebounds, 15 assists and three steals, while guard Kahleah Copper poured in 21 points on 10-for-16 shooting to lead the Mercury precisely as Sparks coach Lynne Roberts expected.“Players like [Thomas] and [Copper] … can both take over games,” Roberts said before the game. “Last time we played them, Copper had 41 … she is an absolute talent. I think they run good stuff. I like what [Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts] does.”Forward Dearica Hamby anchored the Sparks with 18 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, scoring her team’s first seven, and wing Rae Burrell — after starting 0-for-5 shooting — finished with 20 points, three rebounds and two assists, but also four turnovers.“I felt like it was just a mismatch on the inside, and once we realized the matchups, we just wanted to take advantage of it,” Hamby said of her hot start. “And I just started the game with a high motor.”Burrell said of overcoming her rough start, “I feel like you just have to keep pushing through, and you know, just try not to dwell on the mistakes that I was having, and just staying aggressive. I think it puts me in a good position.” Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike, left, tries to drive past the Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas during the second half Wednesday. (Luiza Moraes / Getty Images) Veteran forward Nneka Ogwumike finished with 13 points and 13 rebounds for the Sparks while guard Ariel Atkins contributed 15 points, four rebounds and three assists.Phoenix, meanwhile, did much of its damage in transition, scoring 20 fast-break points compared to three for the Sparks, who did themselves no favors with 18 turnovers.“If I knew, I’d fix it,” Roberts said when asked how to limit her team’s turnovers. “I don’t know. We had seven of them in the third quarter; I thought we had a chance to separate there. Defensively, we’re doing a good job, but the turnovers … that’s the game.”The Mercury’s 82 points were the fewest the Sparks have allowed since their 82-64 loss to the Seattle Storm on July 6. And L.A. beat Phoenix 37-33 on the glass, another promising figure.However, Phoenix passed the ball better, with eight more assists and six fewer turnovers, which was a backbreaker, as Roberts mentioned.“Our execution needs to be better,” Roberts said. “Attention to detail, communication defensively. [The Mercury] weren’t doing anything that we didn’t show on film and go over. We just got to be locked in. I felt like we were a little bit reactive defensively down the stretch rather than proactive. It’s just execution coming out of a timeout, executing what we just talked about.”Both the Sparks and Mercury needed this win badly.The Sparks, who are still without Kelsey Plum (lower leg), entered having lost four consecutive road games by single digits. Phoenix entered having lost five of its last six.“We’ve had a tough stretch, and we’ve been right there in all these games,” Roberts said. “So I do think that we’re really close … we’re going to get KP back soon, and that will be a boost … but in terms of pressure, I mean this is what we do. I don’t feel any more pressure than I did in April. I want to succeed, and we will. I mean, the last thing we’re going to do is mope around and feel sorry for ourselves. …“Pressure is a privilege. That means people care, people want us to do well. It’s not going to affect how I do things from April to October.”Sparks guard Kiana Williams played seven minutes with what Roberts called “a really bad thumb injury that she’s just kind of toughing through.”Cameron Brink scored five points on two-of-nine shooting with four rebounds over 19 minutes in her fourth game back from an ankle injury suffered on June 15 that sidelined the Sparks forward for a month. Sparks forward Cameron Brink, left, looks to score inside while defended by Mercury forward Natasha Mack during the first half Wednesday. (Luiza Moraes / Getty Images) “Yeah, she still is on a minutes restriction, but we’re getting near the end of that, which is great,” Roberts said pregame. “She’s just going to continue to get stronger on that ankle and her minutes will increase, and her role will continue to grow.”The Sparks had their chances to snap their now-five-game losing streak, twice cutting their deficit to two points.But all they can do now is regroup and reset over the All-Star Break.“We just talked about taking a complete mental break from basketball,” Hamby said. “Enjoy your family, your friends, the activities at All-Star. We showed last year we were able to, you know, really respond after the All-Star break [with] a completely healthy team. So, looking forward to getting KP back.”
