LOS ANGELES — Dearica Hamby had an 18-point double-double and rookie forward Rickea Jackson had a career-high 16 points off the bench, but the Sparks could not overcome two late 3-pointers by Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark and suffered a 78-73 loss on Friday night in front of a Sparks record crowd of 19,103 at Crypto.com Arena.
“I’m just grateful that everyone is starting to support women’s basketball but we didn’t get the win so I’m not excited or ecstatic about that but I feel like we’re going to keep growing and learn from our mistakes,” Jackson said.
Sparks rookie forward Cameron Brink added a career-high 15 points, nine rebounds and two blocked shots. Hamby added 12 rebounds and seven assists.
The Sparks next host the Dallas Wings on Sunday at 6 p.m. at Crypto.com Arena.
Meanwhile, Clark had her first WNBA double-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, though she missed her first seven 3-point attempts before making one with 2:27 left, triggering an explosion of cheers and applause.
Kelsey Mitchell led Indiana (1-5) with 18 points and Aliyah Boston and Temi Fagbenle each had 17 points and six rebounds.
The Sparks (1-3) had an 11-point lead at halftime and still led 56-53 heading into the fourth quarter, but the Fever started the period on a 10-2 run for a 63-58 lead with 5:38 to go on a 3-pointer by Mitchell, who scored 13 of her 18 points in the fourth.
“I think we showed our vulnerability to our youth,” Hamby said. “Lack a little bit of composure, kind of going away from the things that was working the first half and we let the frustration of not being able to score the ball dictate our defense and we can’t do that. They are too good of individual players to let that slippage happen.”
A nice assist from Brink for a cutting layup by Jackson pulled the Sparks with three 69-66 with 2:50 left, but Clark responded by draining her first 3-pointer of the game for a 72-66 lead with 2:27 remaining.
Brink’s 3-pointer cut the margin to 73-69, then Lexi Brown’s mid-range jump shot made it 73-71 with a minute left.
However, Clark drained a 28-foot 3-pointer to give the Fever a 76-71 lead with 40 seconds remaining and the crowd roared again. Sparks guard Kia Nurse then missed a 3-point attempt, and Indiana’s Mitchell made two free throws with 12.5 seconds to go. Hamby’s turnaround jumper made it 78-73 with five seconds left, but the Fever (1-5) ran out the remaining time to secure their first win of the season.
Boston, Fagbenle and Mitchell dominated the fourth quarter, with Mitchell hitting back-to-back 3-pointers.
“I thought we guarded Caitlin well but Temi, her physicality really bothered us and Kristy Wallace will get no credit in the box score stats but Kristy Wallace’s physicality defensively really bothered us,” Sparks coach Curt Miller said.
Actors Jason Sudeikis and Rosie O’Donnell, NBA stars DeMar DeRozan and Klay Thompson, USC star JuJu Watkins along with teammate Rayah Marshall, Trojans coach Lindsay Gottlieb and women’s basketball great Cheryl Miller were part of the record crowd for the Sparks’ first game at Crypto.com Arena this season.
The Sparks played their first two home games at Long Beach State’s smaller-capacity Walter Pyramid, but with Clark and the Fever in town the game was moved to the downtown arena.
The Fever shot just 7 for 25 from 3-point range (Clark was 2 for 9). The Sparks also struggled from behind the arc, going 5 for 24. The teams meet again Tuesday in Indianapolis.
Before the game, Coach Miller was focused on slowing the Fever’s game plan, which was to score fast-break points.
“Everything starts with their tempo and pace,” Miller said. “Between Caitlin (Clark), Erica Wheeler, Kelsey Mitchell, just a team that’s really dedicated to playing fast, not only off of misses but off of makes, so our first eight seconds of the shot clock is going to be really important that we get them into their playbook and then you can start to scheme on how best to guard a team with a ton of weapons.”
Brink was effective early with six points and the Sparks took a 14-7 lead early with 4:56 left in the first quarter. Hamby had 10 points and five rebounds in the first.
The Sparks led 22-15 at the end of the first, and Jackson scored seven points in a 90-second span, which put her team up 36-25 with 3:42 to before halftime.
The Sparks led 45-34 at halftime. Hamby had 16 points, six rebounds and five assists in the first half. The Sparks bench scored 16 points in the first half after only nine points in Tuesday’s 70-68 win against Washington. Brink and Jackson each had three personal fouls in the first half.
Related Articles
Swanson: Caitlin Clark, Cameron Brink put on a show for historic Sparks crowd
Sparks eager to host Caitlin Clark, Fever at Crypto.com Arena
Sparks nearing sellout for Caitlin Clark’s 1st WNBA game in Los Angeles
Dearica Hamby, Sparks rally to beat Mystics for their 1st win
Sparks to face Mystics still seeking their first win of season
Clark had five points on 2-for-7 shooting from the field in the first half.
The Fever opened the second half on an 11-0 run and tied the score with six minutes remaining in the third quarter.
“We talked about winning the third quarter and being the team that would be in attack mode in the third and play with physicality and I just thought that third quarter set the tone for the rest of the game that we got out-toughed at both ends of the court,” Miller said postgame.
Jackson’s 3-pointer put the Sparks back up 48-45. Fagbenle’s five-point outburst with a reverse layup and 3-pointer put the Fever ahead 50-48. The Sparks scored six straight points on baskets by guard Aari McDonald, Jackson and McDonald to regain the lead late in the third.
The historic nature of the No. 1 pick (Clark) vs. the No. 2 (Brink) and No. 4 pick (Jackson) was not lost on Clark’s coach.
“The youth movement is incredible, it’s really fun,” Indiana coach Christie Sides said before the game. “These guys have brought so much attention to our league.”
However, Clark said she has struggled at times dealing with the unprecedented attention.
“It’s been a whirlwind over the last couple of months,” Clark said. “Honestly, I feel like I talk to the media more than I get to talk to my own family, I’m being dead serious, which is really kind of sad in way and it’s a lot for somebody that’s 22 years old.
“It can be tough at times, our team is really young, it’s difficult navigating this. I absolutely love it and I wouldn’t change it for the world but I think getting off social media, that’s been the healthiest thing. This is my job. This is what I love to do. I never want to lose the fun of the game and nights like tonight just remind me of why I love playing basketball because you get a win and then you walk off the floor and there’s so many young kids just screaming your name and love getting to watch you so I think it’s the little things that remind me every single day why I do this and why I love it. I think the biggest thing is mental health is very important. It’s important for professional athletes, it’s important for student-athletes. It’s important for every single person in this world, feel like they have somebody to talk to so I think it’s been something we’ve all been trying to navigate and continue to give ourselves grace.”
Related Articles
Swanson: Caitlin Clark, Cameron Brink put on a show for historic Sparks crowd
Sparks eager to host Caitlin Clark, Fever at Crypto.com Arena
Sparks nearing sellout for Caitlin Clark’s 1st WNBA game in Los Angeles
Dearica Hamby, Sparks rally to beat Mystics for their 1st win
Sparks to face Mystics still seeking their first win of season
