LOS ANGELES — The Sparks trailed by as many as 28 points in the second half and missed their first 15 3-point attempts in an 86-62 blowout loss to the Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena.
Sparks forward Dearica Hamby had 17 points and 11 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season, but no other Sparks scored in double figures as the home team shot 26% (20 for 77) from the field, including a paltry 14.3% from 3-point range (4 for 28).
“We were just soft and we were vulnerable to their ball pressure,” Hamby said. “We just have to be better.”
Napheesa Collier had 25 points and nine rebounds to pace Minnesota (7-2). Collier scored 11 of her points in the first quarter to help Minnesota build a 27-12 lead. The Lynx led 45-26 by halftime as the Sparks (2-7) made just 10 of 44 shots from the field (23%) before the break.
Kayla McBride scored eight straight Minnesota points in the third quarter to make it 58-34 before the Lynx extended it to a 28-point advantage less than a minute later. Collier banked in a jumper just before the shot clock for a 70-56 lead with 6:01 left.
“We talked in the locker room just now, we don’t have time to fix things,” Sparks coach Curt Miller said. “We have to be able to fix things in games in this type of season and that’s really difficult during a build.”
Sparks rookie forward Cameron Brink, who was named to the U.S. Olympic 3×3 team earlier in the day, fouled out at the 2:24 mark of the fourth quarter with two points, six rebounds and two blocked shots in 16 minutes.
Rae Burrell, the No. 9 overall selection in the 2022 draft, set season-highs with nine points and 22 minutes.
The Sparks trailed 64-46 after three quarters. A three-point play by Burrell and a 3-pointer from guard Aari McDonald got the hosts within 66-52 with 7:46 left. A layup by Stephanie Talbot kept the margin at 14, then Hamby made two free throws to cut the margin to 68-56 with 6:26 left.
Collier banked in a jump shot to make it 70-56, then Hamby’s cutting layup made it 70-58 with 4:46 left, but the Sparks could never get within single digits.
Lynx forward Bridget Carleton had 15 points and McBride finished with 13 points.
The Lynx began the game with an 11-0 run and never looked back as the Sparks mustered just 26 points in the first half. The Sparks’ first-half woes carried over from Sunday’s loss in Phoenix, when the team only scored 22 points before halftime.
Sparks point guard Layshia Clarendon, who finished with seven points, returned to the starting lineup for the first time since suffering a concussion on May 26. Clarendon drained the team’s first 3-point basket of the night with 8:29 left in the third quarter, when the hosts trailed 50-29.
“This crew is not giving up,” Miller said before the game. “This crew is not satisfied with where they’re at. The lessons this year in this league and it’s not just for us but the lessons this year in this league are in-game because we just don’t have time to practice.”
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Collier scored seven of her team’s first eight points and the Sparks trailed 8-0 less than two minutes into the game. The Lynx shot 62.5% in the first quarter (10 for 16), and the Sparks shot 5 for 21 (23.8%).
“Players have to play,” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said before the game. “All coaches know each other. Curt and I have been together in the league for a long time and we’ve had some great battles so I think we all know each other’s tendencies.”
Despite the struggles, Miller remains optimistic.
“I’m not discouraged,” said Miller, whose team sits 10th in the 12-team WNBA and only has victories over struggling Indiana (2-9) and winless Washington (0-9). “We know who we are.”
The Sparks next host the Dallas Wings on Friday at 7 p.m.
MILESTONE WIN
Reeve earned her 307th regular-season victory and moved past Bill Laimbeer (306) for second on the WNBA’s career list, trailing just Mike Thibault with 379.
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