LOS ANGELES —The Sparks will begin the first of six-game span in Commissioner’s Cup play at home against the Phoenix Mercury Sunday.
Sunday’s game will be the Sparks’ eighth game in the first 16 days of the regular season. The fifth annual WNBA Commissioner’s Cup is an in-season tournament, in which the Sparks will face all six of their Western Conference opponents for an opportunity to compete for a $500,000 prize pool.
The Sparks lost 96-81 at Las Vegas on Friday for their second consecutive defeat.
“I’m not OK with losing,” Sparks coach Lynne Roberts said. “So when is the time, the time is now.”
Las Vegas used a 16-0 run in the first quarter to seize control early. The Sparks battled back and cut it to eight points in the fourth but were handed their fifth loss in the last six games.
“I think we’re this close … I feel like our team is really, really close,” Roberts said. “It’s really hard in this profession, whether you’re a player or a coach, to not be outcome driven. We have got to stay process driven.”
In the Sparks’ loss in Las Vegas, All-Star guard Kelsey Plum had a team-high 17 points and All-Star forward Dearica Hamby had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds against their former team. Odyssey Sims scored a season-high 15 points on 6-for-8 shooting. Azurá Stevens added 10 points and 10 rebounds for her second consecutive double-double.
“I think that you gotta come out and see what the defense is doing and try to take advantage of it,” Plum said. “I was really proud, I thought Odyssey came out, she was aggressive. I think the thing is that we continue, like Coach said, to get more cohesion and stuff. The best thing that I can do is set screens, move without the ball, get my teammates open, and the defense then has to adjust.”
Las Vegas All-Stars A’ja Wilson and Jackie Young combined to score 61 points to spoil Plum’s return.
Sparks second-year forward Rickea Jackson was not with the team Friday game due to personal reasons. Jackson played 12 minutes in the Sparks’ 88-82 loss to Atlanta on May 27. Before that, she had missed three games while in concussion protocol.
The Sparks suffered a 89-86 loss at Phoenix on May 21. Plum had 25 points as the Sparks nearly pulled off a 14-point comeback in the fourth quarter.
Phoenix is coming off a 74-71 loss at home to the Minnesota Lynx on Friday. All-Star forward Satou Sabally had a double-double with 26 points and 11 rebounds. All-Star forward Alyssa Thomas missed Friday’s game with a calf injury. Her status for Sunday’s game is unknown, but she has averaged 15.2 points, 7.6 rebounds, 8.0 assists and 1.8 steals.
PHOENIX (4-2) AT SPARKS (2-5)
When: 3 p.m. Sunday
Where: Crypto.com Arena
TV: Spectrum SportsNet