LOS ANGELES — With the season on the line, the Sparks started the fourth quarter on a 16-0 run to secure a 91-77 victory over the Dallas Wings at Crypto.com Arena Sunday, to avoid being eliminated from playoff contention for a fifth straight season.
The Sparks, who had six players in double figures in the scoring column, improved to 20-22 and were led by guard Julie Allemand with a career-high 21 points and five steals. Dearica Hamby scored 15 points. Rae Burrell scored 13 points in the fourth quarter. Azurá Stevens had a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds, including 11 points and seven rebounds in the first half. All-Star Kelsey Plum had 12 points. Rickea Jackson scored 11 points, including seven in the first quarter.
“At this point, it’s up to the players to play with the urgency needed,” Sparks’ first-year coach Lynne Roberts said before the game. “I’ll do the best job I can to put them in position to be successful on both sides of the ball, but in the 42nd game, they know what they need to do.”
PREGAME: LA Sparks head coach Lynne Roberts’ pregame interview on the Sparks pushing for the playoffs with three games to go ahead of Sunday’s pivotal home game against Dallas Wings, who are led by All-Star rookie Paige Bueckers.
Coach Roberts told me it’s up to the players. pic.twitter.com/vxcpCNAz55
— John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) September 7, 2025
Dallas (9-34) was led by All-Star rookie guard Paige Bueckers with 18 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Wings forward Myisha Hines-Allen had a double-double with 15 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists. Maddy Siegrist added 13 points.
The Sparks, who won, swept the season series against the Wings, led 42-33 at halftime.
Dallas went on a 13-4 run and tied the game at 46-all on a driving layup by Bueckers with 7:29 left in the third quarter. A corner 3-pointer by Wings forward Myisha Hines-Allen put the road team up 55-54 with 4:26 left in the third.
The Sparks responded with six consecutive points, including layups by Cameron Brink, Jackson, and Allemand, to lead 60-55 with 1:41 remaining in the third.
Dallas forward Amy Okonkwo’s 3-pointer put the Wings up 64-63 with 8.9 seconds remaining in the third. However, Allemand’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer gave the Sparks a 66-64 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
Consecutive and-one from Hamby and Burrell put the Sparks up 75-64 with 8:38 left in the fourth. Burrell’s fast break layup and subsequent 3-pointer made it 80-64. Allemand’s layup pushed it to 82-64 with 5:43 left in the game.
With Sunday afternoon’s 94-65 playoff-clinching win by the Indiana Fever over the Washington Mystics, which improved their record to 23-20, the Sparks need the Seattle Storm, who are 22-21, to lose at home to the Golden State Valkyries on Tuesday to remain alive in the race for the eighth and final playoff spot.
“We’re not out of it,” Roberts continued. “We have to control what we can control.”
If Seattle loses, the Sparks, who own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Storm, must win their final two games against Phoenix (Tuesday) and Las Vegas (Thursday) (and get help) if they want to make the playoffs for the first time in five seasons.
The Sparks were 8-32 last season before Roberts was hired.
“Coming into this season, the goal was to the process of getting this organization back where it belongs and making the culture what we want, win as many games as possible and we’ve done those things,” Roberts explained. “We weren’t shy about saying we wanted to get to the playoffs, but I’m still proud of the whole body of work. Do we have a ways to go before we can talk about cutting down the nets, absolutely, but I remember hearing as a young assistant (coach), for sustainable success, you can’t take the elevator, you have to take the stairs.”
Bueckers came into the contest less than three weeks off her career-high of 44 points against the Sparks on Aug. 20. Coach Koclanes said he wanted his All-Star starter to finish her rookie season with confidence.
“With the ultimate confidence and in the way that she always does,” Dallas Wings first-year coach Chris Koclanes said before the game. “And that’s what makes her special is her consistent approach every single game, regardless of who the opponent is.”
The Sparks led 21-14 at the end of the first quarter and 42-33 at halftime. Stevens had 11 points. Bueckers, who was held scoreless in the first quarter, had eight points in the second quarter.
UP NEXT
The Sparks will play at the Phoenix Mercury (27-15) on Tuesday. They will conclude the regular season by hosting the Las Vegas Aces at Crypto.com Arena Thursday.
PREGAME: Dallas Wings head coach Chris Koclanes’ pregame interview before playing the Los Angeles Sparks for the fourth and final time during the 2025 WNBA season.
Coach Koclanes talked about Paige Bueckers’ approach to playing against the Sparks defense after dropping a career… pic.twitter.com/I8m7mehern
— John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) September 7, 2025