The Sparks try to snap a three-game losing skid and rebound in the second game of a home-and-home series against the Atlanta Dream as the teams trek across country to Los Angeles on Wednesday.
The Dream (7-8) blasted the Sparks (7-10) on Sunday in Atlanta, 112-84, behind Rhyne Howard’s career-high 43 points.
“It’s not just my shooting; it’s my playmaking, it’s my attacking. Just being out there opens the court,” Howard said of her impact on the offense.
Howard shot 14-for-20 from the floor and 9 of 9 at the free-throw line to pace the Dream to their second 100-plus-point performance over the last six games, and third with at least 94 points.
“We know she’s talented, we know she’s a great scorer and we let her get comfortable,” Sparks forward Jasmine Thomas said. “That’s also a challenge to our defense. We know we can be better and we will be moving forward.”
Atlanta is 3-0 in those games scoring 94-plus but 0-3 in the other contests during that stretch. The 84 points to the Sparks on Sunday was the lowest point total Atlanta has surrendered over the last six, with their opponents averaging 95.2 points per game in the span.
Los Angeles returns home from a three-game road swing — all losses — ranked 10th in the WNBA in scoring at 78.9 points per game.
Over the Sparks’ last eight games, however, they are averaging 75.1 points, with Sunday’s 84 points marking only the second time in those eight contests they exceeded their season average.
Nneka Ogwumike, the league’s fifth-leading scorer at 19.9 points per game, posted 25 in Sunday’s loss. However, Los Angeles continues to deal with depth issues as Lexie Brown (illness) and Layshia Clarendon (foot) remain sidelined.
The Sparks were also without Jordin Canada (shoulder) and Chiney Ogwumike (foot) on Sunday. Both are questionable for Wednesday.
–Field Level Media
