Nneka Ogwumike scored 24 points and grabbed eight rebounds, Rae Burrell finished with 22 points, and the Los Angeles Sparks earned a 106-92 win over the visiting Indiana Fever on Wednesday.
Los Angeles (9-11) ended a run of three consecutive losses, all blowouts, since Kelsey Plum sustained a left leg injury on June 21. Included in that run was a 111-87 setback at Indiana on June 27.
However, in the return matchup on Wednesday, the Sparks found the right combination of balanced offense and defense to pull out of their tailspin. Every Los Angeles player who saw the floor scored, led by all five starters reaching double figures.
Dearica Hamby posted 21 points and a team-high nine rebounds, while Ariel Atkins and Erica Wheeler each added 12 points. Wheeler dished six assists and Ogwumike added five.
Burrell shot 9-for-15 from the floor to finish two points shy of matching her career high. Burrell also delivered in clutch moments during the second half, including one fourth-quarter sequence in which she dished to a streaking Erica Wheeler for a basket, then on the ensuing possession attacked the rim for a twisting reverse layup.
Burrell’s big night also included a pair of 3-pointers, as the Sparks shot 9-for-20 from long range to match their total of made triples from the previous two games combined.
Indiana (12-9) welcomed Caitlin Clark back to the lineup after she missed two games with a back injury, but the third-year guard was limited to 15:39 of playing time. She shot just 4-of-12 from the floor and finished with nine points, four rebounds, three assists and four turnovers.
Kelsey Mitchell led all scorers with 29 points to pace Indiana. Damiris Dantas scored 12, and Tyasha Harris added 10. Monique Billings grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.
The Fever were without leading rebounder and key interior presence Aliyah Boston, however. She was scratched from the lineup due to a right leg injury.
–Field Level Media
