Note From The Editor: The L.A. Sparks returned from their first road trip of the season on June 6th and hosted the Chicago Sky (1-7) during their highly popular “Pride Night” promotion that brought an official crowd of 8,523 to Staples Center. We invite you to take a few minutes to view our posting which consists of a brief game summary, post-game interviews with players and Head Coach Brian Agler, plus a deluxe photo gallery as shot by Erik Sarni and Alfred Perez.
Game Summary: It was evident from the start that the current League MVP, Nneka Ogwumike, would be on her “A” game. Couple that with last year’s WNBA Finals, MVP, Candace Parker, playing her high level game and the result was that this potent “1-2 punch” showed their aggressiveness on both offense and defense in the first quarter as they set the tone early for their teammates to join in and contribute to the team’s fourth overall victory, their third in a row at home. The score at the end of the first period was Sparks 18, Sky 13. In the 2nd quarter, the Sparks kept up the same game intensity and left the court at halftime with a 6 point lead, 41-35.
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The Sky would make their run in the third period when they managed to tie the game, 49-49. Nneka Ogwumike then broke the tie with two free throw to make it 51-49, Sparks at the 3:10 mark. The “Big Shot” of the period went to Riquna Williams, reserve guard who made most of her minutes by hitting in a key 3 pointer which moved the score up to 54-49, thus giving a measure of control back to her team.
In the fourth quarter the Sky would cut the margin to 69-62 with 2:20 remaining in there game. However, Chelsea Gray went to work scoring on a drive for an “And 1” moving the score up to 71-62 with 2:13 left on the clock. The Sparks would tighten their defense and run out the clock to secure the 79-70 victory. The win moved tier current record to (4-2). By: Rico Cabrera, Sr./Editor, EastLASportsScene.Com
Game StatLine: Nneka Ogwumike/20 pts/11 rebs/3 assts/4 stls/1 blkd shot/34mins; Alana Beard/18 pts/2 assts/3 stls/3 rebs/1 blkd shot/31 mins & Candace Parker/12 pts/5 rebs/2 assts/2 stls/2 blkd shots/29 mins.
Credits: Alfred Perez, Staff Photographer; and Erik Sarni, Videographer, EastLASportsScene.Com
Photo Gallery:
