(East Los Angeles, CA) July 2, 2022 [From The Editor’s Desk]: The Sparks traveled to Texas for a quick one game road-trip to face the Dallas Wings on Friday night, and, in the process they recorded the fabled franchise’s 500th victory, the first team to reach the highly acclaimed, and magical mark in the WNBA.

In a quick look at the Final Scoresheet, the number (5) was “Wild” due to the fact that the team secured its (500th) win in the 26 years of the WNBA’s existence—the first team to do so.

And, here’s why we chose the number (5). All five Sparks starters scored in double figures. They were led by Nneka Ogwumike’s and Liz Cambage’s, (21) point performances, followed by Kati Lou Samuelson’s (14), then Lexie Brown’s (13), and lastly, Kristi Tolliver’s (11). For good measure, add in Cambage’s 3rd “double-double” of the season for grabbing (11) rebounds. Her recent play is starting to pay very nice winning dividends as she begins to show her dominance and strength as the team’s “Tower of Power!”

These (5) players accounted for (80) of the (97) points scored in the win. The Sparks reserves, Chiney Ogwumike, Chennedy Carter, Olivia Nelson-Ododa, and Jordin Canada pitched in for the other (17) points. The Wings had four players scoring in double figures and were led by their outstanding shooting guard, Arike Ogunbowale, who tallied (23).

As a team, the Sparks shot 58.6% from the field on (37-76) attempts and 36.8% on (7-19) from the 3 point stripe. Mix in the (16-19) free throws for an 84.2% from the charity line, and there you have the Fantastic Five Hundredth win. The Sparks now own an (8-11) record and are currently positioned in 9th place. But with their home schedule now more favorably changing, they are certainly heading upwards as the season moves forward.

(Of Scheduling Significance): The team’s fan attendance to date has been a steady 4,200 per game, but these two holiday weekend match-ups hope to increase that number. Recall that the Sparks have been on the road for most of the season. This month of July will feature them playing (7) consecutive home games beginning with the New York Liberty. They won’t make their next two game road-trip until July 28th and July 30th. They end their July home game schedule on July 31st against the Minnesota Lynx. Let’s Go Sparks!!

(Next Up): 1) New York Liberty, 3:00 pm, July 3rd, at Crypto.com Arena. To watch: CBS Sports Network; Spectrum SportsNet; 2) Phoenix Mercury, 4:00 pm, Monday, Independence Day, July 4th, at Crypto.com Arena. To watch: ESPN