Sparks lose in overtime to Valkyries

The Sparks couldn’t contain the Golden State Valkyries, leading to a loss on Monday night.

Los Angeles went into overtime with good momentum, but lost 89-81 to the Valkyries on Monday night.

Los Angeles is now 1-2 in the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup.

Dearica Hamby ended with 20 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Kelsey Plum had 24 points, four rebounds and seven assists.

Rickea Jackson pitched in with eight points and two rebounds. Emma Cannon and Sarah Ashlee Barker combined for 13 points off the bench.

The Valkyries immediately took control of the game, going up by as much as eight. Los Angeles was struggling with their offense and wasn’t playing well defensively.

Dearica was the only Spark who was able to find her shot. She was up to five points, scoring mostly in the paint. Temi Fágbénlé scored eight points for Golden State.

Kelsey drained two much-needed 3-pointers for Los Angeles. They were battling hard and worked their way back into the game, going up by two. Dearica continued her strong play, scoring on another layup and converting on free throws. Golden State retook the lead by two at the end of the first.

Not a single thing was going right for the Sparks to start the second. An 11-3 scoring run for the Valkyries extended their lead.

The three points L.A. scored were free throws, as no player could find an offensive rhythm. Sarah Ashlee Barker came in and knocked down a 3-pointer to stop some of the bleeding.

Los Angeles’ field goal percentage dipped down to 29%, while Golden State was shooting 50%. The Sparks were struggling heavily from behind the arc, only knocking down three of 11 attempts so far.

Despite their struggles, a quick five straight points for L.A. had them inching closer to retaking the lead.

The Valkyries were missing shots that they were making easily in the first quarter. Los Angeles took full advantage of Golden State’s rough stretch by going on a 17-5 run to take a lead of four at halftime.

Golden State started the second half outscoring Los Angeles 14 to nine. Janelle Salaün scored six points off two 3-pointers. She and Fágbénlé were shouldering the offensive load early for the Valkyries in this quarter.

The Sparks kept leaving Salaün wide open from behind the arc, leading to her knocking down so many shots.

Salaün knocked down yet another 3-pointer. L.A.’s bench was coming up big tonight for the team, with Barker and Cannon continuing their excellent play with six combined points. It was another strong third quarter for this young Sparks team.

Dearica converted on what seemed like her 400th and-1 of the game. Monique Billings was coming up big for the Valkyries with eight points.

Julie Allemand had hit a lead-taking 3-pointer for Los Angeles with the quarter winding down, but a pair of free throws from Veronica Burton made it a tied game at the end of the third.

Golden State struck first in the final frame with a 4-0 scoring run. Mercedes Russell responded with a reverse layup. The Sparks then took control of the game, scoring six points to take the lead.

Both teams struggled to make most of their shots throughout the fourth quarter. They went nearly four minutes without scoring any points.

With 47 seconds left, the Valkyries jumped ahead by one with a free throw. Kelsey then drained a clutch 3-pointer to put Los Angeles up by two with 37 seconds left.

Carla Leite scored on a layup to tie the game. The Sparks couldn’t score again, and the game went to overtime.

Los Angeles missed their first shot attempt of overtime, but picked up their defense and prevented the Valkyries from striking first. Azurá Stevens knocked down a free throw for L.A.’s first points of the OT.

The Sparks couldn’t convert on their shots, allowing Golden State to take control of the game and secure the win.

Key Takeaways:

A tale as old as time, the Sparks once again lost steam in the closing minutes. If they were more consistent, they’d have a higher win total.

Rickea has been looking good out there. She’s knocking down her signature midrange jumpers, but her 3-pointers have been a struggle. It’ll be a process, but her shot from behind the arc will return in time.

The Sparks’ next game will be Wednesday against the Las Vegas Aces at 7:00 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.