Sparks can’t survive poor second quarter in defeat

SPARKS

By Sabrina McClain

Correspondent

LOS ANGELES — The Sparks’ offensive absence in the second quarter led to them falling short against the expansion Golden State Valkyries on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena.

The game was a rematch of the season opener between the Sparks and the Valkyries won by the Sparks on May 16. This time, it was a different ending.

Dearica Hamby led the Sparks with 25 points, six rebounds and two assists, but lengthy scoring droughts resulted in Golden State taking the 82-73 victory back to the Bay Area.

With an average of 6 points per game, Carla Leite had an outstanding night with 19 points for the Valkyries. Janelle Salaun added 18 points and eight rebounds while Kayla Thorton finished with a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds.

The first quarter was a game of runs. A 7-1 run from Golden State to start the game, and an 11-0 run from the Sparks later on to put them on top 20-9.

The Valkyries went on another 5-0 run and were down by two at 26-24 by the end of the opening quarter.

The Sparks didn’t show up offensively in the second quarter, only scoring nine points to Golden State’s 25, ultimately leading to a deficit they couldn’t ever quite overcome.

The Valkyries scored 18 straight points and took their largest lead of the night 42-26 before Hamby made a 4-foot shot with 2:36 remaining in the second quarter.

The Sparks headed into the third down by 14, and there was still 20 minutes left in the game. A lot of time to make a difference. A lot of time to win.

But shooting 38.7% from the field didn’t cut the mustard.

In fact, for the second game in a row, the Sparks were close to rallying and coming out on top — only to fall short both times.

With a consistent third quarter from both the Sparks with 18 points and the Valkyries with 19, the Sparks had shown some life. But the second quarter mistakes lingered in the background.

Hamby led the fourth quarter revival, scoring 11 of the 20 total points. But it wasn’t enough and the Sparks lose their second consecutive game, now holding a 1-3 record on the young season.