LOS ANGELES -- The Sparks are entering the homestretch and hope to keep their momentum going.
They are coming off a huge win over the best team in the league, the New York Liberty, on Wednesday. Now the Sparks will face off a team who is trying to sneak into the postseason, the Atlanta Dream.
The Dream has had the Sparks’ number this year. They came into Long Beach to defeat the Sparks in the season opener then defended their home court against them a month later.
Atlanta, however, is struggling after a strong start out of the All-Star break. Before the Paris Olympics, the Dream had lost eight in a row. They then won three straight after the break was over but they’ve lost their last four after that. At 10-21, they’re actually only ahead of the Sparks (7-24) by three games.
But the team is still really talented. Rhyne Howard scored 25 on the Sparks on Opening Night and Allisha Gray put in 25 in the second game. Tina Charles resurrected her career with the Dream and now has the second most points ever in WNBA history. They still have Cheyenne Parker-Tyus coming off the bench and former Sparks guard Jordin Canada is healthy again.
The Sparks hope to play spoiler again. Dearica Hamby continues to lead the Sparks in scoring (17.9 points per game) and boards (9.8). Rickea Jackson has emerged as a legitimate threat, averaging 16.6 points per game in August while shooting .542 from the field and .500 from three. And they could get some much-needed help on Sunday as Aari McDonald is listed as probable against the Dream.
It could very well come down in the fourth quarter. The Dream used a late run to defeat the Sparks in their last match-up. Los Angeles has had trouble closing games out all season but they were able to do that against New York. Can they do it again against Atlanta?
If the Sparks defeat the Dream, this could muddy the waters around the 8th and final playoff spot. And the Sparks aren’t that far away from that postseason berth, either.