DeLisha Milton-Jones leads as Los Angeles Sparks beat Chicago Sky 74-67 – WNBA Recap
On Saturday night, DeLisha Milton-Jones pounded 15 points, five rebounds and four assists as the short-handed Los Angeles Sparks closed the regular season with a 74-67 victory over Chicago Sky at the Staples Center. It was second
straight victory for the Sparks and fourth consecutive loss for the Sky, who have already bowed out of the playoff contention.
“You want to leave the season with a good taste in your mouth,” Sparks coach Joe Bryant said after the game. “We played well the past two games. We played very good defence. I am really happy about it.”
Milton-Jones finished the game on 6 for 10 shooting from the field, including 2 for 3 from three-point range. Kristi Toliver punctuated 11 points, including nine of the in the first half, and grabbed four rebounds in the victory.
The Sparks played their second consecutive game in the absence of their leading scorer and rebounder Candace Parker, who is out after aggravating a right knee injury earlier in the week. Parker missed 15 games earlier this season.
Chicago’s Sylvia Fowles capped off with a double-double of game-high 18 points and 11 rebounds. Fowles shot 6 for 12 from the field and 6 for 8 from free throw line. The 6 ft 6 in centre player passed Candice Dupree to become the
Chicago's all-time leading rebounder.
Courtney Vandersloot did not score even a single point, but she dished out two assists, setting Sky's single-season assists record with 124 assists in a season. Dominique Canty put up 16 points, dished out six assist and grabbed
five rebounds while Erin Thorn had 12 points and five rebounds in the loss.
Los Angeles shot 41.4 percent from the floor while Chicago shot 41.3 percent. However, the Sparks’ six less turnovers (7) and 46.2 percent shooting from three-point range were the key reasons; they were able to pull away with the
win in the tight matchup. Los Angeles dealt out 25 assists as compared to only 17 by Sky.
Chicago started strongly in the first quarter and held a 17-8 lead with 04:07 to go. Sparks cut the margin to two, 17-15, with seven consecutive points. Thorn however hit a jumper at the end of the quarter to push Chicago’s lead
to 19-15, heading into the second.
After a tight first 10 minutes, Los Angeles took command in the second quarter and went ahead by 34-30 late in the frame. Sky scored the last three points of the second period and trimmed the deficit to one, 34-33, at halftime.
Both teams scored 18 points each in the third quarter as Los Angeles maintained their point lead, 52-51, at the end of the quarter.
Los Angeles opened the last quarter on an 8-2 run to take full control of the contest with a 13-point lead, 60-53. The Sparks were never threatened in rest of the quarter and sealed the season with a victory.
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