Ebony Hoffman stars; Leads Los Angeles Sparks to a 74-50 win over the Seattle Storm – WNBA Recap
Ebony Hoffman came off the bench with a team-high 12 points and four rebounds as the Los Angeles Sparks gunned down the visiting Seattle Storm 74-50 on Sunday night at Staples Center. With this victory, Los Angeles snapped their
seven-game losing streak against the defending champions.
Kristi Toliver followed Hoffman with 11 points on a 4-for-9 shooting from the field, five assists, five rebounds and two steals for Los Angeles, who were swept by the Seattle during previous season’s playoffs. Candace Parker and
centre Jantel Lavender added 10 points each for Sparks, who also got seven rebounds from Parker.
For the Seattle Storm, the night turned out to a disappointment on the offensive end. Sue Bird was the only player who reached the double scoring figures. She ended with 15 points, shooting 6-for-12 from the field and 2-for-4 from
downtown and five rebounds.
Last season’s MVP Lauren Jackson was spectacularly off colour on the night. She chipped in with nine points in more than 27 minutes of action, shooting just 3-for-14 from the field and scoring just one of the six free throws. The
defensive strategy of Los Angeles really works against the MVP as they did not allow her to reach the double-figure for the second consecutive game.
First Quarter
Both teams could not score in the first two minutes of the first quarter but Sparks managed to take a 9-6 lead with 04:55 to go in the quarter. Jackson then nailed a jumper to cut the deficit to one points, 9-8, with 03:15 remaining.
With 02:41 to go in the opening quarter, Los Angeles scored five unanswered points to take a 14-8 lead into the second quarter.
Second Quarter
Sparks opened the second quarter on a 9-2 run capped by Tina Thompson‘s sizzling three-pointer to take a 23-10 lead early in the frame. They continued the assault and Parker's jumper widened the lead to 19 points, 33-14, with 3:14
to go in the second. Staring at a 19 point deficit, Storm finally picked up their game and outscored Sparks 11-6 in the last three minutes to end the first half at 39-25.
Los Angeles limited Storm to just 31 percent from the field during the first half of the game. They never let the Seattle outfit breathe easily on the perimeter and reduced them to 2-for-11 from three-point range.
Third Quarter
Both the teams had a horrid start to the third quarter. Storm missed first five shots of the third quarter and committed four turnovers while the Sparks missed first three shots with two turnovers. Jackson finally broke the jinx
when she scored the first point of the quarter with a free throw at the 6:57 mark. Seattle gradually slashed the lead in the period that followed and came within a 9- point range with 02:09 left in the third.
Los Angles however responded with on a 9-2 spurt and took a 57-41 edge into the fourth.
Fourth Quarter
Sparks started the final quarter with a 13-6 run and put the game to bed. They shot at 49.2 percent from the field as compared to meagre 30.3 by the Seattle and that eventually turned out to be the difference. Although out rebounded
in the game, they never let the defending champions within a striking range and totally outplayed them on the night.
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