Dearica Hamby racked up 27 points, including two late layups, that helped the visiting Los Angeles Sparks hold off the Dallas Wings 87-81 on Saturday afternoon in Arlington, Texas, in a contest between the bottom two teams in the WNBA Western Conference standings. The Sparks (6-17) led by 11 points midway through the third quarter before Dallas rallied to carry a two-point lead into the fourth. Down 72-69, Los Angeles took charge with an 11-1 run capped by Hamby's drive and layup with 3:19 to play. The Wings cut the deficit to 80-77 on a basket by Kalani Brown and two free throws by Arike Ogunbowale. Hamby went to basket again for a layup with 1 minute to play, and Los Angeles held on for the win. Rickea Jackson added 23 points, Azura Stevens scored 16 and Aari McDonald had 12 for the Sparks, who snapped a two-game losing streak. Odyssey Sims led Dallas (5-19) with 23 points, with Natasha Howard scoring 14, Brown tallying 13, Ogunbowale contributing 12 and Teaira McCowan hitting for 10. The Wings have dropped three straight and six of their past seven games. Dallas controlled things early in the opening period, taking an 18-11 lead after Jacy Sheldon's running layup at the 3:08 mark. The Sparks answered by scoring the final 11 points of the period in a run capped by Jackson's layup with 13 seconds remaining to go up 22-18. Los Angeles stretched its advantage to eight points when Hamby scored on a layup with 8:46 to play in the second quarter. The Wings rallied to move back in front at 42-41 as Howard canned a pair of free throws and then a layup, the latter with 57 seconds to play before halftime. Los Angeles led 45-44 at the break. Hamby led all scorers with 17 points in the first half, while Jackson had 12 for the Sparks. Ogunbowale and Howard had 10 points apiece to pace Dallas. Los Angeles ran its lead to 59-48 when Jackson hit a pair of free throws with 5:40 left in the third quarter. The Wings swung back, tying the game at 59 on Sheldon's bucket with 1:56 remaining before taking a 63-61 lead into the final period. --Field Level Media
Jul 7, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; A Wilson official WNBA Evo NXT basketball approaches the net and rim at the Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports