Sparks Making Their Move Up

Two home games, two consecutive victories. And a few signs the Sparks may be escaping their early season funk.

In defeating the Minnesota Lynx, 69-55, Friday before 9,298 at Staples Center, the Sparks (5-4) ran freely, shot effectively (41.2%), worked the boards (a 40-31 edge) shared the ball (21 assists), played defense in both halves (limiting Minnesota to 31% shooting) and looked as if they were having fun doing it.

They trailed only three times, the last being 25-22 with 9:14 left in the first half. Then the Sparks went on a 12-0 run that propelled them to a 34-29 halftime lead. Early in the second half, with the score at 42-38, Los Angeles had a second key spurt, 13-5, to give them a comfortable 55-43 advantage. The Lynx never got closer than 10 points after that.

“There are still so many things we can do to make ourselves a better ballclub,” Spark Coach Michael Cooper said. “But, again, I saw some good things. Last year we had 11 players, and God bless the ladies who were here last year. But now we have 11 good players. If the starters can’t do it, we have others on the bench who can come in and get it done.”

The Sparks’ statistics backed up the coach’s point. The Sparks had only two starters in double figures; Lisa Leslie, who had 19 points, 17 rebounds and four blocked shots; and Laura Macchi, who had a career-best 12 points in her second start. But they also had points from 10 players. The only scoreless one was Doneeka Hodges, and she didn’t enter the game until the final two minutes.

“Being at home is a comfort zone for us, and we’re starting to get into a good rhythm,” Leslie said. “I don’t know yet if it’s chemistry. Right now I would attribute it to our defense. The full-court press is making us more active, more aggressive. And it’s good we have a lot of players who can play at this level.... It’s a trust you have to build, and we’ve had a short time to do that.”

The Lynx (4-4) were led by 18 points from Katie Smith.

Rookie Nicole Ohlde added 12 points and 10 rebounds for Minnesota, which also had 10 players score. But, after Smith and Ohlde, no one had more than five.

Minnesota was the second consecutive Spark opponent that willingly played an up-tempo game and paid a price for it. But Lynx Coach Suzie McConnell Serio wasn’t interested in slowing the pace.

“We’re a better team when we can push the tempo,” McConnell Serio said. “Tonight, we didn’t shoot the ball well or execute the offense well. We let them take us out of our offensive flow.

Despite having seven new players, Minnesota is playing well because of the performance of longtime star Katie Smith.

On Friday, Smith became the fourth player in league history to reach the 3,000-point career plateau. She did it in the fewest number of games played (167). She reached the milestone with a 17-foot shot with 14:13 to play in the first half.

Smith, who also played for the American Basketball League’s Columbus Quest, holds the career U.S. pro record with 4,443 points.

After Friday’s game, she was given the ball as a keepsake.

“One time I was out here and scored 46 points, I got the ball too,” Smith said. “I’ve gotten a lot of balls in Los Angeles. I’d like to get a couple more wins.”