Brittney Sykes scores 25, Sparks hold off Wings 93-91 in wild ending
Brittney Sykes scored a season-high 25 points, Nneka Ogwumike had 16 points and 10 rebounds and the Sparks held off the Dallas Wings 93-91 on Tuesday night.
Sykes made two free throws with 18.2 seconds left for a five-point lead, but Isabelle Harrison sank a three-pointer to get Dallas within 93-91 with 5.5 remaining. Sykes was called for an offensive foul on the inbounds play, and after a timeout Arike Ogunbowale drove to the basket and was fouled with 0.8 left. She missed the first free throw and was called for a violation on the second.
Ogunbowale went over and kicked the scorer’s table out of frustration and Los Angeles missed the technical free throw to end it.
Liz Cambage added 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Sparks (5-6). Katie Lou Samuelson scored 13.
Liz Cambage denied Australian media reports that stated she called Nigerian players a racist slur during a pre-Olympic scrimmage.
Los Angeles scored the opening five points and led throughout until 6:11 remaining in the fourth quarter when Marina Mabrey made a layup in the lane to give Dallas a 79-78 advantage. The Sparks went ahead 88-83 with three minutes left and didn’t score again until Cambage converted a three-point play with 36 seconds left.
Harrison had 20 points and eight rebounds for Dallas (5-4). Mabrey and Ogunbowale each scored 16.
Brooklyn Nets’ stat Kevin Durant sat courtside.
