LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Sparks were hoping for a strong showing on Saturday against the visiting Chicago Sky, a showing that would wipe away the bitter taste of their embarrassing loss against the New York Liberty earlier this week. While the effort was better, the Sparks still suffered a late game collapse against the Sky, a collapse that head coach Curt Miller believes was precipitated by the uptick in physicality.
“Disappointing start in the fourth quarter when it’s winning time. And I just feel like again, it comes down to that toughness,” Curt Miller said. “The game was going to be in the paint tonight and their physicality, I think they out-rebounded us by 11 in the fourth quarter alone. . .it became that physicality that we were fearful of all night.”
After the Sparks built a ten point lead heading into the fourth quarter, the Sky began the final period on a 13-2 run to surge ahead and take the lead. While the Sparks were able to stop the surge for a period, the Sky never looked back as they took firm control of the game.
The Sparks’ failure to match the physicality of their opponents has been a key issue all season. Other teams either come out with toughness from the opening tip, or gradually ramp up the physicality as the game progresses. Following the game, Sparks guard Crystal Dangerfield admitted that it’s tough to put out a fire once it’s been lit.
“Their physicality level definitely just went up and we weren’t able to match that,” Dangerfield said. “I think once we got a timeout, we kind of settled in and were able to match that run. But once a team gets started like that, it’s kind of hard to stop.”
Sparks have quick turnaround vs. Aces
The Sparks don’t have to wait too long to wipe away the bitter taste of their fourth quarter collapse against the Sky. They have a back to back game on Sunday against the Las Vegas Aces. The Sparks have done well against the Aces so far this season, winning two of the three games they’ve played.
But the Aces are coming off a disappointing loss of their own at home against the Liberty, a team that is also considered a title favorite. It would be unwise to believe this game will go the same direction as the previous Sparks/Aces matchups. But after the Sky loss, Sparks rookie wing Rickea Jackson said she believes the team is ready for the challenge.
“You just got to have a quick, forgetful memory, you just got to move on to the next and just keep pushing. It’s honestly hard, people don’t speak about it but it’s just like losing and then going to go play one of the best teams in the league,” Jackson said. “It’s something that’s hard but I feel like we’re up for the challenge. We’re going to continue to work on the things we need to work on.”
The loss to the Sky dropped the Sparks to 6-20 and tied with the Dallas Wings for the second worst record in the WNBA. The Sparks are currently on three consecutive seasons of missing the playoffs.
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