LA Sparks Postgame Notes
WNBA Los Angeles Sparks

LA Sparks Postgame Notes

Published on June 25, 2026 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Los Angeles Sparks News Release


Game Leaders:

Sparks

PTS - Nneka Ogwumike/Dearica Hamby (21) REB - Dearica Hamby (9) AST - Erica Wheeler (5)

Tempo PTS - Marina Mabrey (53) REB - Laura Juskaite (12) AST - Julie Allemand (14)

Key Takeaways:

Nneka Ogwumike surpassed Lisa Leslie for sole possession of ninth in all-time offensive rebounds. The 10-time All-Star recorded 21 points (8-for-13 FG, 4-for-4 FT), seven rebounds, four assists and one steal

Dearica Hamby surpassed Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Lauren Jackson and Crystal Langhorne for 22nd and 21st all-time in WNBA history, respectively, in rebounds. The Wake Forest alumna also contributed 21 points, nine rebounds and three steals on 53.8% shooting from the field (7-for-13) and 85.7% from the free-throw line (6- for-7)

Emma Cannon scored a season-high 10 points, shooting 2-for-5 from beyond the arc

Rae Burrell contributed 17 points (6-for-12 FG, 2-for-4 3PT), four assists, two steals and one block. This is her fifth consecutive game scoring in double figures, averaging 18.4 points over this stretch

Erica Wheeler finished with five assists, her 10th game this season with at least five helpers. The veteran has at least five dimes in four of her past five contests

Chance Gray (2-for-4 3PT) and Kiana Williams each drained a pair of triples in the game

First Quarter:

The Tempo began the game leading 19-6, following by a Sparks 10- 5 run to cut L.A.'s deficit to 24-16 with 4:01 to play

Hamby scored a team-high 12 points (4-for-5 FG, 1-for-2 3PT, 3-for-3 FT), with one steal and two rebounds

In under seven minutes of play, Ogwumike tallied six points (2-for-2 FT), two rebounds and one assist

The Sparks assisted on six of nine field goals in the first quarter

Second Quarter:

Toronto opened the second quarter on an 11-2 run until the 7:02 mark, when Emma Cannon hit from beyond the arc to cut Los Angeles' deficit, 49-29

Burrell 's six points (2-for-3 FG, 2-for-2 FT) in the second quarter were a team high. The guard also recorded the only steal of the quarter

Wheeler contributed four points (1-for-1 FG, 2-for-2 FT) in the second quarter, along with one rebound and a team-high two assists

Third Quarter:

Hamby opened second-half scoring for Los Angeles with a layup via an assist from Burrell at the 8:32 mark

In less than 30 seconds of play, Ogwumike drained a triple and completed a three-point play with a layup and free throw to cut the Sparks' deficit to 72-50

Ogwumike tallied a team-high eight points, team-high three rebounds and team-high two assists in less than eight minutes of action in the quarter

Willliams scored six points from beyond the arc, going 2-for-2 from three during the third quarter

In the third frame, Cannon completed all her attempts from the field, both triples, and contributed one assist

The Sparks shot 45.5% from three in the quarter (5-for-11)

Fourth Quarter:

In the fourth quarter, Gray completed all her attempts from the field to score a team-high seven points (2-for-2 FG/3PT), also tallying two rebounds

Jihyun Park drained a buzzer-beating triple to make the the final score 125-97

Los Angeles shot 52.6% from the field (10-for-19) and 40.0% from three-point range (4- for-10) in the fourth quarter

The Sparks held the Tempo to 27.3% from three (3-for-11) in the quarter

Pregame Quotes:

Head Coach Lynne Roberts

On preparing to play without Cameron Brink and Kelsey Plum:

"It's next man up. You have to be ready.

That's why you do all the work, so that when your number is called, you're ready. It's part of it. Injuries are a part of sport. As much as we hate it, and we wish it wasn't part of it, it is. So, we have two options; we can moan and be mopey about who we don't have, or we can be fired up and pour into the guys that we do have healthy.

Hopefully Cam [ Cameron Brink ] will be back [following bye week]. This trip is good timing.

She might be able to be back after that break, so we're looking at two more games without Cam in a perfect world. And then'KP'[ Kelsey Plum ]. W e're just going to have to figure out and see when she's able to come back. She'll be back as fast as is humanly possible. She's going to do everything she needs to do. She wants to be with the team. She wants to be competing. T hat's who she is. S he's the head of our snake and the leader of our group, and we'll get her back when she's able to be back. But until then, it's about everybody else. W e're going to pour into these guys, and it'll give the younger guys an opportunity to play some significant minutes. T hat's what we're going to roll with, and I'm confident in this group."

On. Sunday night's 30th seasons game win:

"It was a great win in a lot of ways. Just a poetic night for that 30th [seasons celebration] game.

Nneka [ Ogwumike ] hitting the shot.

Nneka's comment immediately after that game was 'Yeah, that was great, but we needed that win.

' That was a good win for us in the scope of things, and that's who Nneka is. So, the mood has been good with the group. I think they're realizing that for us to have success now, [we] really have to lock arms and circle the wagons and any other cliche you want to u se. I think there's some positive mojo from that, but we have to build on it. It's not going to be easy. No games are, especially for us right now on the road against a really good [Toronto] Tempo team."

Postgame Quotes:

Head Coach Lynne Roberts

On Toronto's offense:

" I think we ran into a team that shot the ball [well]. First quarter, they shot 81.0%.

[It wasn't] always bad defense, good offense beats good defense.

I'm not saying we played great D, I'm just saying [Marina Mabrey] is an incredible scorer, and you have to tip your hat to her tonight."

On Ariel Atkins:

"[ Ariel Atkins is] a great player, and we believe in her. She has not found her rhythm yet with us, but she still brings it defensively.

She's a great teammate. [She] plays her tail off.

We've just got to stick with it and stick with her."

Dearica Hamby On playing without Kelsey Plum:

"I think we just have to play to our strengths with the group that we have. We definitely have enough talent on paper.

We've seen that we're elite in transition, so we've got to get stops and play in transition more. We [have to have] a next man up mentality ."

Nneka Ogwumike On fixing the team's schemes:

"You can have all the schemes that you come into the game with, but in my time playing, it's about wanting to do it and activating the want to do it.

That's not something that we did well, if at all, tonight as a group."

On bouncing back from tonight's loss:

"You can't dwell too much, but you still have to feel it to know what you need to do next. In this league, games come one after the other. We obviously can look at the things we can do better, but I think we really do feel what we need to do better for us to be able to come back and have a a better showing on Saturday."

NEXT: The Sparks next head to Indianapolis for a clash with the Fever Saturday night (8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT), the Sparks' third consecutive nationally televised game.

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