Sparks Postgame Notes

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WNBA Los Angeles Sparks

Sparks Postgame Notes

May 28, 2025 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Los Angeles Sparks News Release


Los Angeles Sparks (2-4) vs. Atlanta Dream (4-2)

Game 6 | May 27, 2025 | Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA

Attendance: 10,797

Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final

Dream 16 24 26 22 88

Sparks 15 16 22 29 82

Game Leaders

Dream Sparks

Points Allisha Gray (25) Dearica Hamby (28)

Rebounds Rhyne Howard (9) Azurá Stevens (11)

Assists Rhyne Howard (7) Odyssey Sims & Kelsey Plum (5)

First Quarter:

Forward Dearica Hamby scored the Sparks' first points with two made free throws at the 9:15 mark

Guard Odyssey Sims completed a three-point play to put the Sparks ahead, 7-5, with 6:29 left in the quarter

Guard Kelsey Plum (2-for-5 FG, 2-for-3 3PT) led all scorers with six points in the first quarter. She also contributed two steals

The Sparks limited the Dream to 16 points in the first quarter, a season low for an L.A. opponent

The teams collectively went 10-for-10 from the free-throw line, going 5-for-5 each

The competitive quarter featured four lead changes and three ties

Second Quarter:

Forward Emma Cannon scored the Sparks' first five points of the quarter, including a three-pointer

Forward-center Azurá Stevens notched eight of the Sparks' 17 rebounds in the first half

There were six lead changes in the first half

The teams combined to shoot 17-for-17 from the free-throw line in the half. Los Angeles went 7-for-7, while Atlanta shot 10-for-10

Hamby and Plum tied for the team lead with eight points

Third Quarter:

Hamby recorded 10 points (4-for-4 FG, 2-for-3 FT), four assists and two steals in the second quarter

Plum completed a three-point play at the 4:47 mark, off a Hamby assist, to cut the Sparks' deficit to 51-45. The guard scored nine points in the quarter, going 4-for-6 from the floor

Through three quarters, Hamby and Plum collectively scored 35 of the Sparks' 53 points

The Sparks assisted on seven of their nine made field goals in the quarter, shooting 47.4% overall in the third

Fourth Quarter:

The Sparks went on a 12-0 run to cut their deficit to 66-63 with 7:42 remaining

Plum's three-pointer cut the Atlanta lead to 71-70 with 4:22 left in the game

Los Angeles outscored Atlanta 29-22 in the quarter

Los Angeles went 11-for-19 (64.7%) from the field and 3-for-5 from deep in the quarter

Plum and Hamby each scored 10 points in the fourth, tied for most among all scorers

Main Takeaways:

Hamby became the first WNBA player ever to post a performance of at least 28 points, eight assists, four steals and six rebounds. She finished one point shy of matching her career high

Plum passed Leilani Mitchell and Allie Quigley to take sole possession of 18th all-time in WNBA career three-pointers

Plum reached 3,500 points in her WNBA career, scoring 27 in the game (10-for-20 FG, 4-for-9 3PT, 3-for-5 FT). The star guard recorded her seventh career WNBA game with 4+ STL and her third since May 16

With her fourth rebound of the game, Hamby passed Tammy Sutton-Brown for 30th on the WNBA's all-time rebounding list

With her fifth assist of the contest, Sims surpassed Swin Cash for 28th on the WNBA's all-time assists list

Stevens recorded her 13th career double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds

Los Angeles finished with 23 assists, one shy of its season high

Pregame Sparks HC Lynne Roberts Quotes:

Head Coach Lynne Roberts

On how she is keeping the team locked in amidst a busy schedule:

"Well, you continue to reinforce the message, right? And I think consistency starts with me - win or lose, I gotta show up [with] the same work ethic and the same desire to win, and that comes across in how we prepare, and how we talk, and all the things. And these guys are competitors. They want to win as bad as I do, they really do. So, a lot of new and we're getting to the point where we can't use that anymore, but it is still learning one another and ... as a group, what we respond to and as individuals, and that's the beauty of team sports, that's why I love doing it. But I think it's just continuing to be consistent in the messaging and be consistent in the approach and mentality."

On Rickea Jackson's return to the court:

"Our medical team did a tremendous job of just making sure her health is first, and we don't want to mess around with concussions. But she's passed every kind of phase, and so as of yesterday, she was cleared. She played a little three-on-three with some of our practice guys yesterday, just to get used to that contact. But for tonight, she's not going to start. She needs to kind of get her sea legs. I don't anticipate her to have extended minutes just because of the fatigue factor, but we're excited to have her back."

On the science behind Azurá Stevens' dynamic start to the season:

"She fits perfectly into what we're trying to do. In essence, she's like a 6'7" wing, right? And our system allows her to play to her strengths. She really understands cutting and spacing, and with the way we want to play, she's able to do a lot of that, a lot of catch and shoot. But the thing I've been most impressed with is just her physicality and willingness to defend and rebound. We knew what we had with her on the offensive end, but I've been very impressed with her defensively, so she's been a huge catalyst for us."

Postgame Press-Conference Quotes:

Head Coach Lynne Roberts

On Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby's performance in tonight's game:

"It's a dose of perspective, right? Right there. Yeah, [Kelsey Plum]'s been amazing, and there's a lot of pressure on her, but she's done a great job handling that. She's one of those type of players, every time she shoots, you assume it's in. It's a luxury to be able to coach that, and she just plays her ass off. And then Dearica [Hamby]'s just been having unbelievable stat lines. I mean, tonight, 10 for 15, and six rebounds, eight assists, four steals, those are stupid numbers."

On what the team can improve on after tonight's loss:

"My message to the group was, we've got to be able to put 40 minutes together, not get down and then play with that urgency. We have the ability to play like that more, and that's what I'd like to see when we go in those spurts or the droughts ... like you gotta get back defensively and find some momentum there. You can't let a missed shot, a bad shot, a turnover, affect how you play defensively. And I think we could get better at that."

On what contributed to the team's troubles in the fourth quarter:

Kelsey Plum

On the Atlanta Dream's style of play:

"They play fast, they play in transition, and they banged really timely threes, you know? This league is extremely tough, and if you take your foot off the gas for a second, offensively or defensively, people make you pay."

On her respect for the rookies:

"They're competitors and they continue to respond... it's really cool to see them continue to get better every game, and you just want that throughout the season, and they'll be great for us."

On handling high-pressure situations:

"I know in this league there's nothing given to you. And so I understand the responsibility here, and that's why I get frustrated, because I know, myself, I want to win. I want to affect winning at the highest level. And you know, we're close, we're close. If you watch these games, we're freaking right there. And so for me, I don't think I'm bad at handling pressure at all, I'm just a competitor and trying to learn and get it right."

Dearica Hamby

On her playmaking:

"We talked about the versatility and the way the offense is set up. I'm usually the first person to touch the ball, so... it just helps having [Kelsey Plum] here, running off of everything, hitting big-time shots, and just making the right read."

On the team's growing pains early in the season:

"First and foremost, we've been in this position before, way before [the Las Vegas Aces] became what it became when we were champions. So we enjoy the process. We've been a part of the process. We know that it doesn't happen overnight. It's not gonna happen the first five games of the season. And obviously we want to compete, and we want to keep building, but perspective. This is a new group. We're learning a whole new system. It's predicated on chemistry, movement, spacing. So yeah, we're not panicking."

What's Next?: The Sparks hit the road to face the Las Vegas Aces Friday, May 30 (7 p.m.).

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