Brittney Griner’s 29 points and 11 rebounds led the host Phoenix Mercury to a 78-72 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday.

Griner shot 12 of 18 from the field, while Diana Taurasi went 7 of 13 from the floor, including 2 of 6 from 3-point range, to finish with 22 points to go along with five assists and four rebounds. She also collected her first dunk of the season with nearly five minutes gone in the first half.

Moriah Jefferson chipped in 11 points and eight assists for the Mercury (4-14), who ended a three-game losing streak and won for just the second time in 11 games.

The Mercury shot 30 of 63 (47.6 percent) from the field, including 5 of 17 (29.4 percent) from 3-point range. Phoenix outrebounded the Sparks 37-30.

Los Angeles (7-12) was led by Nneka Ogwumike, who had 20 points and 14 rebounds, while Jordin Canada added 16 points.

Azura Stevens chipped in 13 points and eight rebounds, while Jasmine Thomas had 10 points for the Sparks, who have dropped five straight games.

The Sparks shot 26 of 70 (37.1 percent) from the field, including 8 of 21 (38.1 percent) from beyond the arc.

Trailing 68-57 with less than five minutes left, the Sparks went on a 13-4 run to pull to within 72-70 after Stevens split a pair of free throws with 1:21 remaining.

Destanni Henderson stole the ball from Griner with 1:02 to go, but the Mercury got the ball back when Griner won a jump ball against Stevens after Phoenix won a coach’s challenge on a Taurasi foul that was overturned.

Taurasi made it a four-point game with a pair of free throws with 45.1 seconds remaining.

After Canada’s two free throws tied the game at 33 with 3:43 left in the second quarter, the Mercury closed the period on a 9-3 run to take a 42-36 halftime advantage.

Griner had 16 points before the break for Phoenix, while Ogwumike led the Sparks with 12.

–Field Level Media