Nneka Ogwumike recorded game highs of 27 points and 12 rebounds to fuel the host Los Angeles Sparks to a 93-83 victory over the Dallas Wings on Sunday afternoon.
Named as a starter for the All-Star Game on Sunday, Ogwumike made 9 of 14 shot attempts and all eight of her attempts from the free-throw line. She also had four assists, two steals and two blocks.
Dearica Hamby scored 17 points and Karlie Samuelson added 14 for the Sparks (7-7), who shot 50 percent from the floor (31 of 62) en route to defeating the Wings for the third time in under two weeks. Los Angeles posted a 79-61 victory in Dallas on June 14 and overcame a 17-point deficit in a 76-74 win at home on Friday.
Dallas’ Arike Ogunbowale, who also was named as a starter for the All-Star Game, joined Crystal Dangerfield by scoring 18 points on Sunday. Teaira McCowan contributed 14 points and nine rebounds and Natasha Howard added 13 points for the Wings (6-8), who dropped to 1-6 on the road this season.
Dallas’ Satou Sabally, who also was named as a starter for the All-Star Game, finished with just eight points while being plagued by foul trouble.
Kalani Brown made a layup to give Dallas a 79-78 lead with 5:35 remaining in the fourth quarter before Los Angeles finished the game on a 15-4 run. Ogwumike made a pair of shots from the floor and two more from the charity stripe to highlight the Sparks’ finishing kick.
The Wings pushed their lead to 71-60 in the third quarter before Los Angeles answered in short order, with Destanni Henderson and Samuelson each draining a 3-pointer and Ogwumike converting a three-point play.
Howard drained a 3-pointer and a short jumper and Dangerfield converted a three-point play and a 3-pointer to lift the Wings to a 67-57 lead with 3:01 remaining in the third quarter.
Los Angeles was slow out of the blocks before it scored the final 13 points of the first quarter to seize a 26-18 lead. The Sparks extended their advantage to 12 points at 33-21 before Ogunbowale’s driving layup ignited a late surge by Dallas that helped forge a 44-44 tie at halftime.
–Field Level Media
