The Los Angeles Sparks can’t afford any stumbles, and they will take aim at improving their playoff aspirations when they visit the Seattle Storm on Monday night.

The Sparks (18-20) are two games behind the Indiana Fever for the eighth and final playoff spot with six games left. They also stand 2 1/2 games in back of the Golden State Valkyries and the Storm (22-19).

Los Angeles is 2-1 against Seattle this season and will possess the tiebreaker edge if it knocks off a Storm squad that has won five of its past six games.

“We know what’s at stake, but just trying to break it down to each possession matters,” Los Angeles’ Azura Stevens said after Sunday’s 81-78 home victory over the Washington Mystics. “Not getting too caught up in we have to win ‘X-amount’ of games. We know the circumstances, but all we can control is the next possession.”

The Sparks had dropped two straight games before beating the Mystics. It looked like it would be an easy night for Los Angeles when it scored the game’s first 12 points but Washington rallied and even took a one-point lead in the fourth quarter.

Kelsey Plum broke out of her game-long hibernation by scoring 14 of her 18 points in the final quarter as the Sparks handed the Mystics their seventh straight setback.

“I just tried to be patient,” Plum said of her late-game splurge. “… We’re taking it one game at a time. Seattle is a great team. Everybody at this point of the season is just looking for a win.”

The Storm certainly have been locating victories with their recent strong play.

Seattle knocked off the league-best Minnesota Lynx 93-79 last Thursday to complete a 4-1 road trip before notching a 79-69 home win over the Chicago Sky on Saturday in the opener of a four-game homestand that will conclude their season.

Nneka Ogwumike scored 20 points against the Sky to move into second place on the franchise’s single-season points list with 746. Former Storm star Jewell Loyd set the mark of 939 in 2023.

“We want to be able to show that we can bring that momentum — especially with all the tight games we’ve been playing in August — and turn that around into wins,” Ogwumike said after the Saturday victory. “And creating hopefully what will be a four-game home winning streak going into the playoffs. I think the timing of that is crucial for us.”

Five other Seattle players joined Ogwumike in double figures against Chicago.

The Sparks beat the Storm 108-106 in double overtime in Seattle on Aug. 1. The teams split the two matchups in Los Angeles.

–Field Level Media