– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
Follow @Koiki_Sport Follow @ALOST_Official
WASHINGTON — While the violent undulations of the roller-coaster game that unfolded on Tuesday night gave both teams a case of vertigo throughout the contest, it was the Los Angeles Sparks who finally emerged from the ride wanting to take another spin after their stomach made out just a little bit better in the end.
Dearica Hamby had 24 points and 14 rebounds while Rickea Jackson scored 20 of her 22 points in the second half as the Sparks used a 9-0 run late in the fourth quarter to finally put away the Washington Mystics 93-86 inside CareFirst Arena on Tuesday evening. The two each scored 10 points in the fourth quarter as Los Angeles has won three straight, with the last two coming against the Mystics on either side of the All-Star Break.
Los Angeles overcame an 18-3 hole in the first quarter, which ended with the Sparks being down by 10, as it shot 52.7 percent from the field in the game’s final three quarters. The Sparks, who outscored Washington 24-9 in the second to take a 40-35 lead at halftime, were up 81-78 before scoring nine straight points, with Hamby’s jumper at the 1:54 mark capping off the decisive run.
Kelsey Plum added nine of her 11 points in the second half, making all three of her 3-pointers after intermission.
Brittany Sykes led the Mystics with 18 points while Shakira Austin chipped in with 17. Rookie Sonia Citron, Washington’s second-leading scorer at 14.1 points per game, was held to seven points on just 2-of-7 shooting, and she didn’t attmept her first field goal attempt of the game until the third quarter.
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Tuesday evening’s game, with photos taken by DC area-based photographer Clifford Ray Williams. After clicking on a photo to enlarge the picture, press the left and right arrow buttons on either side of the caption to scroll through the rest of the pictures that appear on the first page, Also, click on the numbers and/or arrow appearing immediately below the picture grid to load the next set of photos. There are 19 pictures in total.
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