Article author:
Reuters
On Monday night, Phoenix Mercury faced host Los Angeles Sparks to win the bounceback.
Mercury (9-13) lost 91-75 to WNBA champion Chicago on Saturday, but has won three of the last four games.
The addition of Reshanda Gray was helpful.
Gray was abandoned by New York in late June, adding toughness to the team that hit when former MVP Tina Charles broke up last week. She is also Mercury's solid teammate, playing Sparks for the third time this season.
"It's nice to have someone on the basketball court," teammate Diana Taurashi told the Republic of Arizona. "Reshanda has been in this league for a long time because she is loyal to herself and stays in that lane."
Mercury gives Skylar Diggins-Smith many of the scoring punches. I continue to rely on it. She was one of the league's top five scorers, averaging 19 points per outing and scoring 25 points in her defeat to Chicago.
In the midst of a seven-game homestand, Sparks (9-11) is playing on consecutive nights after defeating New York 84-74 Sunday with two consecutive victories.
Los Angeles dragged 43-40 in half, but didn't retreat and used a 9-2 run in the second half of the fourth to keep the game out of reach. Five players scored double-digit scores, including 22 from Nneka Ogwumike.
Chiney Ogwumike succeeded with a 12-point double double and 10 Sparks rebounds.
Interim head coach Fred Williams said his team had the luxury of playing at home, but had no time to take their feet off the accelerator pedal.
"I told the player that it's always helpful when I'm at home, but I can't relax," Williams said. "These teams are still coming after you. We need to protect our home court and you do it by playing hard."
– Field Level Media
