Los Angeles can’t contain Loyd, lose 89-83 to Seattle
Los Angeles Sparks #2 Rickea Jackson (F) is driving and being defended by Seattle Storm #3 Nneka Ogwumike (F). Photo by Deangelo Scruggs/Infanity TV
LOS ANGELES, CA — The Seattle Storm defeated the Los Angeles Sparks 89-83 on Tuesday, with Jewell Loyd scoring 30 points and seven assists and Nneka Ogwumike contributing 23 points, 10 rebounds, and six steals.
Azura Stevens lead the Sparks in scoring with 24 points, followed by Rae Burrell with 18, Rickea Jackson with 16, and Dearica Hamby with 15 points and nine rebounds. Los Angeles has continued to suffer from turnovers, with 15 against the Storm.
Seattle (17-8), which played a road game for the first time since June 19, finished the first half of the season with eight wins out of ten. Burrell's three-pointer put the Sparks down 19-17 at the end of the first quarter.
Burrell would give Los Angeles its first lead 25-23 in the second quarter with another three-point shot, forcing Seattle to call a time out. The Storm would regain the lead 33-32 with a jump shot Ogwumike. Seattle would lead at halftime 41-37.
Seattle Storm #24 Jewell Loyd pulling up for a three-point shot. Photo by Deangelo Scruggs/Infanity TV.
The Sparks trail by eleven points in the third quarter after Loyd nailed a three-pointer at the top of the key. Los Angeles began to make a run, down 55-47 with a layup by Stevens.
Seattle led 64-61 at the end of the third quarter with another layup by Stevens.
Burrell would tie the game 66-66 with a three-pointer from the right side of the basket in the fourth quarter.
Loyd and Ogwumike combined to score 20 of Seattle’s 25 fourth-quarter points.
Ogwumike, who played her first game in Los Angeles since signing with the Storm as a free agent in February, made a driving layup with 2:20 left in the fourth made the score 84-76, and moved past Lisa Leslie for 12th on the WNBA career scoring list.
Loyd finished 8 of 18 from the field and 11 of 16 from the free-throw line to reach the 30-point mark for the fourth time this season, to help beat the Sparks 89-83.
Jordan Horston, who scored eight of Seattle’s opening 15 points, finished with 14 points and eight rebounds. Skylar Diggins-Smith was held to eight points on 2-of-12 shooting.