NBA

Washington Mystics at Los Angeles Sparks

· Women's National Basketball Association
0-4, 0-2 Away
Final
70 - 68

1-2, 1-1 Home

Brown scores 20, Brink leads defensive stand in final seconds of Sparks' win over Mystics

'Rejected by Brink!' Cameron Brink comes up with huge block in final seconds

With Los Angeles (1-2) leading 67-66, Washington had the ball and called timeout with 24.7 seconds left and nine seconds remaining on the shot clock. They did not get a shot off.

The Sparks then made 3 of 4 free throws and led 70-68 before the Mystics went to Shakira Austin in the paint for the chance to tie the score. Brink stripped her of the ball as she attempted to shoot, then Brink blocked the shot after the loose ball came back to Austin. With 0.3 seconds left, the Mystics inbounded to Austin again in the paint, but she did not get a shot off against Brink's defense.

The score was tied at 55 entering the fourth quarter, then Stefanie Dolson gave the Sparks the lead for good at 58-55 when she hit a 3-pointer with 9 minutes remaining. Los Angeles went on to lead 65-58 before the Mystics got their first field goal of the final period, a driving layup by Aaliyah Edwards with 4 1/2 minutes remaining.

Another layup by Edwards got Washington within 65-62 and a third layup made it 65-64 but she missed the and-one opportunity that would have tied the score with 2:06 remaining.

Los Angeles led 24-23 after one quarter, then the teams combined to score only 21 points in the second period. Washington took a 30-29 lead on a 25-foot 3-pointer by Julie Vanloo in the midst of an 11-0 run that covered six minutes of playing time. The Mystics led 36-32 at halftime.

Washington went on to lead 45-36 3 1/2 minutes into the third quarter, but the Sparks regained their shooting touch and tied it at 50 near the 2-minute mark of the period.

Brown's 20 points included three 3-pointers and she added six assists. Dearica Hamby had 17 points and 18 rebounds, and Kia Nurse scored 13. Brink, the No. 2 pick in the recent WNBA Draft, had four points and eight rebounds and was credited with four blocks.

Austin and Julie Vanloo, a 31-year-old rookie, each scored 12 points for Washington (0-4) and Edwards added 10. Vanloo had eight assists.

The Sparks played their first two home games in Long Beach and will return to Los Angeles to face Indiana and heralded rookie Caitlin Clark on Friday.

Regular Season Series

WSH wins series 2-1

Recent Plays

4th 0.0 End of Game 68 - 70
4th 0.0 End of the 4th Quarter 68 - 70
4th 0.1 Mystics offensive team rebound 68 - 70
4th 0.1 (00:00.3) [Mystics] REF-INITIATED REVIEW (CALL OVERTURNED) 68 - 70
4th 0.2 Cameron Brink blocks Shakira Austin 's 2-foot layup 68 - 70

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/wnba/500/wsh.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originWSH https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/wnba/500/la.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originLA
27-64 FG 26-55
42 Field Goal % 47
8-25 3PT 8-21
32 Three Point % 38
6-11 FT 10-15
55 Free Throw % 67
28 Rebounds 33
8 Offensive Rebounds 5
20 Defensive Rebounds 28
21 Assists 21
13 Steals 8
3 Blocks 5
18 Turnovers 24
1 Team Turnovers 4
19 Total Turnovers 28
3 Technical Fouls 0
3 Total Technical Fouls 0
0 Flagrant Fouls 0
10 Points Conceded Off Turnovers 26
6 Fast Break Points 8
26 Points in Paint 28
16 Fouls 19
9 Largest Lead 9

Game Information

Venue: Walter Pyramid

Location: Long Beach, CA
Attendance: 3,627 · Capacity:

2024-25 Eastern Conference Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Atlanta - 14 W6 0.6818182 30
New York 3 17 W3 0.6136364 27
Indiana 6 20 W3 0.54545456 24
Washington 14 28 L10 0.36363637 16
Connecticut 19 33 L2 0.25 11
Chicago 20 34 L4 0.22727273 10

2024-25 Western Conference Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Minnesota - 10 W1 0.77272725 34
Las Vegas 4 14 W16 0.6818182 30
Phoenix 7 17 L3 0.6136364 27
Seattle 11 21 W1 0.52272725 23
Golden State 11 21 L3 0.52272725 23
Los Angeles 13 23 L1 0.47727272 21
Dallas 24 34 W1 0.22727273 10
Full Standings

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