LOS ANGELES — Before the game Sparks head coach Curt Miller challenged his team to match or exceed the New York Liberty’s energy.

“We have nothing to lose,” Miller said before tip-off. “They are expected to bounce back but I like our preparation. I like where we’re at mentally going into this game.”

The Sparks, who were down by as much as 27 points in the third quarter, ratcheted up their energy and effort late in the fourth quarter, pulling within ten points, 80-70 with 2:56 left in the game on an alley-oop layup by Dearica Hamby, who finished with a team-high 21 points, six rebounds and three steals.

“I was just playing hard and running the floor really well,” Hamby said. “Some activity got me going early and gave me some confidence to continue to be aggressive throughout the game but mostly I would say running hard.”

A three-point play by Hamby capped off a 15-0 run by the Sparks, which made it 80-73 with 1:47 to go. New York All-Star guard Sabrina Ionescu drained a three, establishing an 83-73 lead with 1:32 to go.

“Proud of our fight all the way to the finish,” Miller said after the game.

However, the Sparks (9-16) never led at any point in the game. They also could not stop New York (19-6) from making 15 three-pointers, ultimately losing 87-79 at Crypto.com Arena Sunday.

“The learning lesson is you have to play almost with that sense of urgency and desperation that we played late with, all game. There’s a thin line with our group and we’ve got to throw everything at them all game long,” Miller explained.

“I would say there’s a couple of buckets that we probably wish we could get back and obviously not starting the came 21-2. That’s a really big hole to come back from against a top-two team in this league,” Hamby said.

Jordin Canada scored 11 of her 17 points in the fourth quarter. Azurá Stevens had 13 points. Nneka Ogwumike added ten points, five rebounds and three assists, for her second-lowest scoring output of the season.

The Sparks found themselves down 21-2 with 2:52 remaining in the first quarter. New York drained 5 of 7 three-pointers early. During the same span, they held the Sparks to 1 of 15 (6.7%) shooting from the field. Hamby then scored six of her team’s next nine points, as the Sparks trailed 25-11 heading into the second quarter.

New York All-Star forward Breanna Stewart finished with 25 points and nine rebounds. Ionescu had 14 points, six rebounds and five assists. Jonquel Jones added a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds.

Sparks head coach Curt Miller told me his team has nothing to lose against the New York Liberty. That’s why he’s challenging his team to look to run against the Liberty, finding early and easy offense. #WNBATwitter pic.twitter.com/EXqQKuzhUs

— John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) July 30, 2023

The Sparks pulled within ten points, 28-19 with 7:13 left in the second after a nice crossover and pullup mid-range jump shot by Jordin Canada against Ionescu.

New York led 51-35 at halftime. Liberty guard Marine Johannès had 15 points in the first half on 5-5 shooting from 3. New York began the third quarter on a 13-4 run, powered by nine quick points by Stewart. The Sparks trailed 69-50 heading into the fourth but only lost by eight points, 87-79.

“We just played with a lot of heart,” Stevens shared. “Sometimes I think we can get wrapped up in schemes or this and that but when you get on the court, who is playing heart and I think that’s what we did. We were scrambling talking, hustling and we were just fighting all together that last unit that was in, so we have to find a way to do it the whole game.”

Sparks forwards Azurá Stevens and Dearica Hamby on the team’s 87-79 loss to the New York Liberty. Stevens said the Sparks played with a lot of heart late but need to do that for 40 minutes. Hamby said the Sparks need to find their identity and what makes this team unique. pic.twitter.com/Ao0InQOat3

— John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) July 30, 2023

Strategy aside, Miller also wanted his team to get out and run against New York. However, the Sparks trailed by as many as 19 points in the first quarter, limited by New York to only four fast-break points through the first 30 minutes of the game.

“It’s hard to fast break when you can’t get stops that was a lot of the story early,” Miller said. “At the same time, we have to keep running. I thought Dearica had a good night rim running. It wasn’t always rewarded… she puts pressure on the rim,” Miller said.

The Sparks will play New York again Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena.

LA Sparks head coach Curt Miller assess his team’s 87-79 loss at home to the New York Liberty. pic.twitter.com/OidwBJKO6X

— John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) July 30, 2023

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