LOS ANGELES — Finally, the Sparks had some fun.

After five consecutive losses, on Wednesday night at Crytpo.com Arena, they scored a 99-94 victory over the Phoenix Mercury, who cut the Sparks’ 10-point lead to 97-94 on a pair of Diana Taurasi free throws with one minute left.

Fortunately for Derek Fisher’s squad, the Mercury (2-5) lost their fourth consecutive game, having waited too long to solve the Sparks contributors who seemed to be coming at them from every direction – including defensively.

Katie Lou Samuelson – who scored a career-high 17 points in her first start as a Spark – stayed in front of Skylar Diggins-Smith on a drive with 32 seconds left, blocked the Phoenix guard’s layup and corralled the rebound to help the Sparks preserve a precarious three-point lead.

Phoenix’s Diamond DeShields fouled Jordin Canada hard with 16.8 seconds left, and Canada made one of two attempts and then DeShields missed a shot and Samuelson tipped the rebound back to Nneka Ogwumike, who connected on one of her two free throws to increase the Sparks’ lead to 99-94 with 10.1 seconds left.

Earlier, Diggins-Smith evaded Brittney Sykes at the rim only to have Chennedy Carter swat her shot away. Diggins-Smith hit the deck and looked up, astonished, to see it had been a mean-mugging Carter who’d denied her so vigorously.

Carter – aka “Hollywood” – put on a show on the offensive end too, with 12 points on 6-for-9 shooting in 17 minutes.

Nneka Ogwumike (23 points) and Liz Cambage (21) led L.A., who also got 10 points from Lexie Brown, who stayed hot, hitting four of her five shots and both of her 3-point tries before a crowd of 4,000.

Samuelson was facing her sister, former Spark Karlie Samuelson. Phoenix – short-staffed due to injury and a COVID diagnosis – picked her up on a hardship basis just hours before the game.

Said Mercury coach Vanessa Nygaard: “She woke up this morning, had probably a cup of coffee and then all of a sudden she’s a member of the Phoenix Mercury.”

Nygaard, the former L.A. Windward High girls basketball coach, also was reunited with former Windward star Canada: “She’s kind of like my kid,” Nygaard said pregame, getting emotional thinking of their time together. “It was great for her to win those championships in Seattle and get to play with Sue (Bird) and all those great players, but she needs a place where she can shine and grow and to get to come home. … I know it’s so special for her.”

Canada finished with seven points and a team-high six assists against her former coach.

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The Sparks (3-5) didn’t trail after the first quarter for just the second time this season. They’d had an 18-17 advantage in their second game against Indiana on May 8 and then trailed after the first period in their five games since, including Monday’s 39-19 deficit in their blowout loss in Las Vegas.

On Wednesday, Fisher’s squad went into the second quarter tied 22-22 – and outscored the Mercury 34-23 in the second frame.

Carter had much to do with that. She gave the Sparks some pop off the bench, with six points in four momentum-building minutes during which the Sparks outscored Phoenix by four points.

Chiney Ogwumike returned to action after missing the past two games with a leg contusion she sustained in the Sparks’ home opener against Minnesota last week. In 13 minutes of short spurts, the Sparks’ younger Ogwumike sister gave her side three points, two rebounds and some noticeable defensive activity.

More to come on this story.