Mercury Offense Shines in Win Over Sparks

The Mercury offense was too much for the Sparks to overcome as Phoenix preserved their number four spot in the standings with an important win.

Aug 26, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally (0) is defended by Los Angeles Sparks forward Azura Stevens (23) as she drives to the basket during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Phoenix Mercury picked up an important win on the road over the red-hot Los Angeles Sparks, improving their record to 23-14 for the season, moving them to half a game ahead of the New York Liberty for fourth in the WNBA standings. Despite strong offensive performances from Dearica Hamby (25 points) and Rickea Jackson (21 points) for the Sparks, the Mercury kept L.A. from getting hot behind the arc and won, 92-84.

The Mercury were led by yet another triple-double from Alyssa Thomas, plus a 19-point night from Satou Sabally, in addition to one of the best performances by the team's bench unit in a while.

Aug 26, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper (2) looses a grip on the ball as she is defended by Los Angeles Sparks forward Azura Stevens (23) and guard Kelsey Plum (10) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

1st quarter

The Mercury cleared Monique Akoa Makani to play before tip-off and she began the game in the starting lineup. Early on, the Mercury were clearly looking to go after Kelsey Plum on offense, attacking that mismatch repeatedly. Sabally got two quick buckets on her down low and Kahleah Copper scored on her in the mid-post as well.

Phoenix opened up an early 20-11 lead after Thomas found DeWanna Bonner for a layup and Kathryn Westbeld for a three on back-to-back plays, but a few turnovers and some excellent offensive play from Rickea Jackson kept the Sparks in it.

At the end of the first quarter, Jackson (10) and Hamby (six) had scored all but two of the Sparks' points. Sabally already had 10 for the Mercury, who led 24-18 going into the second.

Aug 26, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner (14) is defended by Los Angeles Sparks forward Cameron Brink (22) as she drives to the basket during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

2nd quarter

Three quick Los Angeles buckets got them within one, but a corner three from Bonner kept the home team from taking the lead. The Mercury took advantage of some weak interior defense by the Sparks in the second, but L.A. found some offensive rhythm of their own and kept things close.

A smooth midrange shot from Lexi Held and a Sami Whitcomb corner three pushed the Mercury's halftime lead to 48-40. Phoenix was shooting 50% from both the field (18-for-36) and from three (6-for-12), but had nine turnovers. Hamby and Jackson had 13 apiece, carrying the load for L.A.

Sabally and Copper were both in double figures for Phoenix, who also had nine points off the bench from Sami Whitcomb (on perfect three-point shooting) and seven from Bonner. Thomas already had 10 assists at halftime.

Aug 26, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Sparks guard Kelsey Plum (10) is defended by Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper (2) and forward Satou Sabally (0) during the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

3rd quarter

Thomas's 11th assist found Copper cutting baseline for a smooth finish and gave the Mercury their first double-digit lead of the game. The Sparks tried out some zone defense to slow Phoenix down and back-to-back threes from Jackson got it to within four, but Phoenix responded with two threes of their own from Sabally and Westbeld.

Phoenix capped a 9-0 run with a tough and-one by Copper. A three from Plum stopped the bleeding but things looked rough for the Sparks when Jackson went down with what appeared to be an ankle injury. She would later return to the court.

The Mercury led 70-57 after three.

Aug 26, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Sparks head coach Nate Tibbetts instructs his team during the second half against the Los Angeles Sparks at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Fourth quarter

Hamby opened up the quarter with an and-one but two quick threes from Whitcomb threatened to blow the game open. Her fifth three of the night gave Phoenix a 16-point lead. The Mercury were looking excellent, outside of some turnover issues, with 26 assists on their first 28 field goals.

Thomas secured her seventh triple-double of the season with a strong drive down the left side of the key and a stepback three from Bonner appeared to ice the game, but the Sparks made one last push to get it down to six. Phoenix held on to win, 92-84.

Once again, five Mercury players were in double figures, led by Sabally's 19 and Copper's 18. Thomas put up an astonishing 12-point, 16-rebound, 15-assist triple-double (with three steals in there for good measure), while Whitcomb, who went 5-for-7 from deep, and Bonner had 17 and 14 off the bench, respectively.

Hamby and Jackson combined for 46 points on sizzling 16-for-23 shooting for the Sparks, but there was very little scoring by anyone else outside of Plum, who had 20. Nobody else on the team had more than nine points or shot better than 40% from the floor.

Aug 26, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Sparks forward Rickea Jackson (2) defends a pass by Phoenix Mercury guard Monique Akoa Makani (8) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Phoenix's next game will be on Thursday night, at home against the struggling Chicago Sky.

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