Aces snap Sparks' win streak at five on Brink's return

LOS ANGELES -- It was good while it lasted.

The Sparks never got going offensively, which has been their calling card as of late. A'ja Wilson made sure the Sparks couldn't get off the ground and the Aces (14-13) cooled off the hot Sparks, 89-74.

Wilson nearly outscored the Sparks by herself in the first quarter, 18-17. The Aces got off to a 26-7 start and never looked back in this wire-to-wire victory.

The shots never fell for the Sparks. They shot under 38 percent from the field and only went 4 for 24 (.167) from behind the arc.

"You've got to dig deep and get stops, whether it's your pick-and-roll coverage, clean it up," Sparks coach Lynne Roberts said about their offense not working. "I felt like we defended their first actions pretty well, whether it's the ball screen or whatever but then it was the offball stuff that kind of hurt us whether it's cutting or, again, offensive rebounds, confusion on screens.

"You know, two people would go with the ball, one person would stay," Roberts continued. "You know, that's a communication thing. It's just being, we've got to be more locked in, and there's got to be an intensity to how we defend."

Their defense has been questioned during this winning streak and it came to light on Tuesday night. It didn't help that the Sparks' turnover woes came back; they had 19 against the Aces' 13.

"You know, it was the first quarter. We just came out a little soft and Vegas came out with a head full of steam," Roberts said. "And I thought we were reacting to everything and not really anticipating things, getting beaten on overboards and cuts, and we played them even other than that first quarter. But we just can't give a team like that that much space."

Rae Burrell came off the bench and made a huge impact. She definitely tried her damnedest to get within reach of the Aces.

"Yeah, I feel like the team did a good job of just preparing me for coming back, and I was just out there and I was just going," Burrell said about being all the way back. "I just try to bring the same thing every night. I try to bring in some energy, whatever the team needs me to bring, and whether that's getting offensive rebounds, being aggressive on offense, defense, just whatever the team needs me to do, I'm wanting to do. And I'm just going to play hard regardless. So I mean, I just felt like I was just being me tonight."

Cameron Brink made a return and probably played more than what was expected at just under 14 minutes. She looked very comfortable out there. She got an offensive rebound and an assist to Rickea Jackson on her first possession back. Brink would also make her first shot of the season, which was a three-pointer.

"Cam's got a lot of stuff that she could be doing but basketball's her main thing," Roberts said. "That's her passion, and, you know, it's an emotional moment when you've been out for 13 months and you finally are actually on the uniform line and you're going to get to play. You know, I think she loves basketball so she's finally getting a chance to be out there and be with her teammates that she's been watching for 13 months, and I think that's her happy place."

And while it was a feelgood moment for Brink to make her return, the rest of the team did not do so well. With the five-game win streak snapped, they're going to have to start a new one when they play in Seattle on Friday.

Kelsey Plum led the way with 22 points for the Sparks while Burrell had a season-high 17. Brink scored five points and grabbed three boards in her first game since June 18, 2024. A'ja Wilson was on top top top with 34 points and 10 boards. Jackie Young probably had the quietest triple-double (18-11-11) there ever was.

The Sparks are now 11-15 and now two games behind the 8th playoff spot.