WNBA round-up: Brittner Griner stars for Phoenix Mercury in victory over Los Angeles Sparks | NBA News

Brittany Griner’s 29 points and 11 rebounds powered the host Phoenix Mercury to a 78-72 win over the Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday.

Griner made 12 of 18 shots from the field, while Diana Taurasi shot seven of 13 from the floor, including two of six from three-point range, and finished with 22 points along with five assists and four rebounds. Hui.

Moriah Jefferson added 11 points and eight assists for the Mercury (4-14), who ended a three-game losing streak and won for just the second time in 11 games.

The Mercury shot 30 of 63 (47.6 percent) from the field, including five of 17 shots from three-point range. Phoenix defeated the Sparks 37–30.

Los Angeles (7-12) was led by Nneka Ogwumike, who had 20 points and 14 rebounds, while Jordan Canada added 16 points. Azura Stevens scored 13 points and eight rebounds, while Jasmine Thomas scored 10 points for the Sparks, who have lost five straight games.

Sparks shot 26 of 70 (37.1 percent) from the field, including eight of 21 shots from beyond the arc. Trailing 68–57 with less than five minutes left, the Sparks went on a 13–4 run to get within 72–70 after Stevens split a pair of free throws with 1:21 remaining.

Destanie Henderson stole the ball from Griner with 1:02 left, but the Mercury got the ball back when Griner won a jump ball against Stevens after Phoenix won a coach’s challenge on a Taurasi foul that was overturned. Taurasi made it a four-point game with a pair of free throws with 45.1 seconds remaining.

After two Canadian free throws tied the game at 33 with 3:43 left in the second quarter, the Mercury ended the period on a 9–3 run to take a 42–36 half-time advantage. Griner had 16 points before the break for Phoenix, while Ogwumike led the Sparks with 12.

Elsewhere, Ryne Howard scored 23 of his 32 points in the second half and Cheyenne Parker had 18 points with 11 rebounds as the Atlanta Dream pulled away with an 88-77 win over the Sky in Chicago for the second time in three nights .

Kelsey Plum scored a game-high 40 points on just 18 shot attempts as the Las Vegas Aces ended the Minnesota Lynx’s five-game winning streak in emphatic fashion with a 113-89 loss in Minneapolis, while Arike Ogunbowale had 28 points. Scored points – which included 14. 4th Quarter – The visiting Dallas Wings beat the Indiana Fever 77–76.

The second game on Sunday saw DeVanna Bonner heating up with 28 points from the perimeter as the Connecticut Sun beat the Washington Mystics 92-84.