Photo Credit: Los Angeles Sparks/Instagram
By: Jennifer Portee
8/23/2026
Rae Burrell gave the Sparks the lift they had been looking for.
Burrell scored 20 points and made her presence felt on both sides of the floor as Los Angeles ended its six-game losing streak with a 77-68 win over the Connecticut Sun on Saturday night.
The Sparks came into the game needing a response after allowing Atlanta to score 124 points two nights earlier. This time, Los Angeles played with more urgency, got into Connecticut’s space, and made every clean look difficult to find.
Burrell went to work early with 11 first-half points. She stayed aggressive without forcing the action, took advantage of openings in transition, and made quick reads when the Sun shifted extra attention her way. Her scoring led all players, but her activity away from the basket mattered just as much.
Los Angeles led 44-36 at halftime, then put the game in its hands during the third quarter. Connecticut managed just four makes on 16 attempts, while the Sparks went 9-for-12 and stretched the lead to 66-46 heading into the fourth.
Erica Wheeler’s 3-pointer with 6:12 left gave Los Angeles a 77-55 lead. The Sun made one last push, rattling off 13 unanswered points and cutting it to single digits with under two minutes remaining. The Sparks did not score again, but Connecticut missed its final five shots and could not finish the comeback.
Nneka Ogwumike added 11 points and 11 rebounds for her 131st career double-double, continuing to steady the Sparks on the glass and through the late-game pressure. Wheeler finished with 11 points, while Dearica Hamby scored 10 before she was ejected early in the fourth quarter following a reviewed box-out play involving Connecticut’s Raegan Beers.
Los Angeles committed 25 turnovers that turned into 30 Connecticut points, which nearly gave the Sun a way back into the game. Still, after six consecutive losses, the Sparks found a way to win with defense. They held Connecticut to 68 points after entering the night allowing 93.6 per game.
Saniya Rivers led the Sun with 14 points off the bench. Leïla Lacan scored 13 and Kennedy Burke added 10 for Connecticut, which played without Brittney Griner because of a knee injury and Aaliyah Edwards because of an ankle injury.
The Sparks, now 13-24, host Atlanta on Monday in the third game of their four-game run at home. Connecticut, now 9-27, returns home to face Chicago on Tuesday