PHOENIX — Dearica Hamby scored 27 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and the Sparks rode a big second quarter to a 97-88 win over the Phoenix Mercury on Thursday night.
The Sparks outscored the Mercury 35-19 in the second to take a 60-43 at the half, a franchise record for points at halftime. The Sparks were 11 of 16 in the second quarter, including five of seven on three-pointers, and didn’t miss from the foul line.
Kelsey Plum had 16 points and seven assists for the Sparks (2-3), who were playing their first road game. Nneka Ogwumike, and reserves Cameron Brink and Rae Burrell all scored 12 points and Ariel Atkins had 11.
Alyssa Thomas led the Mercury (2-4) with 23, with seven rebounds and seven assists. Kahleah Copper added 22 points, Jovana Nogic had 15 and Natasha Mack 10. Phoenix finished 1-3 on its homestand.
Both teams were coming off a home loss to the expansion Toronto Tempo.
The Sparks were five of 17 in the fourth quarter but still shot 48% (31 of 64). The Sparks were 14 of 24 from the three-point line through three quarters but went 0 for eight to finish one make shy of the franchise record.
Plum had 14 points at halftime and three teammates had 10, including Ogwumike, which moved her past Tamika Catchings into fifth on the league’s career scoring list.
The Mercury got no closer than nine in the second half.
Honoring the 30th year of the WNBA the Mercury, one of the league’s original teams along with the Sparks, wore uniforms matching their original ones and had the old logo at midcourt.