Te’a Cooper scores a career-high 26 to lead Sparks victory

The Sparks used their signature defensive intensity and avenged their blowout loss two weeks ago to the Washington Mystics with an 89-82 victory Thursday at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Along with their stellar defense, they got impressive offensive nights from guard Te’a Cooper and forward Amanda Zahui B.

Coming off the bench, Cooper led the Sparks (6-7) with a career-high 26. Zahui B. bounced back after a couple tough outings with 17 points and five rebounds while helping to contain the WNBA’s leading scorer, Tina Charles.

Guard Leilani Mitchell led the Mystics (7-7) with 26 points. Charles matched her season scoring average with 25 points while securing 10 rebounds.

Los Angeles started the game with length to combat Charles and company, giving center Kristine Angiwe her first start of the season. After the Sparks fell behind 8-0, coach Derek Fisher summoned Cooper off the bench just three minutes into the game.

She delivered.

The second-year player notched eight points in the first quarter alone to bring the Sparks within striking distance at 23-17 before rallying for a 32-21 second quarter and a five-point halftime lead.

Washington came committing just the third-most turnovers in the league at 12.2 per game, but the Sparks created 33 points off 21 Mystic turnovers.

The Sparks also blocked six shots, three from Zahui B., including a possible game-tying three from Charles. The Sparks crowd rocked after the block and subsequent shot-clock violation.

Both teams played short-handed. The Mystics had five players injured while the Sparks were without Nneka and Chiney Oguwmike. Kristi Toliver left the game in the fourth quarter after taking a shot to the face and did not return.

Since the teams met two weeks ago, they’ve trended in opposite directions. Before Thursday, the Sparks had lost four of their last five while the Mystics were on a three-game winning streak.

More to come on this story.

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