Sparks secure 1st victory for interim coach Fred Williams

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nneka Ogwumike scored 21 points, Katie Lou Samuelson added 13 points and the Los Angeles Sparks beat the Washington Mystics 84-82 on Tuesday night for interim coach Fred Williams’ first victory.

Los Angeles led 77-61 before Washington started a comeback. Natasha Cloud made back-to-back 3-pointers and she found Ariel Atkins in the corner for a four-point play. During the timeout between Atkins’ 3-pointer and free throw, the officials reviewed a Liz Cambage basket and ruled it came after the buzzer to reduce Los Angeles’ lead to 77-71.

Ogwumike was fouled before making two free throws with 10.2 seconds left to give Los Angeles a three-point lead. After a timeout, Cloud was fouled on a 3-point attempt with 2.5 left but missed the second of three free throws and intentionally missed the third before Los Angeles secured the rebound.

Chiney Ogwumike had 10 points and nine rebounds for Los Angeles (6-9), which snapped a three-game losing streak.

Atkins scored 22 points and Myisha Hines-Allen had 17 points and eight rebounds for Washington (11-8). Cloud had 13 points and a career-high 13 assists. Elena Delle Donne did not play.

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