Los Angeles Sparks beat Toronto 99-95

Los Angeles got its first win of the season with a 99-95 victory over Toronto on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena, ending an 0-2 start for the Sparks. Kelsey Plum scored 25 points and had nine assists, according to the WNBA game recap. The Sparks led by as many as 20 points in the second half before holding off a late push from the expansion Tempo. Sunday’s rematch in Los Angeles gives both teams a quick return to the same matchup. ### How did Los Angeles finally get its first win? The Sparks opened with the game’s first 10 points and built a 21-2 lead in the first quarter, according to the WNBA recap. Los Angeles led 28-17 after one quarter and 46-38 at halftime. A 12-0 run in the third quarter pushed the Sparks ahead 58-38 midway through the period. Los Angeles carried a 74-63 lead into the fourth and held on from there for its first win of 2026, the league recap said. ### What did Kelsey Plum do in the game? Plum finished with 25 points and nine assists, with 18 of her points coming in the second half, according to the WNBA recap. The guard also made two free throws with 13.8 seconds left to stretch the lead to 97-93. TheScore’s game log listed Plum with 27 points, but the official WNBA recap and box summary credited her with 25. The WNBA game page also showed Los Angeles shooting 37-for-58, or 64%, from the field. ### Who else carried the Sparks? Nneka Ogwumike added 20 points for Los Angeles, and Dearica Hamby scored 19, according to the WNBA recap. Rae Burrell had 13 points and Erica Wheeler added 10. Cameron Brink scored 10 points off the bench and made two free throws with 8.9 seconds remaining. Los Angeles outscored Toronto 54-30 in the paint, a margin that offset Toronto’s 42 bench points, the WNBA game summary showed. ### How close did Toronto come late? Toronto cut a 20-point second-half deficit to two points with 2:23 remaining, the WNBA recap said. Brittney Sykes led the Tempo with 27 points, while Laura Juskaite scored 16 off the bench and Nyara Sabally added 14. The expansion Tempo got within three points again with under a minute left. Plum and Ogwumike then combined for the next six Los Angeles points before Brink’s late free throws sealed the result, according to the recap. ### What do the numbers say about the game? Los Angeles shot 64% from the field, compared with 44% for Toronto, according to the official WNBA game summary. The Sparks also finished with 26 assists to Toronto’s 22 and held a 35-30 edge in rebounds. Toronto made 12 3-pointers to Los Angeles’ nine and went 21-for-22 from the free-throw line. The Tempo also forced 16 Sparks turnovers and recorded 13 steals, but Los Angeles’ efficiency inside the arc and 54 points in the paint proved enough to hold the lead. ### When do they play again? The WNBA schedule lists Toronto at Los Angeles again on Sunday, May 17, at 7 p.m. ET at Crypto.com Arena. The second game closes the Sparks’ season-opening homestand against the Tempo, according to the league schedule.