The Los Angeles Sparks snapped the Minnesota Lynx's 10-game winning streak Thursday night, beating the WNBA-leading Lynx 89-82 for their first win over Minnesota in three matchups this season.
Los Angeles closed the game on an 8-0 run as Minnesota missed its final seven shots and went scoreless over the last 4 minutes, 53 seconds. Rae Burrell led the Sparks with 17 points, with a key late basket from Erica Wheeler helping seal the win. Rookie Olivia Miles led the Lynx despite the loss, finishing with 23 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists.
Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve was blunt afterward, publicly criticizing her team's defense as "terrible" in the loss. The result snaps what had been the WNBA's longest active winning streak and hands Minnesota a rare setback as it continues to lead the league standings heading into the stretch run of the regular season.
For the Sparks, the win offers a significant marker of progress against one of the league's top teams, and comes amid a season in which Los Angeles has looked to establish itself as a playoff contender after missing the postseason in recent years. Minnesota, meanwhile, will look to regroup quickly, with the loss unlikely to threaten its position atop the standings but serving as a reminder of the gap that can close quickly in a competitive WNBA season.
The Lynx's 10-game run had been built largely on defensive consistency, making Thursday's late collapse — allowing an 8-0 closing run while missing seven straight shots — especially notable to observers who had begun to view Minnesota as the clear championship favorite. Both teams are scheduled to meet again before the regular season ends, offering a quick opportunity for Minnesota to respond and for Los Angeles to prove the win was not an outlier.