Rae

Burrell

With Rickea Jackson (leg) and Julie Allemand (ankle) out on Thursday, Burrell and Barker will start in their place for the Sparks in their season finale. The Sparks were eliminated from playoff contention on Tuesday, so Jackson’s and Allemand’s inactive statuses shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise as they battle injuries. With one game left in the season, the Sparks will have a chance to finish with a .500 record if they can defeat the Aces on Thursday.

Jackson and Allemand are the only two players on the Sparks’ injury report ahead of their season finale on Thursday. Both players participated in the Sparks’ most recent game against the Mercury on Tuesday. Yet, with Los Angeles now officially eliminated from playoff contention, the statuses of the two players ahead of their matchup with the Aces will be worth monitoring. Should either player miss Thursday’s game, Rae Burrell, Julie Vanloo and Sarah Ashlee Barker would all be candidates to fill in as starters.

Burrell had the most productive game of her career on Tuesday, recording her first 20-point game as a pro. The Sparks wing chipped in with a complete stat line off the bench and had reached double figures in scoring in consecutive games for the second time this season. Unfortunately, Burrell appeared to suffer an arm injury late in Tuesday’s win, which may cast some doubt on her availability for Thursday’s season finale against Las Vegas. Due to Seattle beating Golden State there won’t be anything on the line for the Sparks, who were eliminated from playoff contention.

With Rickea Jackson still clearly in some pain and not moving particularly well from her left leg injury that she sustained on Tuesday night, it was up to Burrell to step up coming off the bench. She hit a three-pointer and slashed to the basket well, putting a lot of pressure on the rim. While the Fever defense was so keyed into Kelsey Plum throughout the game, Burrell had some more space to attack the basket and speed past the Fever’s line of defense. The Sparks wing did her most damage in the third quarter, scoring five of the Fever’s total 11 third quarter points at a moment in the game where both team’s were struggling to score.

Jackson will start for the Sparks after previously being ruled questionable. The second year wing tweaked her left leg on Tuesday night against the Mercury at the end of the third quarter. She returned mid-way through the fourth. While Sparks head coach Roberts alluded to Rae Burrell starting if Jackson wasn’t available to play, Burrell now will come off the bench on Friday night.

Jackson left the Sparks’ Tuesday night game against the Mercury at the end of the third quarter with an apparent left ankle injury. While she returned to the game in the middle of the fourth quarter on Tuesday, Jackson remains questionable on Friday night. Head coach Lynne Roberts told reporters pregame that if Jackson can’t play that Rae Burrell will take her spot in the starting lineup. Expect guard Julie Vanloo and wing Sarah Ashlee Barker to get some more minutes on the floor if Jackson if unavailable.

Hamby struggled to begin the game, missing her first three shots to begin the game in the first quarter. She struggled with the physicality of Wings’ front court players Luisa Geiselsöder and Maddy Siegirst. On switches Dallas wing Grace Berger even made it very difficult in the first half for Hamby to get good looks at the basket. Hamby got going in the second quarter scoring six of her 13 points off of getting better seals on the block and back-up point guard Julie Vanloo recognizing the advantages that Hamby created. During the final four minutes of the fourth quarter, Hamby created two old fashioned three-point plays for herself off two passes from wing Rae Burrell. Her two and-ones gave the Sparks significant momentum after being down by as many as seven points to start the fourth quarter.

Burrell played the most minutes out of any Sparks reserve, appearing in 17 minutes coming off the bench. She didn’t miss from three and made all but one of her four shots. All of her made field goals came on assists from Kelsey Plum, Julie Vanloo and Rickea Jackson where they all used Burrell as a floor spacer from beyond the arc. Burrell continues to establish herself as a wing connector, someone who has sound enough judgment to pass the ball in rhythm and in high pressure situations.

Stevens was the Sparks’ most efficient player on Tuesday night, shooting over 63% from the field as she continues to make her case for Most Improved Player. She has scored in double-digits for the Sparks in 10 of her last 12 games. Her made looks on Tuesday night were mostly right at the rim with the majority of her scoring happening in the third quarter. She was able to blow by the Liberty’s defense on drives and score over smaller guard defenders on switches. Stevens also had four assists as she found front court partner Dearica Hamby and wing Rae Burrell for two scores each. Her three steals helped the Sparks get out and score in transition, contributing to the Sparks’ 18 total points scored off Liberty turnovers.

Plum was an incredibly efficient shot maker on Tuesday night, shooting over 60% from the field. She put a lot of pressure on the rim and was able to blow by multiple levels of the Liberty’s defense in addition to hitting two open three-pointers where the Liberty missed her in rotation. She got to the line five times on Tuesday, and made all of her free throws. Plum’s five assists went to four different teammates for high percentage looks either beyond the arc or right at the rim. She found both Dearica Hamby, Rickea Jackson and Azurá Stevens on the move for cutting layups in addition to Rae Burrell for a wide open transition three-pointer.