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Sparks-Sun Preview

Jul 23, 2010 - 5:56 PM By ALAN FERGUSON STATS Writer

Los Angeles (6-16) at Connecticut (12-9), 7:00 p.m. EDT

Last month, the Connecticut Sun capitalized on a Los Angeles Sparks team playing without Candace Parker for the first time.

Having cooled off from their strong start, the Sun attempt to again take advantage of the Parker-less Sparks on Saturday night to keep pace in a competitive Eastern Conference playoff race.

Connecticut will try to earn its sixth win in seven home games against Los Angeles, the league's worst road team at 1-10.

The Sun (12-9) head into Saturday with a one-game lead on the East's final playoff berth and within two of conference-leading Indiana.

Connecticut hasn't helped itself by losing six of 10 following an 8-3 start. The Sun have split their past four home contests after winning their first six, and they're coming off an 82-74 overtime loss to visiting New York on Tuesday.

Renee Montgomery scored 12 of her 23 points in the final 1:48 of regulation to help Connecticut rally from a 13-point deficit, but the Sun missed all seven shots in the extra period and were outscored 10-2.

"I don't think we played a great basketball game other than we got a little bit lucky at the end," coach Mike Thibault said. "And you can't count on doing that stuff."

Thibault's club next faces the two teams directly ahead of them in the East standings - Washington and Atlanta - to wrap up a season-high, five-game homestand, so a matchup with the struggling Sparks presents a crucial opportunity.

Los Angeles (6-16) has the league's second-worst record and is 1-7 against the East. Connecticut is 6-1 against the West, including a 78-75 win at Staples Center on June 18.

That game came a day after the Sparks learned Parker would miss the rest of the season with a dislocated shoulder. They built a 16-point lead, but that evaporated partly because of Sun rookie Tina Charles' 26 points and 19 rebounds.

Los Angeles is 3-9 without Parker - two wins came against last-place Tulsa - but is just two games out of a playoff spot. The Sparks, though, will need better efforts than the one they gave Thursday in a 76-57 loss at Indiana.

Opening a season-high, four-game road trip, Los Angeles was held to 21 points and six field goals in the second half. Tina Thompson scored in double figures for the eighth consecutive game with 19, but she was the only Sparks player with more than nine.

"We didn't make our shots," coach Jennifer Gillom said. "They went on a run. Their defense got us. They came out aggressive in the second half."

A win Saturday would give the Sun their first season sweep of Los Angeles since 2005 and tie the overall series at 11-all.