Parker’s 24 points, 14 boards lead Sparks past Mercury 81-78

September 26th, 2009 Mercury reach finals by beating Leslie, SparksPHOENIX — Diana Taurasi and the Phoenix Mercury are heading to the WNBA finals, and Lisa Leslie is heading off to retirement. Taurasi scored 15 of her 21 points in the second half and added seven rebounds and three assists to lead the Mercury past the Los Angeles Sparks, 85-74 on Saturday night in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals.

September 25th, 2009 Parker, Leslie help Sparks even West finalsPHOENIX — The Los Angeles Sparks played with the desperation of a team on the brink of elimination — and a player facing the end of her career. Candace Parker had 24 points and 18 rebounds, Lisa Leslie scored 20 points, and the Sparks forced a deciding third game of the Western Conference finals with an 87-76 victory over the Phoenix Mercury on Friday night.

September 23rd, 2009 Phoenix beats LA 103-94 in Game 1LOS ANGELES — Diana Taurasi scored 28 points and the Phoenix Mercury hit 14 3-pointers to hold off the Los Angeles Sparks 103-94 Wednesday night in Game 1 of the WNBA Western Conference finals. Playing the fourth quarter with five fouls, Taurasi made 5 of her 6 free throws over the final 1:09 to win the game played at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion on the court named for coach John Wooden and his wife Nell.

September 22nd, 2009 Leslie leads Sparks into conference finalsLOS ANGELES — Lisa Leslie got her wish when it comes to the Los Angeles Sparks' opponent in the Western Conference finals. They'll play the Phoenix Mercury in the best of 3 series that begins Wednesday night at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion.

September 21st, 2009 Taurasi scores 30 as Mercury reach West finalsPHOENIX — Diana Taurasi scored 30 points and keyed a tiebreaking run in the fourth quarter to help the Phoenix Mercury advance to the Western Conference finals with a 100-92 victory over the San Antonio Silver Stars in Game 3 of their opening round series Monday night. Taurasi and Tangela Smith each scored five points during the Mercury

September 20th, 2009 Parker leads Sparks over Storm in decisive Game 3SEATTLE — Candace Parker scored 22 points and keyed a second-quarter run that led the Los Angeles Sparks over the Seattle Storm 75-64 Sunday in the deciding third game of the WNBA Western Conference semifinals. It was the second straight year the Sparks eliminated the Storm in the opening round by winning Game 3 at Seattle.

September 2nd, 2009 Pondexter scores 25 as Mercury beat Fever 106-90INDIANAPOLIS — Cappie Pondexter scored 25 points and the Phoenix Mercury shot nearly 60 percent from the floor in a 106 90 victory over the Indiana Fever on Wednesday night in a matchup of first-place teams. DeWanna Bonner scored 15 points, Diana Taurasi had 14 and Temeka Johnson 13 as the Mercury (21-10) shot 41 for 70 from the field (59 percent), including 10 for 18 on 3-pointers.

August 28th, 2009 Mercury beats Sparks 98-90 to end LA's win streakLOS ANGELES — Cappie Pondexter looked around and didn't see Candace Parker warming up for the Los Angeles Sparks. That's when she knew something was up.

August 11th, 2009 Leslies tops 6,000 points, leads Sparks past FeverLOS ANGELES — Lisa Leslie had 21 points and 11 rebounds, and became the first WNBA player to reach 6,000 career points as the Los Angeles Sparks beat the Indiana Fever 75-63 on Monday night. Leslie reached the milestone with an 11-foot jumper as the shot-clock buzzer sounded with 11.9 seconds left in the second quarter.

July 12th, 2009 Johnson's buzzer shot leads Mercury past MonarchsSACRAMENTO, Calif. — Temeka Johnson hit a 14-foot running shot at the buzzer to lead the Phoenix Mercury to a 107-105 victory over the Sacramento Monarchs on Saturday night.

July 12th, 2009 Beard scores 26 to lead Mystics past SparksWASHINGTON — Alana Beard scored 26 points as the Washington Mystics closed the game on a 12-0 run after allowing a 24-point first-half lead slip away to defeat the Los Angeles Sparks 75-63 on Saturday night. Chasity Melvin added 14 points for the Mystics (6-5), who started a season-high six-game homestand.

July 10th, 2009 Lennox, Thompson lead Sparks past Liberty, 69-60NEW YORK — Betty Lennox scored 20 points, Tina Thompson had 16 and the Los Angeles Sparks beat the New York Liberty 69-60 on Thursday night. Candace Parker, playing in her second game since returning after the birth of her daughter in May, had eight points and six rebounds in 23 minutes for the Sparks (4-6).

July 6th, 2009 Mercury beat Sparks 104-89LOS ANGELES — Cappie Pondexter scored 21 points and Diana Taurasi had 20, leading the Phoenix Mercury to a 104-89 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday night. Taurasi added a season-high six assists, five rebounds and three blocks in her first game for the Mercury (8-4) since being cited for drunk driving Thursday morning.

June 22nd, 2009 Sparks beat Monarchs 67-47LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Sparks got off to a fast start to end their four-game skid. Tina Thompson scored 12 points and Vanessa Hayden added 12 points and eight rebounds to lead the Sparks to a 67-47 victory over the Sacramento Monarchs on Sunday night.

June 5th, 2009 Sparks to have sponsor name on jersey frontLOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Sparks are joining the Phoenix Mercury as WNBA teams putting a sponsor's name on their jerseys. Under the multiyear deal with Farmers Insurance Group announced on Friday, the Sparks will feature the company's name and logo on the front of their jerseys and warmups.