Los Angeles Sparks Basketball Team

INDIANAPOLIS -- Tan White scored 11 of her 20 points in the second overtime, and the Indiana Fever held off the Sparks, 82-78, on Thursday night to hand Candace Parker her first professional loss. Parker had 16 points, 16 rebounds, six blocked shots, five assists and five steals. The rookie from Tennessee scored six points in the final minute of the second overtime to keep the Sparks in the game. It was a wild game that featured failed dunk attempts by Parker and Lisa Leslie.

WASHINGTON -- Candace Parker had 15 points and 11 rebounds Saturday for her third double-double in four games as the Sparks defeated the Washington Mystics, 70-59. The Sparks (3-1) led by as many as 16 in the third quarter but fell behind by a point on Nakia Sanford's putback with just over six minutes left in the game. However, Los Angeles closed with an 18-6 run to extend its strong start while opening the season on a five-game trip.

CHICAGO -- DeLisha Milton-Jones scored 24 points, including eight in overtime, to lead the Sparks to an 81-77 victory over the Chicago Sky on Tuesday. Rookie Sylvia Fowles, the second overall pick in the draft by Chicago, strained her knee in a third-quarter collision with Milton-Jones. She hobbled off the court and went to the hospital for an examination. She did not return, but Sky Coach Steven Key said Fowles will be fine.

Before the host at the Marina del Rey restaurant even took a step toward seating her, Candace Parker, the WNBA's most prized rookie in 12 seasons, was approached by a middle-aged man with a cellphone pressed to his ear. "Can you sign my T-shirt?' " he asked. "It's for my friend on the other line.' " In those 12 seasons, members of the Sparks, other than maybe Lisa Leslie, could have worn their uniforms in public and still go unrecognized.

They threw out the welcome mat in the Sparks' home opener Friday night, and the Phoenix Mercury were more than happy to pull it out from under them. The Sparks built an 18-point lead early the fourth quarter, giving the Staples Center fans plenty to cheer about, but Diana Taurasi and Cappie Pondexter were unstoppable down the stretch and the Sparks couldn't seem to do anything right, adding up to a 85-79 victory for the Mercury.

Detroit Shock Coach Bill Laimbeer was describing the similarities in style between his WNBA team and the Detroit Pistons, where he bumped, banged and scowled for 14 seasons. He then made comparisons between the Sparks and the Lakers teams of the 1980s, when Sparks Coach Michael Cooper made a name for himself as a feisty Lakers veteran.