The Los Angeles Sparks and New York Liberty meet Tuesday in WNBA action at the Barclays Center. The Los Angeles Sparks need a win after losing 6 of their last 8 games. The New York Liberty need a win after losing 6 of their last 8 games.
The Los Angeles Sparks are averaging 80.4 points on 44.9 percent shooting and allowing 85.5 points on 46.2 percent shooting. Nneka Ogwumike is averaging 18.7 points and 2.1 assists, while Brittney Sykes is averaging 10.4 points and 3.2 rebounds. Katie Lou Samuelson is the third double-digit scorer and Jordin Canada is dishing 5.1 assists. The Los Angeles Sparks are shooting 33.1 percent from beyond the arc and 77.6 percent from the free throw line. The Los Angeles Sparks are allowing 38 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 31.2 rebounds per game.
The New York Liberty are averaging 79.4 points on 42.9 percent shooting and allowing 83.8 points on 42.4 percent shooting. Sabrina Ionescu is averaging 16.9 points and 6.5 assists, while Natasha Howard is averaging 15.4 points and 7.4 rebounds. Betnijah Laney is the third double-digit scorer and Marine Johannes is grabbing 1.5 rebounds. The New York Liberty are shooting 35 percent from beyond the arc and 81.6 percent from the free throw line. The New York Liberty are allowing 34.8 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 34.1 rebounds per game.
The Sparks are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 Tuesday games and 1-7 ATS in their last 8 games overall. The Liberty are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 vs. Western Conference and 1-3-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The over is 5-2 in Sparks last 7 overall. The under is 4-1 in Liberty last 5 overall. The Sparks are 4-1 ATS in the last 5 meetings.
While both teams are falling apart at the worst possible time, it's the Los Angeles Sparks who are probably in worse shape, especially with the departure of Liz Cambage. Even with the Sparks still in a potential playoff spot, their outlook moving forward isn't that great. At least the New York Liberty have won 2 of their last 3 tries, and they continue to compete on the defensive side of the ball. We can't say the same for the Sparks. At home, I'll lay the reasonable chalk with the Liberty.
AUTHOR: Randy Chambers
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