Indiana Fever (2-21) at Los Angeles Sparks (14-9)

Date: Friday, July 20, 2018
Time: 10:30 p.m. (EDT)
Site: STAPLES Center
TV: none
Live Stream: WNBA League Pass

Probable Starters
Fever: F – Victoria Vivians, F – Candice Dupree, C – Natalie Achonwa, G – Cappie Pondexter, G – Erica Wheeler
Sparks: F – Essence Carson, F – Candace Parker, C – Nneka Ogwumike, G – Odyssey Sims, G – Chelsea Gray

The Indiana Fever continue a three-game West Coast road trip while visiting STAPLES Center late Friday night, taking on the Los Angeles Sparks for the third and final time this season.

The Fever hope to snap a five-game skid since beating Minnesota on the road July 3. The Lynx beat Indiana in a return to Target Center on Wednesday, 89-65, despite 20 points from Candice Dupree and 10 from Cappie Pondexter. The Sparks, currently in fourth place in the WNBA, are coming off a 99-78 win over Las Vegas last Saturday, behind 34 points from Candace Parker and 22 from Chelsea Gray.

Injury Report
Guard Shenise Johnson (left knee ACL rehabilitation) remains out and will not play.

Storylines
• The Fever hope to avenge a pair of losses to the Sparks, one each in May and June. The Sparks have won seven of the past nine meetings overall, and 14 of 18 since the 2011 season.

• Cappie Pondexter makes a return to Los Angeles after being waived by the Sparks on June 28. Pondexter appeared in 13 of 14 games with the Sparks, during what was her first season in L.A., after signing a free agent deal last February.

• Indiana continues its longest road trip of the season – three games. While three games is not long, it coincides with a schedule in which the Fever’s longest homestand is just two games. In a compressed WNBA schedule in 2018, Indiana will travel or play a game in 19 of 24 days in July, prior to the All-Star Break.

• Returning to the scene of a 71-59 upset victory at Target Center 15 days earlier, Sylvia Fowles and the Minnesota Lynx shot 52 percent and commanded a 36-24 rebound edge while maintaining a steady lead of 20 points or more following a 10-0 run to begin the second quarter. Indiana never led, and fell 89-65 as Fowles posted a season-high 30 points on 13-of-15 shooting, and collected 16 rebounds.

• Pondexter is fourth on the league’s scoring chart (6,706), just behind Catchings (7,380); and third on the list for field goals (2,405). Similarly, Pondexter (1,441 free throws) passed Katie Smith (1,440) in fifth place on the WNBA career list, in Wednesday’s loss at Minnesota.

• Indiana’s Victoria Vivians-Kelsey Mitchell rookie tandem sports 91 3-pointers through 23 games, already third in league history by a pair of rookies on the same team.Indiana seeks its fourth win at STAPLES Center and its first since a 79-68 victory in 2015.