Statistically, it was a poor night for Nneka Ogwumike against the Indiana Fever. At least by her standards. She finished the game with 10 points and five rebounds. And her team suffered an 87-78 loss to begin the season, falling back-to-back. However, even though the night did not exactly go as planned for the Los Angeles Sparks and especially for Ogwumike herself, there still appeared to be one major positive she could take away from the game, as it ended up becoming a record-breaking night for the veteran forward.
With her third rebound of the night, Nneka Ogwumike officially surpassed Sparks great and Hall of Famer Lisa Leslie for fifth place on the WNBA all-time defensive rebounds list. Leslie had previously occupied the number five spot with 2,425 career defensive rebounds. However, Ogwumike now takes over that position with a total of 2,428 career defensive rebounds to her name.
Interestingly, Nneka Ogwumike is not even all that far away from catching the player sitting fourth on the all-time list, DeWanna Bonner, who currently has 2,554 defensive rebounds. But it may not be quite so straightforward to close that gap, considering Bonner herself is still actively playing this season for the Phoenix Mercury. The top three names on the list, however, Tina Charles (3,071), Sylvia Fowles (2,874), and Candace Parker (2,846), have already finished their playing careers.
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Regardless, this is probably not a milestone that Nneka Ogwumike will really be celebrating all that much. At least not in the middle of a disappointing 0-2 start to the season. If anything, she will likely be more frustrated with the result itself, especially after already voicing concerns following the team’s opening loss, where she admitted that the Sparks’ current level of execution is “not the standard they operate by.”
The focus now will simply be on bouncing back in the next game and finally securing their first win of the season. The Sparks are set to host WNBA expansion side Toronto Tempo next. But even though they may enter that matchup as favorites on paper, it will still require a much cleaner and sharper performance to get the desired result against a Toronto side that already picked up its first-ever franchise win against the Seattle Storm. Starting the season 0-3 would certainly not be a good look for this Sparks team, especially considering how stacked the roster appeared heading into the new campaign.
Nneka Ogwumike’s Message Falls Flat as Sparks Defensive Issues Continue vs. Fever
Nneka Ogwumike had a lot to say following the Sparks’ crushing 105-78 season-opening loss to the Las Vegas Aces.
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“Today was on us. Defense is not something that gels, you either want to do it or you don’t. It’s interesting because when you’re out there, and at times when things are going wrong, you can either go with it or you can get out of it. I know it starts with me. I think that was probably one of my worst one-on-one defending nights.”
However, as it appears, despite Ogwumike calling for immediate accountability after that blowout defeat, the team’s defensive execution still failed to improve against the Indiana Fever.
The Sparks completely failed to contain Indiana’s backcourt throughout the game. Their perimeter rotations were slow. They allowed the Fever to shoot an incredibly efficient 56% from the field in the first half. They also allowed Caitlin Clark to dictate the game with 24 points and 9 assists. And they likewise failed to find any real answer for Kelsey Mitchell, who carved up the defense for 23 points.
Perhaps the most concerning part of the performance was the Sparks allowing a massive 24-14 run in the second quarter. The second quarter was, in fact, also a poor one offensively, as Sparks coach Lynne Roberts pointed out after the game. “We just had a really bad second quarter, offensively and defensively,” she said.
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Starting the season 0-2 certainly does not sound good for a team like the Los Angeles Sparks. But it is not all doom and gloom just yet, as there is still a lot left to play for this season. Hopefully, they can pick themselves up beginning with their next game against WNBA expansion side Toronto Tempo.
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