The Sparks Smothered the Fire and It Was Beautiful. 89-72

This is the Los Angeles Sparks I have been waiting to see.

Dominant defense. Double-doubles from two different players. Nneka Ogwumike making franchise history. Dearica Hamby doing everything. A crowd of 11,227 at Crypto.com Arena on Pride Night getting exactly what they came for. The Sparks beat the Portland Fire 89-72 and it was not as close as that final score suggests.

After a rough stretch that had everyone asking questions about this team's consistency Coach Roberts included the Sparks came out on Sunday and answered. Loudly.

Nneka Ogwumike was on another level

20 points. 17 rebounds. A season-high on the boards. Her 120th career double-double fifth of the season, fourth-most in the entire WNBA right now. And with a layup at 3:19 in the fourth quarter she passed Lisa Leslie to become the all-time leader in two-point field goals made in Sparks franchise history. Lisa Leslie. One of the greatest to ever do it. Nneka Ogwumike is now ahead of her in the franchise record books.

That is a moment worth sitting with.

She went 8 for 14 from the field, was a force on the glass all night especially in the second half when she was everywhere and led this defense with the kind of presence that changes how opposing offenses operate. Coach Roberts put it perfectly after the game:

"I think the best leaders have the yin-yang of confidence. Confident in who they are. Confident from the work they put in. Confident in their experience. But it's equally balanced with humility. Nneka is incredibly confident in what she can do, her role, and her impact in all ways."

That's Nneka Ogwumike in a nutshell. And she was everything tonight.

Dearica Hamby was a problem

22 points. 12 rebounds. 61.5 percent from the field. Six offensive rebounds matching her career high. Her 56th career double-double. And the 400th steal of her career. Hamby was a menace on both ends of the floor all night scoring in the paint, crashing the glass, and defending with the physicality that makes her one of the most versatile forwards in this league.

She finished with nine points and seven rebounds in the fourth quarter alone and then converted a layup with less than a second left just to put a bow on it. That's Dearica Hamby telling you she is fully locked in right now.

Kelsey Plum ran the show

16 points on 50 percent shooting with seven assists and six rebounds. Plum was the engine of this offense distributing, finding the open player, and scoring when she needed to. Her nine-point third quarter helped the Sparks pull away after Portland tried to make it interesting in the second. With Plum healthy and operating like this the Sparks offense has a completely different dimension.

The defense was the real story

Hold on let me say that again. The defense was the real story tonight. The Sparks forced 17 turnovers and turned them into 23 points. They held Portland to 36.1 percent from the field and this one is wild 10.7 percent from three-point range. 3 for 28 from deep. The Fire could not buy a three-pointer all night.

Erica Wheeler had a plus 32 rating the fourth highest mark in the entire WNBA this season. In the second half the Sparks outrebounded Portland 22-15 and held them to 10 percent from three. That is a defensive performance that wins championships.

Nneka described it best after the game: "Offense is offense, but defense is really where it's at. Today I think we did a really good job of not leaving any gas in the tank on the defensive end."

That's exactly right. And that's exactly the team Coach Roberts has been asking to show up.

Rae Burrell and Kate Martin off the bench

Burrell added 10 points off the bench continuing her strong stretch of play. And Kate Martin in less than two minutes of action went 2 for2 from the field including a three for five quick points. The bench depth on this team is real and it showed tonight.

A word about Chance Gray

Hamby gave us one of the best quotes of the night talking about her rookie teammate. "Chance Gray is super mature for being a rookie. She's confident in her shot. She's confident in her defense. We always talk about how she reminds us of Sugar Rodgers. She's taken advantage of the opportunity and she's my little partner, so I'm proud of her."

That's a veteran putting her stamp of approval on a young player and it means everything coming from someone like Dearica Hamby. Gray is developing into something real.

What Coach Roberts said

Roberts was fired up before this game and honest about it. "I'm tired of talking about being right there. It's go time." And her team delivered. After the win she was equally direct about what the win represented:

"The discipline to do things the way we're supposed to do them allows you to then be a little more aggressive in different ways. When we focus on the discipline to do the little things for each other that's how you build trust out there as a unit. Then that just kind of has a snowball effect."

The snowball is starting to roll. The Sparks are 5-6 and they just put together their most complete performance of the season at home on Pride Night with 11,227 fans watching. That's a statement.

Nneka also spoke about what winning at home means for this team. "Winning at home is imperative. When it gets down to the season you're playing for home-court advantage because there is an advantage there. We have a very iconic arena. There's so much here that the fans bring. Today was a good start."

My take

This is what the LA Sparks look like when they are locked in. Nneka passing Lisa Leslie in franchise history. Hamby with 22 and 12. Plum running the offense. Wheeler with a plus 32. The defense holding Portland to 10.7 percent from three. The Sparks also raised $5,000 this Commissioner's Cup for Brotherhood Crusade showing up for their community the same way they showed up on the court tonight.

The fourth quarter problem that cost them in Dallas? Not tonight. The Sparks outscored Portland 25-17 in the final frame and never let up. That's growth. That's the discipline Coach Roberts has been demanding. And tonight it showed.

They head back on the road to face the Seattle Storm next at 7pm PST. Her Game Network will be watching every step of this run.