Game 13: Tuesday at the Staples Center
Utah 35 36 — 71
Los Angeles 42 42 — 84
First half: LA's LaTasha Byears and Utah's Natalie Williams dueled to 10 points each. Margo Dydek's nine early points helped Utah stay close, and Jennifer Azzi's three had the Starzz down only 36-33 at 3:06; L.A. scored the next eight.
Second half: Azzi's hot hand kept Utah coming back. Back-to-back threes started a 16-8 run to cut an 11-point lead to 54-51. Marie Ferdinand free throws made it 61-57 with 10:05 left, but DeLisha Milton scored five points in 20 seconds in a 13-2 L.A. run. Utah scored eight in a row to get within seven points but scored just once more.
Records: Starzz 5-8; Sparks 12-3
Next up: Starzz host Cleveland, 7 p.m. Friday at the Delta Center.
Quotable: "I know I can shoot that well. It was in the flow of the game tonight." — Starzz guard Jennifer Azzi, who made five 3-pointers