Lynne Roberts’ team looked to keep the engine running. The Los Angeles Sparks nearly rose from the ashes after the slow start. Winning nine out of 11 games in a month, the three-time champs put forward a strong challenge for the playoff spot. Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby were architects of this rise.
While the guard played a crucial role on the offensive end, Hamby was instrumental on both ends of the floor, racking up heavy numbers. Even in a recent loss against the Liberty, she reached an impressive milestone, surpassing Diana Taurasi.
Dearica Hamby Reaches Milestone In A Loss Against Liberty
Behind its strong momentum, the LA Sparks put up a strong fight against the defending champions. Keeping aside the second-quarter struggles, Lynne Roberts’ team matched the Liberty bucket by bucket.
They even dominated the paint region, outscoring the opposition by 52-40 and scoring seven more second-chance points than the Liberty. The hosts even matched the NY forwards in rebounds, with each side collecting 34 missed chances in the game. Dearica Hamby led the LA side with eight rebounds and surpassed Diana Taurasi on the all-time rebounds list.
Dearica Hamby also climbed to 26th on the WNBA all-time rebounds list, surpassing Diana Taurasi
— LA Sparks PR (@LASparksPR) August 13, 2025
The Wake Forest star now has 2217 rebounds in 354 games, seven more than Taurasi, who played in 565 games in the league. Tina Charles leads the chart with rebounds and is adding to the tally with her strong display for the Sun.
Hamby also scored 21 points in the game, placing her among the Sparks’ top 10 scorers. Despite Hamby’s heroic performance, Emma Meesseman powered the inconsistent Liberty side to a win.
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Dearica Hamby’s Consistency Providing Spark To The LA Side
Since switching to the sunny LA side, she enjoyed strong seasons. The former two-time sixth woman of the year winner had her best season in 2024, registering all career-high stats. She continued on the same form and tried to fuel the LA team to a strong start. When the whole side was struggling to find its rhythm, the former Aces star stayed hot on the court.
Dearica Hamby started in all 32 games the Sparks have played in the 2025 season so far and clocked an impressive 32 minutes in the games. She leads the team in steals (1.6 per game) and is also the second-highest scorer (17.7 points). With some memorable and clutch performances, she helped the side stay afloat in the season.
Despite Brink’s early exit in the game, Hamby held the defensive end for the side against the Liberty and was impactful for the hosts.