Sparks squander 18-point lead in loss to Mercury

LOS ANGELES — The Sparks were hot early but blew an 18-point lead in a disappointing 85-80 loss to the Phoenix Mercury at Crypto.com Arena Sunday.

Sparks guard Odyssey Sims scored 14 of her game-high 32 points in the first quarter.

However, it was a tale of two halves for the Sparks, who dropped to 2-6 overall, with their losing skid extending to three games.

“We keep saying the same things over and over,” Sims said. “We’re kind of beating a dead horse at this point but it’s...