Allisha Gray puts up 25 as Dream hold off Sparks

Allisha Gray scored 25 points as the visiting Atlanta Dream held on for a 88-82 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks while increasing their winning streak to three games.

Rhyne Howard added 15 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Dream (4-2), who nearly let a 17-point lead slip away before sealing the victory on a 3-pointer from Naz Hillmon with 43.2 seconds remaining.

Atlanta's Brionna Jones scored 13 points, Hillmon added 11 and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough contributed 10.

Dearica Hamby produced 28 points and eight assists and Kelsey Plum added 27 points as the Sparks (2-4) lost for the fourth time in their past five games.

Azura Stevens amassed 10 points and 11 rebounds for Los Angeles, while Rickea Jackson played 12 scoreless minutes after missing the previous three games while in concussion protocol.

The Dream appeared to take charge in the third quarter, turning a 42-38 lead into a 58-45 advantage with 3:45 remaining in the period after a 3-pointer from Howard. Atlanta pushed the advantage to 66-49 on a Jones layup.

The Sparks bridged the third and fourth quarters with a 14-0 run to pull within 66-63 with 7:42 remaining on a Hamby fastbreak layup off a Plum pass. Walker-Kimbrough ended the run on a 3-pointer as Atlanta took a 69-63 lead with 6:38 left.

Twice the Sparks were within a point, including at 73-72 after a layup from Stevens with 3:44 remaining. The Dream then went on an 8-2 run to take an 81-74 lead with 1:53 left on a layup from Walker-Kimbrough.

The Dream led 16-15 at the end of a defensive-minded first quarter, then went on a 13-4 spree to take a 38-27 lead in the last two minutes of the half. Atlanta led 40-31 at the break after holding Los Angeles to 32.3 percent shooting from the floor.

Overall on the night, the Dream shot 46.9 percent and the Sparks hit 44.8 percent.

--Field Level Media