The Phoenix Mercury swept the Magic Johnson-owned Los Angeles Sparks off the playoffs through a 93-68 game 2 victory on their best-of-three series in the Western Conference semifinals.

The Mercury dominated the whole game leading the game by as much as 30 points with 53.5 percent in shooting. Also, the team were on top in terms of rebound, 34-25.

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The outcome of the game was far from Johnson's vision of bringing back the championship trophy to L.A. when he and his group bought the franchise in February.

"Rome isn't built in a day," stated Candace Parker in an interview with the Los Angeles Times.  "We realize that with this group coming in, they built the Dodgers and the Dodgers are doing well. We feel like they can do the same for us."

The Sparks were able to make only one out of 12 attempts beyond the arc with a total of 14 turnovers, leading to Mercury's 23 points.

Penny Toler, the Sparks General Manager and Coach, admitted that they had a "horrific" transition defense for the game. She also put emphasis on the importance on getting back on defense after a turnover.

Four of the Mercury's five starters finished the game with double figures. Penny Taylor had 17 points, Candace Dupree recorded 16 points and eight rebounds, DeWanna Bonner scored 11 points, and Brittney Griner had 21 points on 9 out of 9 shooting.

Despite the Sparks' drought on defense, they were able to limit Mercury's Diana Taurasi to only nine points. In contrast to her 34-point performance in Game 1.

For the Sparks, Candace Parker recorded 21 points and 5 rebounds while Nneka Ogwumike contributed 14 points and six rebounds.

Parker stressed that the team had a shaky start when former owner Paula Madison decided to sell the team in January.

The Sparks finished the seasons with a 16-18 record. They were able to get the fourth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference with a win on their final regular season game.

TagsWNBA, phoenix mercury, los angeles sparks, candace parker, brittney griner