Canadian Kia Nurse had 9 factors in 19 minutes of motion because the Los Angeles Sparks opened their WNBA pre-season schedule with a 84-79 win over the Seattle Storm on Saturday at Rogers Place in Edmonton.
It was the second straight season a WNBA exhibition sport came about and offered out in Canada.
Saturday’s contest comes on the heels of a sellout exhibition sport at Toronto’s Scotiabank Enviornment again in 2023.
There was an introduced crowd of 16,655 that stuffed the sector.
Dearica Hamby led the Sparks with 17 factors, 9 rebounds and 5 assists.
Skylar Diggins-Smith paced the Storm with 14 factors and 5 assists.
WATCH | Kia Nurse, Sparks defeat Storm on residence soil:
Kia Nurse from Hamilton, Ont., scores 9 factors as her Los Angeles Sparks beat the Seattle Storm 84-79 at a offered out Rogers Place in Edmonton.
Cameron Brink, the No. 2 decide within the 2024 WNBA draft, scored her first basket as a member of the Sparks midway by way of the primary quarter. She was surrounded by her teammates after the layup as she strode to the bench throughout a timeout that was referred to as shortly after the bucket.
Brink, who completed with 11 factors, hit her first three-pointer 1:30 into the third quarter. The centre earned a big ovation for her rejection of Jade Melbourne’s layup try later within the second half.
With the Sparks main 82-79 within the remaining minutes, the Storm had two probabilities to tie. However Melbourne air-balled her three-point try, and Kiana Williams’s three-point shot rimmed out.
On Saturday morning, the 2 groups performed their shootarounds whereas the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers have been on the ice on the Downtown Group Enviornment, which is a part of the Rogers Place complicated.
As Nurse noticed the Oilers coming off the ice, they shared embraces. Her brother is Edmonton defenceman Darnell Nurse.
Kia Nurse mentioned Edmonton is a particular place for her as a result of it is the house base for the Canadian girls’s nationwide group and can also be an Oilers fan.
“It is a actually particular area,” she mentioned. “I have been capable of see Darnell play fairly a couple of video games right here and to have the ability to have him and his youngsters come to the sport at the moment, that is actually particular as a result of I do not get to see them as usually since they’re at all times right here after I’m residence and vice versa.”