The Los Angeles Sparks won their ninth consecutive game, defeating the Atlanta Dream 84-79 in a close game on Sunday in Bradenton, Florida, improving the team’s record to 12-3. The win clinched the Sparks ninth consecutive postseason appearance and the franchise’s 20th overall, a WNBA record.

“[The playoffs] are the first step to giving yourself an opportunity to play for a championship,” Head Coach Derek Fisher said. “We’re fortunate to clinch that opportunity tonight.”

Brittney Sykes scored 15 points for LA, including six-straight in a pivotal stretch of the fourth quarter, to lead the Sparks in scoring. Chelsea Gray, coming off a season-high 27 points in Friday’s win, scored 14 of her own, including the game-sealing jump shot.

But the story of the night was balanced scoring, as all 11 players who entered the game for Los Angeles scored, with five players scoring nine or more points. The bench outscored Atlanta’s reserved 37-11 as Riquna Williams scored nine points, Seimone Augustus scored eight, and Kristine Anigwe scored a career-high nine points and grabbed a season-high six rebounds. The Sparks as a team shot 50% from the field.

“I’m really excited I get to go into the playoffs with these girls,” Anigwe, who started the second half for Nneka Ogwumike (back stiffness), said after the game. “The energy that we have daily is unmatched. It’s been like a family here, being in the bubble, being with them every single day.”

Last week, the Sparks beat the Dream 93-85 in the first overtime game of the 2020 WNBA season. Tonight’s game was similarly close, with 21 lead changes and 13 ties. However, this time, Atlanta had rookie sensation Chennedy Carter, who scored a game-high 26 points on 11-for-19 shooting. She missed last week’s matchup with an ankle injury. Courtney Williams also had a big night scoring 15 points as well as Monique Billings, who had a double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds in addition to two steals and two blocks.

In less than 24 hours, the Sparks will face the Minnesota Lynx in the second night of a back-to-back at 7 p.m. PT on CBS Sports Network and Spectrum SportsNet. The Sparks will go for their 10th straight win.

“We’re playing for the person next to us, and it’s been like a sisterhood,” Gray said. “We’re playing for a bigger purpose and we all understand that. We really feel a bond and an energy that you can’t really describe.”

Los Angeles Highlights

• Brittney Sykes shot 62.5%, while going 5-8 from the field.

• All 11 players that entered the game scored, with 5 players scoring 9 points or more.

• Brittney Sykes (15) and Chelsea Gray (14) led all Sparks’ scorers.

• Candace Parker finished with a full stat line; 9 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists.

• The Sparks’ bench outscored the Dream’s 37-11.

• The Sparks clinched their 20th playoff appearance in franchise history (9th straight)