LOS ANGELES – Tierra Ruffin-Pratt scored a career-high 18 points and Monique Currie added 16 as the Washington Mystics beat the Los Angeles Sparks 79-75 on Thursday night.
Ivory Latta scored 15 points for Washington (10-13), which had lost four of six.
Kia Vaughn had 14 points and nine rebounds, and netted the go-ahead basket to make it 74-72. Latta sank two free throws with 18 seconds left, and the Sparks' Kristi Toliver missed an ensuing 3-point attempt.
Jantel Lavender scored a season-high 23 points to lead the Sparks (10-12), who had their season-best, three-game winning streak end. Candace Parker scored 18 points, with seven rebounds and six assists, and Toliver had 13 points.
Parker scored eight points in the fourth quarter and pulled the Sparks into a 72-72 tie with two free throws. She missed nine of her first 11 field goal attempts and finished 5-for-16.
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.