WNBA ROUNDUP | Wednesday's game

Sparks 97, Mystics 91
WASHINGTON -- Sharp-shooting Tamecka Dixon had a career-high 28 points for Los Angeles as the Mystics tied a franchise record with their 11th straight defeat. Dixon made 11 of 14 shots and was 5-for-5 from the free-throw line as Los Angeles (15-3) increased its lead in the WNBA's Western Conference to 4 1/2 games over idle Houston. The Sparks also got 18 points from Lisa Leslie, 16 apiece from Mwadi Mabika and DeLisha Milton and 15 from Nikki Teasley while making 32 of 56 shots for a .571 percentage in the best offensive showing of the season. The Mystics, last in the Eastern Conference with the worst record in the league, fell to 2-14 despite 27 points from Chamique Holdsclaw to match her season high. Washington also got 19 points from Stacey Dales-Schuman and 15 from Coco Miller, but lost to Los Angeles for the sixth straight time. The Mystics went on an 11-2 run to get within 78-71 on Dales-Schuman's 3-pointer with 5:30 remaining, but that was as close as they would get until Keisha Brown's 3-pointer with 6.3 seconds left. Consecutive baskets by Dixon capped a 6-0 run to give the Sparks a 23-17 lead with 8:30 remaining in the first half. After Holdsclaw scored, Dixon added four more points to give the Sparks a 27-19 lead with 8:30 left in the half. Leslie also had a season-high five blocks as the Sparks improved to a league-best 10-1 on the road.