Tempo

The Sparks were determined to end a season-opening four-game homestand with their second straight win against Toronto. Instead, the expansion Tempo avenged a four-point defeat two days earlier with a 106-96 victory Sunday afternoon at Crypto.com Arena.

Guard Kelsey Plum, who started the day tied for the WNBA lead in scoring at 26.3 points per game, paced the Sparks with 28, Dearica Hamby scored 21 and Nneka Ogwumike added 17 points and seven rebounds.

Trailing by 13 at one point in the fourth quarter, the Sparks cut the deficit to six on Plum’s two free throws with 4:27 left, but they got no closer. The Sparks fell to 1-3 (tied with Seattle for last place in the Western Conference) while Toronto improved to 2-2.

“We’re four games in so it would be immature to panic,” coach Lynne Roberts said. “It’s a long season but we do need to have urgency out there.”

The Tempo outscored the Sparks 9-3 in the last three minutes of the first quarter to take a 27-21 lead and widened the gap to 14 points on Laura Juskaite’s jumper with 4:28 left in the second. A Hamby three-point shot at the halftime buzzer rimmed out and the Sparks headed to the locker room down 49-40.

Rae Burrell committed her fifth personal with 4:33 left in the third and Kia Nurse made both free throws to give the Tempo their largest lead, 65-49. The margin grew to 17 before the Sparks closed the quarter with a 13-8 run.

After a 27-point performance in the first game, Brittney Sykes had 14 points by halftime in the rematch and finished with a career-high 38. Guard Kiki Rice, who led UCLA to the national championship in early April, added 19.

Toronto won the game at the foul line, making 39 of 42 attempts (92.9%) compared to 23 of 30 for the Sparks, who held a 26-25 edge in rebounding, a 48-38 advantage in points in the paint and outscored the visitors 20-12 on second-chance points.

“That was ugly… hard to watch,” Roberts said of the free throw discrepancy. “Seventy-two [total] free throws? I get it, they’re trying to clean it up but it’s painful. I’m not saying we weren’t fouling just that it’s challenging.”

The Sparks are still missing offseason acquisition Ariel Atkins (concussion protocol) and forward Sania Feagin has been out with a left leg strain since Wednesday. Atkins, a two-time All-Star, was traded from Chicago for Rickea Jackson on April 12.

“We’re going to have to have resilience,” said Plum, who had 27 points, nine assists and three steals in Friday’s win. “This league is tough. You’re going to get punched but you have to take it and punch back.”

Guard Erica Wheeler made her second start, contributing four points and seven assists and Hamby grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.

“It felt good… my teammates made it an easy transition,” said guard Kate Martin, who joined the Sparks one week prior after being cut by Golden State and got her first points with her new team, netting 11 in 18 minutes of action. “I don’t care how many points I score, I just want to win.”

Kelsey Plum drives to the basket during the game against Toronto on Sunday.

(Juan Ocampo / Getty Images)

In their first year under Roberts the Sparks finished 21-23 last season — a 13-game improvement from 2024 — but they missed the playoffs for a fifth straight time, marking the longest postseason drought in franchise history. Plum averaged 19.5 points and 5.7 assists per game.

“The beauty of this is that it’s a process,” Roberts added. “We opened up with four games at home and we didn’t take care of business. We can feel sorry for ourselves or we can fix it.”

The Sparks begin a four-game trip Thursday in Phoenix, then travel to Las Vegas on May 23, Washington on May 29 and Connecticut on May 30 before returning home to host Las Vegas on June 2.

Kiki Rice dribbled to the hoop, deked and then put up a shot over the Toronto Tempo practice squad, crisp ombre blue-and-burgundy nails releasing the ball into the basket.

Just over a month ago and just about 10 miles away, Rice‘s blue-and-yellow nails grasped the NCAA championship trophy in celebration at Pauley Pavilion. That’s when she was starring for UCLA and leading the Bruins to their first NCAA national title during her fourth college season.

She was one of six Bruins to be selected in the WNBA draft on April 14, with all of them sticking to notoriously difficult-to-crack WNBA rosters. Rice was the expansion Toronto Tempo’s first college pick.

“We got really lucky getting her in the draft,” Tempo coach Sandy Brondello said. “She hasn’t disappointed.”

Former UCLA star Kiki Rice holds up a Toronto Tempo jersey next to WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. Rice was the Tempo’s first draft pick and was selected No. 6.

(Angelina Katsanis / Getty Images)

In her first two WNBA games, Rice has averaged 7.7 points and 1.3 assists in 20 minutes per game. She has been coming off of the bench to back up starting point guard Julie Allemand, who the Tempo took from the Sparks in the expansion draft.

“There’s definitely a lot of adjustments and getting used to what it is like inside this level,” Rice said on Friday. “But I’m with great vets, really great coaches, and I’m really enjoying the play as a pro.”

The No. 6 pick in this year’s WNBA draft, Rice elevated her stock as a prospect by having her best UCLA season. She finished her senior season averaging 14.9 points per game with 5.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists, and was named the Big Ten tournament MVP.

Ahead of the NCAA tournament, WNBA scouts said that her defensive prowess and willingness to charge to the basket made her emerge as an early first-round candidate.

“She stays confident in who she is, and that’s what we just pour into her,” Brondello said. “She comes from a really successful, you know, college program in UCLA. Cori [Close] is a great coach, and you know, pushed her hard for greatness. So she’s very mature. She knows that there’s another level that she can go to. She’s going to work really hard to get there.”

Rice went through the WNBA rookie gauntlet, going from the NCAA championship game to the draft within a week and then straight to the Tempo’s training camp.

“It’s something we all go through, it’s the same for all the rookies,” Rice said. “I feel like I haven’t slept a ton the past few weeks. It’s definitely not easy, it happens very quickly, but I am very grateful to be in the position.”

Sparks coach Lynne Roberts coached against Rice during her first two UCLA seasons while the former was the head coach at Utah.

Tempo guard Kiki Rice drives past the Storm’s Zia Cooke during expansion franchise Toronto’s first win on Wednesday in Toronto.

(Michael Chisholm / Getty Images)

“I think she’s going to do well with Sandy in her system,” Roberts said on Friday. “I saw over the course of her four years … her decision making, you know, improve and get better, which is natural, and her outside shot get more comfortable. … She’s going to be a good player to watch.”

Rice faced her old teammates Lauren Betts and Angela Dugalic with the Washington Mystics in the franchise’s first game on May 8, and the trio hugged at center court in Toronto. Rice had one assist and no points in 18 minutes during the loss. She rebounded with 12 points and one assist in 21 minutes during the franchise’s first win over the Seattle Storm on Wednesday.

“Playing with five other pros, you got the advantage of really competitive practices,” Rice said of her time at UCLA. “[The draft] was an incredible moment, something that’s very special for all of us. We didn’t do it alone, and to be able to share it with some of my closest friends, and to hear everyone’s name, be called to see everyone walk across the stage, be able to celebrate together, enjoy the moment, was special.”

This weekend provided a different kind of reunion, with her UCLA coaches in attendance Friday night as Rice scored 11 points and added two assists in 21 minutes during a loss to the Sparks. The Tempo rallied to within one possession in the final minute and get a rematch on Sunday.

The Sparks are finally in the win column, but the outcome was in doubt late Friday night.

Behind double-digit scoring from all five starters, the Sparks had by far their best offensive showing of the season, shooting 63.8% during a 99-95 win over the expansion Toronto Tempo.

The Tempo didn’t make things easy, cutting the deficit to two points late and later trailing by just three with 31 seconds remaining and possession of the ball. Marina Mabrey missed a three-point attempt before late Tempo fouls gave the Sparks enough of a cushion to win.

Kelsey Plum nearly claimed a double-double with 27 points and nine assists, while Dearica Hamby had 19 points with seven rebounds and Nneka Ogwumike scored 20 points.

Erica Wheeler, who started in place of Ariel Atkins (concussion), scored 10 points with seven assists and was a plus-16 as the primary ball handler after starting the season two for 16 from the field. That freed up Plum to be in position to score, setting up a much more efficient Sparks offense.

Toronto was shorthanded in the frontcourt without starting center Temi Fagbenle (right shoulder), and the Sparks trio of bigs had a field day with 54 points in the paint.

The Sparks came out firing on Friday, opening with a 17-2 run.

The Tempo went on a 10-0 burst heading into the second quarter but the Sparks countered to maintain momentum and led 46-38 at halftime.

A Wheeler three-pointer early in the third quarter gave the Sparks a 20-point lead. The Tempo cut it to three midway through the fourth while Brittany Sykes (27 points, seven assists) sparked Toronto’s rally. The Tempo put up more shots than the Sparks, 70-58, largely because of a 10-2 offensive-rebounding gap.

Cameron Brink’s 10 points were the only ones provided by the Sparks’ bench, while the Tempo got 42 points from reserves.

Toronto was coming off its first win in franchise history on Wednesday when it defeated Seattle but struggled against a more complete offensive team in the Sparks.

In her return to Los Angeles after winning a national championship with UCLA this spring, Tempo rookie Kiki Rice netted 11 points.

Kate Martin made her Sparks debut as a developmental player with Atkins and Sania Feagin (lower left leg) unavailable and picked up one rebound in six minutes.

The Sparks will face Toronto again on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena.

There will be no Triple Crown winner in horse racing this year. There won’t even be an attempt.

Trainer Cherie DeVaux on Wednesday announced Golden Tempo, the horse that made her the first female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby, would skip the Preakness Stakes next week at its temporary home, Laurel Park in Laurel, Md.

Just hours after Golden Tempo returned to the racetrack at Keeneland for the first time since his victory Saturday at Churchill Downs, DeVaux posted a statement on X.

“After much thoughtful discussion as a team, we have decided that Golden Tempo will bypass the Preakness Stakes,” the statement read.

“We are incredibly appreciative of the excitement and support surrounding the possibility of a Triple Crown run. The enthusiasm from racing fans, our owners, and our entire team has meant more to us than we can properly express. Golden gave us the race of a lifetime in the Kentucky Derby, and we believe the best decision for him moving forward is to give him a little more time following such a tremendous effort. His health, happiness, and long-term future will always remain our top priority.”

The Preakness, set for May 16, is the second leg of the Triple Crown, followed June 6 by the Belmont Stakes, which for the third straight year will be contested in Saratoga, N.Y. Since 1978, the only horses to sweep all three races are American Pharoah in 2015 and Justify in 2018.

Golden Tempo is the second straight horse and third in the last five years not to run in the Preakness. Sovereignty, who did not participate last year, won the Belmont and later the Travers and was voted Horse of the Year.

Unlike in the past, trainers almost never run horses with just two or even three weeks’ rest. That has prompted talk that the Preakness — which has been run 14 days after the Derby since 1950 — and Belmont could be moved back to allow horses more time between races. Sports Business Journal reported last month that the Preakness was “set to make a historic shift to one week later,” though many trainers have said that won’t make a difference.

DeVaux was asked the day after the Derby if having the Preakness four weeks after the Derby would make her decision easier.

“I mean, it would make anyone’s decision easier, but that’s not the Triple Crown,” she said. “So, the Triple Crown is hard to win for a reason. And I appreciate the history of it.

“You know, the horses are definitely different. They’re not built the same. They’re not trained the same as back then, but current times have shown that it can be done with the right horse.”

There is no shortage of horses aiming for the Preakness, which is limited to 14 starters. One of those — and the likely favorite if he runs — is Crude Velocity, who won the Pat Day Mile on Saturday at Churchill Downs in just his third career start. But trainer Bob Baffert, who has won the Preakness a record eight times, has yet to decide whether he wants to run the horse in two weeks.

“I’m still on fence,” Baffert said Wednesday via text. “Tempted but I’m not leaning yet.”

The Daily Racing Form reported Ocelli, the maiden who finished third in the Derby, is now expected to run in the Preakness. Trainer Whit Beckman told the Form he had Ocelli jog Wednesday and “he looked better than great.”

Added Beckman: “You wouldn’t know this horse ran Saturday. He’s made of something different. Every indication he’s given me is to point to this race. … We’re having fun, the horse is having fun. If everybody’s having fun, why stop the fun?”

According to a news release from the Preakness, other horses under consideration who didn’t run in the Derby are Chip Honcho, Corona de Oro, Crupper, Express Kid, Great White, Iron Honor, Napoleon Solo, Pretty Boy Miah, Silent Tactic, Taj Mahal, Talkin, Talk to Me Jimmy and The Hell We Did.

The Racing Form reported jockey Jose Ortiz, who rode Golden Tempo to his Derby win, will ride Chip Honcho in the Preakness.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Cherie DeVaux made history Saturday as the first female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby when Golden Tempo rallied from far back to capture the race over Renegade at Churchill Downs.

“I don’t even have any words right now,” DeVaux said on NBC. “So, so, so happy for Golden Tempo. [Jockey] Jose [Ortiz] did a wonderful job, masterful job. He has had so much faith in this horse.

“I’m glad I could be representative of all women everywhere, that we can do anything we set our minds to.”

It was the first Derby win for Ortiz, whose brother, Irad Ortiz Jr., rode Renegade.

“I’m glad I get my lifetime dream achieved,” said Jose Ortiz, who also won the Kentucky Oaks on Friday with Always a Runner.

Sent off at 23-1, the winner paid $48.24 for a $2 bet after running 1 1/4 miles in 2 minutes, 2.27 seconds.

Ocelli was third, Chief Wallabee fourth and Danon Bourbon, who had the lead at midstretch, fifth. So Happy, the Santa Anita Derby winner, finished ninth.

Great White, another long shot, was scratched just before post time after he bucked and fell over at the starting gate.