Saturday night's WNBA game in Phoenix featured a showdown of two potential early WNBA MVP candidates. For the Los Angeles Sparks, it was Nneka Ogwumike, while Brittney Griner was on the floor for the home team Phoenix Mercury. While Griner won that individual battle, her team ultimately fell to the Sparks, thanks to Chelsea Gray. Here's the latest on how the Sparks vs. Mercury game unfolded, where Los Angeles captured a rare road win on Saturday evening.

How the Sparks won

In a close game, Chelsea Gray was the leader for her team, scoring a team-high 24 points, while also getting eight assists.

That assists mark tied her career-high. Teammates Candace Parker and Nneka Ogwumike finished with 14 points and 13, respectively. Alana Beard came up with a huge steal down the stretch to help seal the Sparks' win.

The Mercury fought back late as Brittney Griner hit a hook shot to get her team within two. Teammate Diana Taurasi hit several free throws and then a three-pointer later to make it just a one-point contest. However, after Gray knocked down one of her two free throws, Taurasi had to launch a shot just over the half court line which wasn't even close. That gave the Sparks this close win on the road.

For the losing side, Taurasi led all Mercury players with 27 points, which also included her six three-pointers made.

Griner had 21 points to go with nine rebounds, while Camille Little finished with 12 points.

The Sparks hit their shots at a 52.5 percent rate for the game, compared to just over 44 percent for the home team. While the Mercury won the battle of the boards 30-22, they also had 14 turnovers compared to just 11 for the visitors and 26 personal fouls compared to 20.

What's up next?

With the win, the Los Angeles Sparks move to 5-3 for their season and second in the Western Division. They'll get a shot at revenge against the Dallas Wings on Tuesday night at home starting at 10 p.m. Eastern Time.

The Phoenix Mercury drop to 5-4 overall with the loss, putting them at fourth in the Western Division.

Their next game is another home contest, where they'll host the Chicago Sky on Friday, June 16th starting at 10 p.m. Eastern Time.

As of week 4 in the WNBA, the AP WNBA Power Poll ranked Los Angeles third behind the Seattle Storm and Minnesota Lynx, who are currently undefeated. Phoenix sits at No. 7 on the list and was just a spot ahead of the Dallas Wings, who seem to be challenging for that fourth spot in the Western Division early.
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