On Sunday, the defending WNBA Champions look to move back to the WNBA Finals for their second-straight year. The Phoenix Mercury will host the L.A. Sparks in the nightcap game of the two semifinals matchups on Sunday. Can Diana Taurasi and the Mercury stay alive in the playoffs or will the Sparks punch their ticket to the Finals? Here's the latest WNBA game preview including odds to win, start time, TV channel and live stream viewing options.

WNBA game preview

The Los Angeles Sparks picked up back-to-back wins at their home stadium and are now just one game from a return to the WNBA Finals.

Game 1 was a 13-point win followed by Game 2, a 14-point win. In that 86-72 victory, Candace Parker scored 24 points on 9-for-18 field goal shooting. She also had 13 rebounds and six assists as well as three blocks and two steals. The solid effort helped her team to the 2-0 lead heading into tonight's road game.

While the Phoenix Mercury might be happy to return home, they were only 9-8 over the course of the regular season there. A number of those games were played with their All-Star Brittney Griner injured and out of the lineup. She's back now and looking to contribute in a major way. Still, the team will need to cut down on turnovers after having 18 of them in Game 2. The home crowd could help give the Mercury the necessary confidence to extend the series at least one more game.

While the Sparks are impressive at home, they could struggle on the road tonight. The Odds Shark website still lists them as the favorites with the point spread at 4.5 points in their favor tonight. On the moneyline, the Phoenix Mercury are +170 underdogs, while the visitors are -200 favorites. The over/under total is around 156 points for the complete game.

How to watch it live

Sunday's L.A. Sparks vs. Phoenix Mercury game is scheduled for a 5 p.m. Eastern Time start. For live television coverage, WNBA fans can watch Game 3 of the semifinals matchup on ESPN. Cable and satellite subscribers should be able to log into the WatchESPN website or any compatible apps for devices. These include mobile devices, video game systems, and streaming media players.

The SlingTV service is another way to go and could provide a free way to watch the Sparks and Mercury game live streaming online. Anyone who has a hi-speed internet connection can sign up for a one-week free trial of the service via Sling.com website. Make sure to choose the Sling Orange channel package which includes ESPN and ESPN2 among several other channels to watch.
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