"We didn't play very well, we didn't defend," Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said after her team lost 92-76 at Los Angeles on Thursday. "They came out and they did what they wanted.
"[Candace] Parker and [Nneka} Ogwumike played great, and we provided very low resistance to what they were doing. We couldn't make a shot at times. They got separated early on, and we played behind the whole time, and we couldn't catch up."
The Lynx shot a season-low 34.8 percent.
Lynx guard Seimone Augustus had her second bad shooting night in a row. She has 3 for 11 in consecutive games since missing three games with a sprained foot.
But she remains confident for the playoffs. "We're definitely going to take it to the next level," Augustus said. "[Thursday's] not an inclination of the level we want to play at, but we have some more time to prepare for the playoffs. We're going to come out better than we did tonight. We are going to come out defensively more aggressively than we did tonight."
LA dominated the start of the game and of the second half. The Sparks took a 13-2 lead in the first quarter and went on a 13-0 run in the third quarter to expand an eight-ponit halftime lead to 57-36.
Asked about possibly playing the Sparks in the Western Conference finals, Augustus said, "That would be awesome… awesome.
"[Parker ] ss a tough guard for other people because of her height and her size. She can shoot from anywhere, she can handle the ball. She is a lethal weapon. It's difficult for any team. We haven't found anyone to stop her, but God bless a team that can. I hope to see them in the Western Conference."