Kahleah Copper, Azura Stevens score 21 each as Sky beat Sparks 86-78

BRADENTON, Fla. — Kahleah Copper and Azura Stevens had 21 points apiece and the Sky beat the Los Angeles Sparks 96-78 on Tuesday night.

Cheyenne Parker added 12 points and Allie Quigley, Courtney Vandersloot and Gabby Williams scored 11 apiece for the Sky (2-0). Vandersloot finished with 10 assists. Stevens and Copper each grabbed a career-high nine rebounds.

Brittney Sykes led the Sparks (1-1) with 16 points.

Parker and Williams made back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Sky a 40-36 halftime lead and then Chicago scored 15 of the first 17 third-quarter points, pushing their lead to 17 when Vandersloot made a two free throws midway through the period.

Sydney Wiese hit two 3s in an 11-0 run that cut L.A.’s deficit to 66-57 early in the fourth quarter, but Chicago answered with a 10-2 spurt — including six points by Copper — and the Sparks trailed by double figures the rest of the way.