Sparks regroup, need road win in decisive Game 5 to clinch WNBA title

— -- MINNEAPOLIS -- The Sparks didn't spend a lot of time dwelling on what didn't happen Sunday in Los Angeles, as understandable as it might have been. They had a chance to win a championship then, but fell short. Now they'll have another chance, but on Minnesota's home court at Target Center.

Lakers legend Magic Johnson, one of the team owners, talked to the Sparks right after their 85-79 loss to Minnesota in Game 4 of the WNBA Finals, trying to pass on inspiring stories of his own playing days and bouncing back from disappointing losses.

"It was great," Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike said of the Hall of Famer's message to the team. "He's very compassionate, and he's invested. He spoke from experience; he gave us a few anecdotes from when he played Boston. That resonated with the team.

"It's a very special thing to have someone like that involved with your team. He believes in us."

The Sparks also believe in themselves. There's no way to sugar-coat how difficult it will be to win at Minnesota in Game 5 on Thursday (ESPN2, 8 p.m. ET), especially with the Lynx's experience in the WNBA Finals. Minnesota has won three previous titles, including in five games last year against Indiana.

But after Sunday's loss, the Sparks realized they were trying too hard to "win a title" instead of just focusing on beating the Lynx. It might sound like the same thing, but it isn't. Coach Brian Agler pointed that out to the players while they watched film of the game.

"I told Coach yesterday, 'That's exactly how I felt!'" Ogwumike said. "Because I was laying in my bed that night -- and I wasn't disappointed, because I knew we had played hard -- but I was trying to figure out, 'Why didn't it work?'

"That's what he put in perspective. Having that with a good balance of focus, effort and awareness is what we need."

If this all sounds like a bit of mental gymnastics, it is. But that's to be expected. The current Sparks haven't been in this position before in the WNBA. Yes, all of them have won various championships at different levels, including in college. But a close-out game to win a professional series against a team that has done it before -- that was a new road to travel for the Sparks.

Truth is, they gave a good effort. They played with passion and intensity throughout Sunday's game. But they made some critical mistakes, especially late, and the Lynx pounced.

"It's an opportunity lost, but we have another opportunity," Sparks center Candace Parker said. "We're not reinventing anything now. The things we have to do, it's all about whether we can do them consistently.

"You know, nothing's easy. I've never done anything easy in my career. And [a WNBA championship] isn't going to be that way. Whether it's this year or ... whenever. It's never easy. That's what our team does. We do things the hard way."

That might sound fatalistic, but Parker's point is that her nine seasons in the WNBA have had quite a few obstacles. Parker knows, though, that the biggest challenge is the mental game: not getting frustrated by how hard the Lynx can make it for any team to get what it wants offensively.

Parker has to keep moving for the Sparks' offense to work at its best. But as simple as that sounds, it's not simple to do. When Parker and Ogwumike were very efficient offensively in Game 3, it naturally led to more opportunities for the rest of the Sparks. That 92-75 victory last Friday wasn't just about how aggressive the Sparks -- especially Parker -- were from the start, but how well they moved in their offense.

That said, Sparks guard Alana Beard still thinks that defense has to be the cornerstone of trying to beat Minnesota one last time. Maya Moore had 31 points in Sunday's game. As skilled a threat as Moore is, the Sparks saw on film that they also gave her too many chances to get easier baskets.

"We are a defensive team," Beard said. "Being more locked in at the point of attack changes things. Keeping more focus on Maya. She scored some of her points on picking up loose balls, or kick-outs in transition. And once she gets those kinds of baskets, that really gets her going.

"She's the best scorer in the league, in my opinion. But it's about just staying aggressive and making every shot difficult for her."

While Johnson gave the Sparks some examples of big games that he and the Lakers won on the road, they also can look to the fact that a visiting team winning Game 5 in the WNBA Finals is not unprecedented. Phoenix did it at Detroit in 2007. The other Game 5s -- the league went to a best-of-five format for the WNBA Finals in 2005 -- went to the home team: Detroit over Sacramento in 2006, Phoenix over Indiana in 2009, and the Lynx over the Fever last year.

Agler feels confident that, if nothing else, his players won't carry an emotional hangover from Sunday into Thursday.

"They bounced back right after the game," he said. "Magic told them that he's been in the same seat that they're sitting in right now. And that, 'As much as you're disappointed, it's not over yet.' That was really good for him to come in and do that. I think it resonated with our team."