Brittney Griner and Rickea Jackson sent off after riot between Sparks and Mercury

Tuesday night was supposed to be a celebration for the Los Angeles Sparks, their fan honors night at the final home game of the regular season. For the Southern California crowd, it was also a chance to honor one of their own, as Phoenix Mercury legend Diana Taurasi played what may be her final professional game in Los Angeles.

Instead, the contest was marred by an altercation between Sparks rookie Rickea Jackson and Mercury star Brittney Griner. Both were ejected with 18.8 seconds left in the first half after a conversation between the two escalated in front of the Phoenix bench following a free throw.

Security guards and Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts rushed onto the field to separate the players, but a related altercation between Sophie Cunningham and Crystal Dangerfield also ended in technical fouls for both.

LA was up seven points at the time of the ejection and held an eight-point lead at halftime. However, Phoenix turned the game up after the break, applying pressure all over the court and falling into a zone defense that frustrated the Sparks to the point of a 10-point lead in the third quarter. The Mercury eventually won 85-81.

The WNBA rules state: “During an altercation, all players not participating in the game must remain in close proximity to their bench. Violations will result in an unpaid suspension of at least one game and a fine. Any such suspension will begin before the start of the player’s next game.”

The Phoenix coaching staff apparently managed to keep substitutes away from the incident. Regardless, a one-game suspension wouldn’t be too damaging for the Mercury, as they have one game left in the regular season and have secured the 7th seed for the playoffs.

Of greater concern is Griner’s future availability. The Phoenix center entered the game with four technical fouls, meaning she has not yet reached the automatic suspension of seven. However, the league may decide that the altercation with Jackson requires stricter discipline. Griner was already suspended for three games in 2019 for a near-brawl. What happened to Jackson shouldn’t be that bad, but that’s up to the WNBA to decide.

“No clear explanation (from the referees),” Tibbetts said when asked about the brawl after the game. “I haven’t looked at the video or anything, so we’ll see.”

Phoenix finishes the regular season at home against Seattle on Thursday before traveling to Minnesota for the first round of the playoffs. Los Angeles closes its season on Thursday against Minnesota and hopes to welcome Jackson back to close out a season that was undoubtedly all rookies.

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(Photo: Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)