Kara Braxton donated 12 points and eight rebounds while Plenette Pierson added 11 points. The Shock made 50 percent of their three-point shots, including a 3-of-6 effort from Smith.
LaToya Thomas led all scorers with 19 points, Taj McWilliams-Franklin recorded a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds and Mwadi Mabika collected 16 points in defeat.
Thomas’ jumper with 1:13 on the clock cut the Sparks’ deficit to 73-72 before Smith calmly sank a pair of free throws. Thomas then made 1-of-2 from the line and Braxton sank a pair on the other end to make the score 77-73.
McWilliams-Franklin missed a layup and a chance to trim the deficit to two points with 20 ticks left, and Detroit held on for the victory from there.
