The Phoenix Mercury can clinch a WNBA playoff berth with a win over the sputtering Los Angeles Sparks on Tuesday at Staples Center in Los Angeles.Los Angeles (24-8) is second in the WNBAs Western Conference, 2 1/2 games behind the first-place Minnesota Lynx. The Sparks have lost three in a row and five of eight since the Olympic break after going 21-3 before the break.Despite their recent struggles, the Sparks are locked into the No. 2 seed in the playoffs with two games remaining on their regular-season schedule. They will conclude the regular season at home against the San Antonio Stars on Friday.Phoenix (14-17) is fourth in the Western Conference, a half-game behind the third-place Seattle Storm and two games ahead of the Washington Mystics for the WNBAs final playoff spot. The Mercury needs one more win or a Washington loss to secure their place in the postseason.Phoenix has three games remaining in the regular season. The Mercury will play host to Seattle on Thursday before concluding its regular-season schedule on the road against San Antonio on Sunday.The Mercury swept the season series against Washington this season and would hold the tiebreaker advantage if they finish with identical records.Los Angeles is coming off a 78-60 loss to Seattle. The Sparks elected to rest starters Nneka Ogwumike and Kristi Toliver. Candace Parker had 20 points and 10 rebounds and Chelsea Gray added 13 points.Phoenix is coming off an 86-75 victory over the Atlanta Dream. Brittney Griner had 21 points, nine rebounds and five blocked shots. Diana Taurasi added 17 points.Los Angeles and Phoenix split their first two games this season. Parker had 24 points and 11 rebounds to help the Sparks beat the Mercury 77-71 on June 17 in Los Angeles. Taurasi scored 26 points and sank two free throws with eight seconds remaining to help the Mercury edge the Sparks 70-66 on Aug. 28 in Phoenix. Custom Rangers T-shirts . - The Oakland Raiders re-signed offensive lineman Khalif Barnes on Friday. Custom Rangers Jerseys . Down by seven with 90 seconds left in regulation, thats where they looked comfortable. http://www.customnhlrangersjersey.com/ . Pierce was ejected in the third quarter of Indianas 103-86 win Monday. George Hill stole a bad pass and was going in for a layup, and Pierce hustled back and appeared to be trying to wrap him up. Authentic Custom Rangers Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Wholesale Custom Rangers Shirts . The Nashville Predators were glad their captain was still on their side. Weber had a goal and two assists, and Roman Josi scored the shootout winner to lift the Predators to a 4-3 win over the Flyers on Thursday night. For the second straight year, Serena Williams has withdrawn from the season-ending WTA Finals in Singapore, citing the right shoulder injury that plagued her during the Rio Olympics and US Open.Im really bummed I wont be able to compete this year in Singapore. It has been a tough year for me, dealing with so much shoulder injuries, Williams said in a video announcement posted to the WTAs Twitter account.My doctors insist that I stay at home so I can start to heal. Im doing treatments every single day so I can play next year and have the chance to make it back to Singapore. I only have wonderful memories of playing in Singapore, and I will really miss my fans. I want to wish everyone a great time, and I hope it will be an amazing tournament -- it always is.Williams, 35, won her Open era-record-tying 22nd Grand Slam singles title at Wimbledon, and she reached the finals of the Australian Open and French Open before falling to Karolina Pliskova?inn the US Open semifinals.dddddddddddd. That early September defeat resulted in her ceding the No. 1 ranking to Angelique Kerber after a 3?-year stay at the top, and Williams hasnt played since.She played in only eight tournaments in 2016, winning two of them, including Wimbledon.?With Williams withdrawing, Kerber is assured of finishing the year ranked No. 1.The WTA Finals are set for Oct. 23-30 at the Singapore Indoor stadium, and the final spot in the year-end tournament will be decided at the Kremlin Cup in Moscow.Svetlana Kuznetsova?and Carla Suarez Navarro can guarantee a place in the WTA Finals by winning the event. However, if neither win, the final spot stays with Britains Johanna Konta, who isnt playing this week as she tries to shake off an abdominal strain.The Associated Press contributed to this report.? ' ' '