NEW YORK -- The WNBA season is at the midway point and Los Angeles has definitely been the surprise of the season.The Sparks are 16-1, the second-best start in league history trailing only Houston which won 20 of its first 21 games in 1998. Los Angeles, led by Nneka Ogwumike and Candace Parker, was a unanimous No. 1 choice Tuesday in The Associated Press WNBA power poll .The team also owns the rights to Connecticuts pick in next years draft meaning Los Angeles could win the league and get the No. 1 selection since the Sun are sitting in the lottery again.Ogwumike is having an MVP-caliber season for the Sparks. Shes averaging 18.4 points while shooting a blistering 70 percent from the field.She has been playing at an incredible level, Sparks coach Brian Agler said.---POWER POLL: The top four teams remained the same with Phoenix jumping up to fifth. A look at this weeks WNBA poll:1. Los Angeles (16-1): The Sparks close out a six-game homestand against Indiana and Washington.2. Minnesota (14-3): The Lynx ended a rare-three game slide with a blowout win over San Antonio. Minnesota has a busy week ahead with three games.3. New York (12-6): Finishing 2-1 on a difficult road trip, the Liberty play three games this week.4. Washington (9-9): Mystics continue season-long road trip with games in San Antonio, Los Angeles and Phoenix.5. Phoenix (8-10): Winners of four of their last five games, the Mercury are looking strong. Two of three games this week are on the road.6. Chicago (7-9): Ended a four-game skid, need to be more consistent on defense to stay in the playoff hunt.7. Dallas (8-10): The Wings have been playing teams close lately, but havent been able to get over the hump -- losing three of their four games by a combined 13 points.8. Indiana (7-10): If the season was over, Tamika Catchings would find her career ending before the playoffs began. Fever looking to avoid letting their star go out missing the postseason.9. Atlanta (8-9): Michael Coopers team will try and end a six-game skid.10. Seattle (6-10): Breanna Stewart has been nearly as good as expected. She and Jewell Loyd need a little more help but Storm should be a playoff contender for years to come.11. Connecticut (4-13): Three of their four wins have come against potential lottery teams. The Sun are at home this week for two games.12. San Antonio (4-13): A tough season got worse as Kayla McBride injured her ankle in last game. She could be out awhile.---PLAYER OF THE WEEK: For the second time this season, Nneka Ogwumike earned AP player of the week honors. She helped the Sparks go 3-0 this week averaging 22.3 points and 10 rebounds. Other players receiving votes were Candace Parker and Breanna Stewart of Seattle.---BLOCK PARTY: Brittney Griner had the sixth triple-double in the league history during the regular season with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 10 blocks against Atlanta on Sunday. It was the first in the league since 2014 and the third of them to do it with blocks. After a slow start to the season, Griner has taken over the league-lead in blocks.---GAME OF THE WEEK: Sky at Lynx, 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday night. Chicago finds itself sitting in the eighth spot overall and struggling to find any consistency. Elena Delle Donnes squad has a tough week ahead with games against Minnesota, New York and Phoenix. Jacob Bruun Larsen Jersey . The Lightning are 2-0 so far on a four-game road trip, giving the club five straight wins as the guest and improving Tampas away record this season to 11-8-2. Jeremy Toljan Dortmund Jersey . According the Toronto Star, a knee injury will keep Sundin out of the lineup, which includes former teammates Gary Roberts, Darcy Tucker, Tie Domi and Curtis Joseph. http://www.footballdortmundpro.com/Kids-Omer-Toprak-Jersey/ . -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team. Alexander Isak Dortmund Jersey . Denis Coderre, the former federal MP who was elected mayor on Nov. 3, has drawn the ire of some Montreal Canadiens. During last nights game he tweeted: "Hello? Can we get a one-way ticket to (minor-league) Hamilton for David Desharnais please. Dan-Axel Zagadou Jersey . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- East Carolina coach Jeff Lebo came to John Paul Jones Arena thinking his team could be running into a buzz saw.He was right.Kyle Guy scored 13 points to lead a season-high five Virginia players in double figures, and the No. 14 Cavaliers used strong perimeter shooting to beat the Pirates 76-53 on Tuesday night.I knew we would get a spirited group after a loss at home, Lebo said. They dont lose too often at home.Virginia (8-1) had little trouble bouncing back from Saturdays loss to then-No. 25 West Virginia, its first at JPJ in two years. After trailing 16-15 with 9:26 remaining in the first half, the Cavaliers ended the period on a 27-4 run.The spurt included seven straight made 3-pointers, with three coming from Guy.A former Mr. Basketball in Indiana, Guy was held out for the final 11:27 during the loss to the Mountaineers. The freshman logged 21 minutes Tuesday, sparking Virginias early barrage from long range.I really think I can help this team, Guy said. Im not complaining about my minutes. Im fine with not playing at all. I just want my team to win.I know my minutes are going to fluctuate throughout the year. Some Ill be able to put up numbers and help this team and other games I can help this team by cheering.He did both on Tuesday.The Cavaliers finished 9 of 21 from beyond the arc, taking advantage of East Carolinas 2/3 zone.East Carolina played a lot of zone early, Virginia coach Tony Bennett said, and we shot them out of it.London Perrantes added 12 points and five assists for Virginia. Other double-digit scorers for the Cavaliers included Marial Shayok (12), Mamadi Diakite (12) and Jarred Reuter (10).East Carolina (7-3) was led by Jeremy Sheppards 17 points.BIG PICTUREEast Carolina: It was East Carolinas first game against a Power Five team this season. The Pirates entered John Paul Jones Arena searching for their first win over a ranked opponent since Dec. 30, 2002, wwhen they beat then-No.dddddddddddd13 Marquette and Dwyane Wade. Theyve never defeated a ranked team on the road. ... East Carolina, picked to finish seventh in the 11-team American Athletic Conference, is looking for its first winning season since 2012-13. It features three players averaging at least 12 points per game.Virginia: Coming off a competitive week that included games against West Virginia and Ohio State, the Cavaliers werent expected to be tested Tuesday. The game against the Pirates gave Bennett another opportunity to work different combinations as the team continues its quest for an identity in the post following the Nov. 18 dismissal of Austin Nichols. Virginia, after being outscored by a combined 26 points in the paint against the Mountaineers and Buckeyes, was plus-26 vs. East Carolina. A Dec. 21 road matchup with Ivan Rabb and California should reveal plenty about this team on the interior.Each game presents different matchups, Bennett said, but we tried to be a little more intentional getting to the paint off the dribble, dropping passes, throwing it inside.SHARING THE WEALTHVirginia assisted on all 15 of its first-half field goals, and 22 of 30 for the game. Four different Cavaliers finished with at least three assists.BIG MAN SHUT DOWNEast Carolina 7-foot-1 center Andre Washington, who entered averaging 9.8 points and 8.4 rebounds per game, was held scoreless with four rebounds.Most of the time, if were going against a big guy and he gets it, we try to trap the post, Bennett said. Thats a staple of our defense, to try to be disruptive. I thought for the most part we did a good job. Its hard to score out of that.UP NEXTThe Pirates are off until Dec. 15, when they host College of Charleston.The Cavaliers are off until Dec. 17, when they host Robert Morris. ' ' '