Video: Mercury's Brittney Griner, Sparks' Rickea Jackson Ejected After Scuffle

The Phoenix Mercury rallied to earn an 85-81 comeback win on the road over the Los Angeles Sparks on Tuesday night, but they had to do so without star center Brittney Griner.

While battling for rebounding position after a free throw late in the second quarter, Griner and Sparks rookie Rickea Jackson got into a shoving match that resulted in both of them being ejected from the game:

Griner appeared to take exception to Jackson's arm making contact with her face while they were trying to box each other out. The two of them came face-to-face and shoved one another before Griner was restrained by a member of the Mercury's security detail while Jackson was held back by her teammates.

Prior to her ejection, Griner looked like she was on her way to a dominant performance. She scored 14 points in 14 minutes on 7-of-8 shooting and added three rebounds, two blocks and an assist. Her point total tied with Sophie Cunningham for the team lead despite missing the entire second half. Jackson chipped in eight points across 20 minutes for the Sparks before being removed from the game.

The Mercury made up for Griner's absence by outscoring the Sparks 28-10 in the third quarter before closing out the victory. Diana Taurasi and Natasha Cloud had 13 points apiece as Phoenix's starting five outscored Los Angeles' starters 57-34.

At 19-20, the Mercury clinched the No. 7 seed in the 2024 playoffs and will face the second-seeded Minnesota Lynx in the first round. Griner appears to be peaking at the right time, as she dropped 26 points in back-to-back games before Tuesday's contest.

Phoenix will close out the regular season on Thursday at home against the Seattle Storm.