Phoenix Mercury veteran Brittney Griner and Sparks rookie forward Rikea Jackson had to be pulled before halftime of Tuesday's game.
Late in the second quarter of Phoenix's 85-81 win over Los Angeles, both players received double technical fouls and were automatically ejected.
With under 20 seconds left in the second quarter, Jackson and teammate Lee Yuelu were trying to box Griner out, but Griner's arm made contact with Jackson's face after a made free throw by Mercury guard Celeste Taylor.
The two met on the court, Jackson shoved Griner's arm away and things quickly escalated from there.
The two exchanged words before being separated by umpires, coaches and players.
Phoenix veteran Sophie Cunningham was seen chatting enthusiastically to the Sparks players, making hand gestures as if to address them.
Although it was the first ejection of Jackson's career, he had a strong rookie season, averaging 13.4 points on 46.4 percent shooting, 3.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists.
The seventh-seeded Mercury (19-20) will face the fifth-seeded Storm (24-15) on Thursday in Phoenix in both teams' final regular-season game before the playoffs begin.
The Sparks (7-32) will close the season in Minnesota against the Lynx (30-9).
Los Angeles finished last in the regular season and missed the playoffs for the fourth straight year, but will be eligible to enter the WNBA draft lottery.
The first-round playoff series between the Mercury and Lynx begins Sunday.
