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Washington Mystics (Source: Pine Sports)
After dropping a franchise-record 12 consecutive games to begin the season this summer, Washington Mystics rallied in the second half to defeat the Atlanta Dream 87-68 at the Gateway Centre in College Park, Georgia, on Tuesday night. It also stopped their 14-game losing run, which had lasted since the conclusion of last season and was the league's longest current drought.
Washington Mystics started strong and appeared to be on their way to their first victory in the first quarter. They scored seven three-pointers in the opening ten minutes, giving them a 10-point advantage at halftime.
The speed gradually slowed. Washington scored only 13 points in the second quarter and made just one 3-pointer before going into halftime with a five-point advantage. However, that was Atlanta Dream's closest encounter with reality for the remainder of the journey.
The Mystics shut Atlanta down after the break to begin the third quarter. They limited the Dream to two field goals in the opening six minutes of the stanza before soon regaining a double-digit advantage, which they easily rode to a 19-point victory.
With an ankle ailment that kept her out of the previous 10 games, Brittney Sykes led the Mystics with eighteen points in the win. She made 7 of 12 free throws, 4 of which were three-pointers. In addition to Ariel Atkins' 18 points and five assists, Julie Vanloo scored 11 points in her only game. Together, the Mystics made 31 baskets with 25 assists and shot over 55% from three-point range.
Washington Mystics streak was bad in WNBA
The Dream's season record dropped to 5-5 after the loss, with Rhyne Howard leading them with 16 points. Nine rebounds and 12 points were scored by Tina Charles. The two Dream players that achieved double digits were the only ones.
Although Washington's losing streak was awful, the team's season began better than any other in WNBA history. The Dream lost their first seventeen games of the 2008 season. Due mostly to Sykes' and Shakira Austin's absence, the Mystics also dropped nine of their first 12 games by a single digit.