Poor fourth-quarter shooting sunk Washington.
The Washington Mystics lost to the Connecticut Sun on Friday, 84-77.
Following a narrow defeat Tuesday night to the New York Liberty, Washington hit the road for a difficult matchup against the title-contending Connecticut Sun. Coming off an impressive defensive display against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever, Connecticut continued its defensive prowess early on, forcing a slew of Mystics turnovers in the game’s opening minutes.
Ariel Atkins, fresh off a 20-point display, picked up where she left off, scoring the Mystics opening basket on a 12-foot floater. Atkins’ bucket seemed to settle Washington in, kickstarting a 7-0 run. At the midway point of the first quarter, Mystics point guard Brittany Sykes went down with an ankle sprain and was carried off the court by Mystics staffers, missing the remainder of the game. At the end of Q1, Washington led, 20-18.
Washington’s bigs were the story of the second frame. Rookie Aaliyah Edwards scored a tough layup down low, then Stefanie Dolson added a transition three to grow the Mystics’ lead to six. Toward the conclusion of the quarter, Connecticut figured out Washington’s defensive scheme and found a rhythm, embarking on a 12-0 run to take control. The Mystics needed an answer, and Karlie Samuelson provided just that, drilling a pair of threes to stop the bleeding. Samuelson’s 14 points on 5-5 FG led the way for Washington, who entered the break tied at 36.
A rocky offensive start for both squads limited scoring in the third quarter. Washington’s frontcourt of Dolson and Austin found space in the paint for some easy buckets, but fought tooth and nail to score apart from that. Perimeter shooting was what kept Washington close, nailing eight of their first 16 attempts from beyond the arc. That impressive form allowed the Mystics to retake the lead and enter the final quarter up a pair of baskets, 56-52.
Julie Vanloo nailed a three to begin the final quarter, giving Washington its biggest lead of the night at seven. That was the end of Washington’s success, as Connecticut began a 15-3 run. Bonner and Thomas connected on a plethora of buckets to grow the Sun’s lead to 69-62 halfway through the fourth quarter. Eric Thibault used a timeout to make adjustments, sparking a 5-0 Mystics run, but his changes weren’t enough to undo the damage. Connecticut ran away with the win, 84-77.
Washington dropped its second game of the season to fall to 0-2.