Tag Archives: Washington Mystics

WNBA Today, 09/07/2013: Postseason four become official in West, reach brink in East, on five-game Friday

 

Another quintuple-game night in the WNBA on Friday, and all five of them had playoff implications of some description. Whether it’s officially confirming your spot in the postseason, fighting for seeding, or just playing spoiler while you look forward to the lottery, the regular season isn’t quite done yet.

 

Washington Mystics 70 @ Connecticut Sun 77

  • Although if you happen to be a Connecticut Sun fan, you could’ve been forgiven for thinking your team had already decided the season was over. With the mathematical calculations finally confirming that the Sun’s chances of making the playoffs were finished (realists had confirmed that eons ago), two more Sun players were shut down for the season. The team confirmed that Kara Lawson wouldn’t be returning for the rest of the year with lingering issues from her bruised knee, while Tina Charles was shut down with sore knees and various other aches and pains that everyone’s always feeling by this stage in the season. Making sure they stay below everyone else in the standings would also help Connecticut’s lottery chances, of course (and give them the #1 pick in a dispersal draft in the unfortunate event that any other team ceased operations over the offseason).

 

  • But in case you haven’t noticed me pointing it out several times over the course of the season, both here and on Twitter, the Sun have invariably been a better team with Tina Charles on the bench this season. Plus, when a team hears that their opponent is missing virtually their entire starting five (remember, Asjha Jones, Danielle McCray, Allison Hightower and Kelly Faris are all out for various reasons as well as Charles and Lawson), they tend to relax. The Mystics came out with very little energy, and we saw what might well have been the quickest timeout of the season. Mike Thibault brought everything to a halt after just 45 seconds, with his team trailing 5-0.

 

  • Washington struggled to find any of their usual energy and focus throughout the first half, but they did at least crawl into a pretty tedious contest. They didn’t hit many shots, but they managed to drive into contact enough to earn trips to the free throw line and gather up some points. Connecticut had a drought in the middle of the half where their basic limited level of talent was highlighted, but over the course of the half they shot significantly better than Washington. The rotations and help in the Mystics defense weren’t crisp at all, and Tan White led the Sun to a 36-34 halftime advantage.

 

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WNBA Today, 08/29/2013: Mystics steal one in Atlanta, as Dream’s injury woes continue to mount

 

Only one game on the WNBA schedule last night, and the task was made more difficult for the hosts before the game even began. Atlanta have been missing starting power forward Sancho Lyttle for over seven weeks due to her broken foot, and now two other key members of their rotation were out as well. Tiffany Hayes missed her second consecutive game with swelling in the knee that was operated on during the season, while fellow wing Armintie Herrington was out due to a concussion suffered in their loss to Chicago on Saturday. They re-signed Anne Marie Armstrong to fill out their bench, but essentially the Dream were down to six players that they ever actually want to see on the floor. They’ve struggled without Lyttle and Hayes in the second half of the year, and now there was an extra starter missing as well. It’s a good thing that they opened the season 10-1, because without that start their playoff spot might’ve disappeared already.

 

Washington came into last night’s game at 13-15, Atlanta’s closest challengers in the standings but still 2.5 games back. The Mystics are more concerned with making sure Indiana and New York don’t chase them down from behind, but a win in this game had the potential to open up the chance to hunt down the Dream for the #2 seed, especially if Atlanta’s injuries persist. As they have been virtually all season, Washington were at full strength for this game.

 

It’s hard to come up with much worth talking about from an ugly, brick-filled, snooze-fest of a first half. Both teams inevitably sagged into the paint to defend against drives and post play, trying to force their opponents to beat them from outside. Both teams responded by missing an awful lot of jump shots. Over and over again. The only effective offense came on the rare occasions that players managed to push the ball and beat the defense down the floor, making it to the rim before the defenders could get set. Young guards Tayler Hill and Jasmine Thomas produced a couple of useful moments for their teams, as did backup posts Michelle Snow and Aneika Henry. But that was about it. The half was summed up when Angel McCoughtry airballed a three-pointer at the buzzer, leaving the game tied at 33-33. A missed jumper and a scoreline that showed no real progress for either side in the opening 20 minutes.

 

The action livened up a little in the second half. Ivory Latta picked up a technical foul while walking off the floor just after the halftime buzzer, so McCoughtry gave Atlanta the lead before play even re-started. Two more technicals quickly followed against the Mystics, first for Kia Vaughn shouting about the lack of a call, then for a flailing arm from Monique Currie. So McCoughtry added two more free throws. It seemed like those uncontested shots from 15 feet helped Angel find her range, because suddenly more of those pullup jumpers that she takes far too frequently were actually dropping in. With some help from Thomas and Alex Bentley – the starting backcourt in the absence of Herrington – that pushed Atlanta ahead by eight midway through the third quarter.

 

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WNBA Today, 08/24/2013: Eastern playoff picture beginning to clear, while Storm complete Mercury sweep

 

Last night’s WNBA slate featured an upset that really shouldn’t have surprised anyone; another extraordinary gambling cover; a team finally celebrating a playoff berth three days after they actually clinched; and a team everyone wrote off before the season began completing a season sweep over the preseason darlings. Just another night in our favourite little league, ladies and gentlemen.

 

Atlanta Dream 64 @ Washington Mystics 74

  • This is the one we all should’ve seen coming (I was kicking myself all night for missing this one and only going 3-1 with yesterday’s picks as a result). Atlanta came in on a three-game winning streak, including a win over the Mystics, but they did it all at home. They were 11-1 at home and 3-8 on the road before this game, and those three road wins came way back at the start of the season when they were rolling. The lineups were as expected, with Kia Vaughn retaining her starting spot ahead of Michelle Snow after Vaughn’s offensive explosion in their last game after becoming the starter.

 

  • The first half was rather less than gripping. It started off okay, with both teams creating more layups that the opposing defenses could’ve been comfortable with. But both sides shot poorly from outside, and the officials didn’t help with a seemingly endless stream of whistles. When they couldn’t create any momentum, moving Angel McCoughtry’s first half rest to later in the second quarter didn’t work as well for Atlanta as it did in their previous game. Instead of avoiding their offensive lull without her on the floor, it just shifted it a couple of minutes later. Outside of McCoughtry, no one on either side stood out, and the game crawled to a 37-35 halftime scoreline. The highlight was an Ivory Latta crossover dumping Le’coe Willingham on her butt before a layup, and Willingham getting her revenge with a comprehensive block on the next possession.

 

  • The second half wasn’t all that different. Both teams had a little success when they went inside to their centers, with Vaughn and Erika de Souza converting at the rim, but both squads were still firing up a host of bricks. Neither team could gather any momentum and sustain a run.

 

  • The pivotal moments came early in the fourth quarter, and unsurprisingly it was inspired by someone finally making a couple of shots. Atlanta were 0-13 from behind the arc to that point, with Washington 3-8 (those makes were hard to remember), when Ivory Latta nailed a triple with seven minutes left in the game. There’d been nothing between the teams for most of the night, but it was immediately after the 13th long-range miss from the Dream and created a six-point gap that felt huge. When she hit another one a couple of minutes later, pushing the Mystics’ advantage to 10, the game felt finished even with five minutes remaining. There were several offensive rebounds for Washington in that sequence as well, as the Mystics outworked and outshot the Dream. They did a solid job all night keeping Atlanta away from the rim, and it was the old story for the Dream – they couldn’t hit anything from outside to punish the collapsing defense. Atlanta’s own defense was solid enough, but the scoring they’d managed in their recent run of victories just wasn’t there.

 

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WNBA Today, 08/21/2013: Western leaders lose, Eastern leaders win, and Shock fall to Mercury yet again

 

It was a busy Tuesday in the WNBA this week, with four games competing for our attention last night. As always, all of them are covered for you right here. On to the Bullet Point Breakdowns.

 

Minnesota Lynx 75 @ Atlanta Dream 88

  • Having ended their surprising three-game losing skid with a comfortable win over New York on Sunday, the Lynx came in looking to build another winning streak against the team they swept in the 2011 WNBA Finals. In fact, the Dream hadn’t beaten Minnesota since 2010, back before Maya Moore turned pro. However, after two consecutive wins Atlanta looked like they might’ve found some form, ending a horrible streak of eight losses in nine games. Plus, they came in with a 10-1 record at home this season, the best in the WNBA.

 

  • Minnesota had Monica Wright available again after she missed a game due to a bruised quad. Le’coe Willingham continued to deputise for the injured Sancho Lyttle for Atlanta.

 

  • The Dream got off to the much quicker start in this game, and although Minnesota briefly came back into it as the first quarter continued, Atlanta dominated most of the first half. Early on it was Lynx turnovers and Dream offensive boards that were leading to Atlanta’s edge, with Erika de Souza making the most of her size advantage in the paint. As the half progressed, it was the active hands and constant energy of the Dream defense which kept Atlanta on top.

 

  • As always, Angel McCoughtry was a major part of the Dream’s success, but she had help. First from Erika, then from Tiffany Hayes, who continued her impressive recent form. Hayes brings such energy and hustle to the team at both ends of the floor, and even if her shooting can be streaky (and she shoots her threes from somewhere down around her knees) she gives Atlanta another legitimate threat from the perimeter. Fred Williams also seems to have decided – partly because of how good Hayes has been – that the small lineup with McCoughtry sliding to power forward has become his ‘first-change’ option. He’s gone to it in the first quarter of both their last two games and used it for long stretches, with Aneika Henry used purely as Erika’s backup at center. It keeps their energy constantly high, because that small group know they have to work their butts off to move and help each other due to their lack of pure size.

 

  • Williams also smartly switched up his rotation a little in this game. Leading 20-17 at the end of the first quarter but on top, he left McCoughtry in rather than benching her for her typical rest at the start of the second quarter. The Dream have suffered ugly lulls in that period in many recent games, but instead they kept their momentum rolling, built a lead, and McCoughtry still got some rest later in the half anyway. Williams recognised that they couldn’t afford the lull against Minnesota, and navigated around it nicely for once.

 

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WNBA Today, 08/20/2013: Home wins come easy, medium and hard, while Laimbeer crosses the line

 

Sunday saw three WNBA games, and ultimately three double-digit home victories. But each was achieved in a very different way, and we even had a little bit of controversy to spice things up as well. Bullet Point Breakdowns follow.

 

Washington Mystics 58 @ Atlanta Dream 76

  • This was a battle between two teams hoping to cement signs of an upturn in form. After playing some poor basketball to lose six out of seven and slide back into the pack in the East, Washington had run off three straight wins – starting with a shocking upset win in Minnesota. Meanwhile, Atlanta had lost eight of nine before destroying Connecticut on Friday night, which they were obviously hoping could begin their own new streak. The Dream came in with oddly competing statistics – they hadn’t beaten anyone besides the Sun since June, and beating Connecticut this season barely counts; but so many of their recent games have been on the road, they still held the best home record in the WNBA. At 9-1 at Philips Arena coming into this game, they had every right to be confident on their own floor, despite all those losses elsewhere.

 

  • In a frantic, end-to-end opening quarter, it was Washington who got off to the better start. They were pushing the ball hard, looking for quick offense, and attacking Angel McCoughtry off the dribble. It was hard to tell whether Angel was meant to be guarding Matee Ajavon or Monique Currie – McCoughtry seemed to pick up whoever she felt like on any given possession, assuming she made it back down the floor in time to guard anyone. But early on, Washington were both breaking down Atlanta’s defense, and hitting their open shots from outside.

 

  • McCoughtry was still getting plenty back at the other end, attacking and getting to the rim as usual. Dream head coach Fred Williams also showed a willingness to try the small lineup with McCoughtry at the 4 earlier than usual, which was a positive. It’s rarely come into play in the first quarter this season.

 

  • Atlanta just about survived the early second quarter minutes where McCoughtry rests – it’s been a struggle to avoid collapsing in that period lately – and then made a push when she came back. They had positive moments both with Le’coe Willingham at power forward – a much more reliable option to guard Crystal Langhorne than McCoughtry – and with the quicker, more aggressive small lineup. By halftime, while it felt like Washington had been on top for much of the first half, the Dream were in front 38-37.

 

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WNBA Today, 08/17/2013: Western summit continues to tighten; Eastern picture remains muddied

 

Four games last night in the WNBA. We had a couple of upsets – one minor, one huge. And a couple of home wins – one comfortable, one blowout. Let’s go to the Bullet Point Breakdowns to take a look.

 

Washington Mystics 66 @ New York Liberty 57

  • New York came into this one just half-a-game behind the Mystics for the final playoff spot in the East. Having beaten Washington twice in recent weeks, a win for the Liberty also would’ve sealed the season-series tiebreaker should these teams end up level at the end of the season. The Mystics came in having beaten the best and the worst the WNBA has to offer in their last two games, Minnesota and Connecticut. Now they had to take on an opponent from somewhere in the middle.

 

  • The lineups were the same as usual for these teams, although New York had veteran forward DeLisha Milton-Jones in uniform for the first time after claiming her off waivers from San Antonio.

 

  • The first half was ultimately very even. Washington built a small lead early with their starters, thanks to the fact that they have more players who can shoot than New York. Cappie Pondexter was utterly invisible in the first quarter. As has been something of a theme lately, the Mystics lost their way a little when their bench players came in, and New York slid back into it largely due to Washington’s offensive futility. Then the rest of the half played out with Pondexter actually making a couple of shots, while Plenette Pierson and Crystal Langhorne entertainingly went to war down low.

 

  • The third quarter was even more forgettable than the first half. Desperately scrappy basketball, too many turnovers, defense dominating and not a lot of points being scored. A 34-33 New York lead at halftime became a 45-44 Washington lead after three periods.

 

  • It didn’t take long in the fourth quarter for the victor to become clear. Matee Ajavon, Kia Vaughn and Tierra Ruffin-Pratt all nailed jumpers in the opening moments, turning a one-point lead into an eight-point gap. In a game where points had been at a premium all night, that felt like a chasm. Defensive decisions and defense in general had become rather too easy for the Mystics. Pondexter couldn’t hit a shot to save her life in the second half, and New York don’t have many other players who can shoot (especially considering Bill Laimbeer’s continuing reluctance to play Leilani Mitchell). So the defense increasingly collapsed into the paint, and made it harder and harder for New York to force the ball inside. So they spent the fourth quarter either being swamped in the paint when they continued to try to get there, or watching Pondexter brick jumpers.

 

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WNBA Today, 08/13/2013: Five-star day for WNBA

 

Apologies for this piece arriving a day later than usual. Hopefully you won’t all think it’s a dollar short as well (but as it’s free, that would seem difficult). Sunday saw another quintuple-header in the WNBA, and the first meeting this year of the two teams who’ve been atop either conference for the last few weeks. Let’s start the Bullet Point Breakdowns with that headline matchup.

 

Minnesota Lynx 86 @ Chicago Sky 94

  • The Lynx arrived off the back of having a 10-game winning streak broken by Washington on Thursday, and not having lost consecutive games since last year’s Finals they were obviously hoping to bounce back quickly. Janel McCarville was still out due to concussion, and this time Cheryl Reeve went directly to Devereaux Peters as the replacement, rather than messing around with Amber Harris as the starter. The Sky had stuttered a little since the All-Star break, with Elena Delle Donne’s concussion upsetting their rhythm and playing a part in back-to-back losses against Indiana. It’s games against teams like the Lynx where they really needed to step up and prove their credentials as a potential championship contender, after so many years of underperformance.

 

  • As most would’ve expected, Delle Donne was hiding on Peters defensively, with Sylvia Fowles taking Rebekkah Brunson and Swin Cash trying to chase after Maya Moore. The Lynx switched the post pairings at the other end, using Brunson as their first option on Delle Donne, and leaving Peters to do her best against Fowles.

 

  • Chicago got three blocks from Delle Donne and three taken changes from Courtney Vandersloot in the opening period – two players who aren’t exactly known for their defense but who’ve done their bit this season. Vandersloot’s worked hard to get stronger, and her feet appear to have become quicker in the process. Opponents don’t quite seem to quite realise how tall and long Delle Done is. She might not be the greatest individual defender in the world, but she’s very coordinated and size makes up for a lot. She broke Chicago’s rookie-record for blocks in this game – a record previously held by Fowles.

 

  • However, it was Minnesota who built the first leads of any significance, pushing ahead by as many as seven midway through the first quarter, and eight early in the second. Brunson and Seimone Augustus were both knocking down jumpers, while Epiphanny Prince continued her recent run of offensive futility. She’d had a good game against the dismal Sun on Friday, but in general her shot’s been missing in action for well over a month.

 

  • You could see that both head coaches were taking this game very seriously, well aware that it was a real test (and a potential WNBA Finals preview). Pokey Chatman didn’t mess around with Allie Quigley at point guard, using Prince whenever Vandersloot needed a brief rest. Amber Harris got a couple of minutes here and there, because without McCarville someone had to spell the posts, but Harris was pulled quickly when Fowles went right at her (and basically abused her). Neither coach wanted to give anything away cheaply.

 

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WNBA Today, 08/09/2013: Sparks punish Fever inside, while Mystics pull off big upset in Minnesota

 

While the big news around the WNBA yesterday may have been the departure of Phoenix Mercury head coach Corey Gaines (read in depth coverage of that HERE), there were also two intriguing cross-conference basketball games to take in. Having gone the right way in both of them in my picks against the spread, forgive me if there’s a mildly smug hint to the coverage below. The predictions have been going surprisingly well since the All-Star break – for once, I’d actually be making money if I followed my own gambling advice.

 

The opener was in Indiana, where the Los Angeles Sparks made their yearly visit. After missing the first three games of LA’s post-All-Star road trip due to a right wrist injury, Candace Parker was back with the team and back in the lineup. There was some strapping around the wrist, and she grabbed it once or twice during the game, but obviously she and the medical staff felt she was ready to return. The Fever are as healthy as they look likely to get for a while. Center Jessica Davenport is done for the season after surgery on her tibia, and Katie Douglas’s back problem continues to leave her sidelined. But with the injuries they’ve battled all year, Indiana will settle for having 10 of their 12 first-choice options available to play.

 

The opening couple of minutes seemingly went perfectly for the Fever. LA looked unprepared for the energy and activity of Indiana’s defense, and repeatedly turned the ball over on passes into traffic or poke-aways by Fever defenders. Briann January even hit a layup, which has been about as common this season as seeing a pig drift by your window. But Indiana didn’t create any separation during that sequence because they couldn’t hit anything from the perimeter, and when they avoided turning the ball over LA weren’t missing. It didn’t help when January picked up her second early foul on a soft call while trying to play tight to Lindsey Harding on defense, sending her to the bench.

 

Once the Sparks started taking better care of the ball, they began to dominate. They were getting out in transition when they could, but even in halfcourt sets they were finding their bigs deep in the paint and converting at the rim. Without steals to run off, Indiana were taking a lot of jumpers, virtually none of which went in, merely helping LA push back the other way from the long rebounds. The officials also started calling almost everything, which hurt Indiana far more than LA. Suddenly those reach-ins or poke-away plays from Fever defenders were drawing whistles, sending LA to the line repeatedly, rather than resulting in turnovers. By the end of the first quarter LA already had 16 points in the paint, 9 more at the free throw line, and led 27-13.

 

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WNBA Today, 08/07/2013: Quintuple Tuesday in the WNBA

 

Yesterday was the first five-game day of the 2013 WNBA season, as the schedulers did their level best to make my life as difficult as possible. But they won’t break me. Not only did I come within inches of going 5-0 with my picks against the spread (got the right winner in all of them, but one failed to cover), all five are examined in the usual detail below. On to the Bullet Point Breakdowns.

 

Washington Mystics 88 @ New York Liberty 93

  • This was one of three remaining meetings between these teams, after New York won their first matchup last week with a dominant post performance. The starting lineups were the same as in that previous meeting, with Washington’s Mike Thibault promoting Michelle Snow back into the starting lineup for Emma Meesseman, after trying something different against LA on Sunday.

 

  • New York were the slightly more successful team in the early going thanks to their interior attack, with Cappie Pondexter drawing extra defenders to create good looks for her teammates inside. She still takes too many of those 19ft pullup jumpers – frustrating because they’d be barely any more difficult from two feet further back, and a low-percentage three-pointer is a much more worthwhile shot than a low-percentage two. But she does at least seem to be handling the ‘lead guard’ position better. There’s been more poise, fewer turnovers, and better patience to her game recently – even if her jump shot still isn’t dropping all that often.

 

  • It was New York’s general inability to hit a shot that helped ease Washington back into the game, although the Mystics were taking plenty themselves. Even with all those perimeter shots, Washington drew plenty of whistles, which also helped them take the lead at the free throw line.

 

  • As the half progressed, the Liberty found some shooting from an unusual source. Wing Alex Montgomery has gradually earned increasing minutes this season, but it’s been due to her defense and hustle more than her points production. Her jumper was falling in this game, giving the posts someone to kick out to and Pondexter a sidekick on the perimeter. That left us with a surprisingly high-scoring first half, which finished with Washington up 46-45.

 

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WNBA Today, 08/05/2013: Sparks dominate regressing Mystics; Silver Stars squeak past Shock; Lynx coast home again

 

Sometimes, the WNBA can be pretty predictable. When one team fighting at the top of a conference faces a sub-.500 team heading backwards, there’s a likely result. When the two worst teams in the West face off, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the game ends up scrappy and tight. And when the league’s best team faces a squad that have been fighting for their lives all year, a blowout is on the cards. Let’s take a look at Sunday’s action.

 

Los Angeles Sparks 75 @ Washington Mystics 57

  • The bad news for Los Angeles was that Candace Parker was still out with her right wrist injury, and had in fact left the team to head back to LA for an MRI. She’s listed with a bone bruise and is day-to-day. Mike Thibault made a change to his starting lineup, finally reacting to the fact that his bench was frequently outperforming his starters. Rookie Emma Meesseman came in for Michelle Snow at center, putting her alongside Crystal Langhorne in the post. Interestingly, Thibault was reluctant to use Langhorne and Meesseman together at all at the start of the season – both are primarily power forwards at this level, so it can be an awkward fit. Now he was trying them as his starting frontcourt.

 

  • For the first few minutes, Washington were on top, with everything rimming out for LA while the Mystics made a series of short jumpers. But that balance was very short-lived. The Sparks were getting deep into the Washington defense with Nneka Ogwumike finishing inside, Marissa Coleman came off the bench and started nailing jumpers, while all the Mystics could offer were bricks from the perimeter. LA took control.

 

  • The silver lining in Parker’s injury for LA could be the extra responsibility it places on Ogwumike to step up. While she’s put together solid numbers, she has a tendency to fade into the background in many games while Parker and the perimeter stars dominate the ball. With Parker out she can be more of a focus for the offense, remind everyone – including herself – what she can do, and then hopefully keep that rolling after Parker returns.

 

  • Washington made a bit of a run in the second quarter to get themselves back into the contest, but there were still too many turnovers, too much one-on-one play, and too many jumpers being fired up. The home commentators were happy about how high a percentage of their scoring was coming in the paint – but that was because they weren’t getting to the line and they weren’t making any jump shots. When that happens, virtually all your points have to come in the paint. There’s no other way to score. LA led 33-26 at halftime.

 

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