After suffering a 97-85 defeat to the Seattle Storm on Sunday, the Washington Mystics bounced back on Wednesday night with a 78-64 win to improve to 3-3 on the season.
The Mystics led 28-20 after the first quarter behind Michaela Onyenwere’s 11 points on 3-for-4 shooting from 3-point range. Shakira Austin added 10 more on 4-for-5 FG as Washington took an eight-point advantage into the second frame.
Washington’s defense starred in the second quarter, holding Seattle to just five points through the frame’s
first eight minutes and nine across the entire quarter. Austin’s 14 points and seven rebounds paced the Mystics as they took a 48-29 lead into halftime.
Seattle responded with an 8-0 burst out of the break before Kiki Iriafen’s fourth bucket of the contest put Washington ahead by 13. After a cold opening 20 minutes, Sonia Citron scored seven points — including a deep triple — to extend Washington’s lead to 18.
Washington forced 11 turnovers and held Seattle to a lackluster 36% FG through three quarters to take a 66-45 lead into the final frame.
Austin’s dominance continued as she finished with a game-high 18 points, 13 rebounds and five assists on 6-for-12 FG. Iriafen and Onyenwere combined for 27 points as the Mystics left Seattle with a resounding victory.
