Story By: Erin Zollars
Photos By: Sol Tucker
Washington, D.C–
If the Mystics were dealt a hand of cards in Vegas, their early luck may have emptied the chips off the table. Just like some pros in Vegas, once down, a good run will get your right back in the game. This is exactly what happened during the fourth quarter of the Mystics 75-70 victory over the Las Vegas Aces tonight at Capital One Arena.
The Mystics relied heavily on a mixed effort by other players than Elena Delle Donne, who led the charge with 23 points and 11 rebounds in the game.
The big difference in the game tonight came when Ariel Atkins, the Mystics rookie, stole the ball late in the fourth quarter and make a lay-up giving the Mystics a 67-65 lead. Kristi Toliver would chip in with a baseline jumper on the next play and then Delle Donne came up with a huge block and suddenly the Mystics had formed a 4 point lead.
Las Vegas would cut the lead to 73-70 with under 1:00 remaining, but would not make a bucket in the final minutes as the Mystics were able to convert from the line to secure the victory and take them to 2-0 on the young season.
“We have to play so much better,” Delle Donne said. “We cab play much better. We came out really slow, but that shows we’re a pretty great team to be able to come back from a deficit like that, so kind of draw confidence from that but know we need to play better.”
Las Vegas also played without star Kelsey Plum who is on the WNBA suspended list as she is still playing overseas and will join the team pending a physical.