Both teams shot 50 percent, but the Washington Mystics had 18 more possessions than the Chicago Sky, leading to a 103-85 home win in DC on Wednesday night.
It's safe to say this is a tough matchup for Chicago and has been for some time now. The win marks the eighth consecutive win for the Mystics over the Sky and the last time they lost dates back to July 1st, 2016.
A dominant second quarter for the Mystics set the tone for the remainder of the game as they outscored the Sky 30-17. In a balanced offensive showing, the Mystics finished with five players in double figures with Kristi Tolliver leading the way with 19 points. Elena Delle Donne, Natasha Cloud and Emma Meesseman all added 12 while Ariel Atkins chipped in 11.
The offensive output for the Mystics marks their highest scoring total in this young season and the first time they've broken 100 points this year. (With many more to come, I would imagine.)
Givin' & goin' pic.twitter.com/89QxCYIN5p
— Washington Mystics (@WashMystics) June 6, 2019
"We were passing the ball terrific, we were shooting the ball well," said Mystics head coach Mike Thibault following the game. "I thought we had some lapses of time. Defensively, they are a good shooting team and we have a few lapses where we allowed them to shoot 50 percent, but you know we've got a lot of things we talked about. I'm happy. We had five people in double figures again, everybody involved."
The Mystic's bench outscored the Sky's 43-30. That depth and involvement will only aid down the road for this highly talented squad looking for a WNBA championship.
Chicago was led by Diamond DeShields who finished with a game-high 24 points on 9-for-15 shooting from the field and 3-for-7 from the 3-point line. Jantel Lavender added 15 in a balanced Chicago offensive attack. For the game, Chicago shot 50-percent from the field with five players in double figures as well.
The issue for Chicago isn't the offensive production, but turnovers. The Mystics did a great job of capitalized on 17 Sky turnovers which aided in all those extra possessions. Turnovers have remained one of the biggest issues for the Sky in recent years. "That was it, too many turnovers and not valuing the ball," said Sky head coach James Wade. "That has been a constant issue. I think it has to be more important to us, but it's tough. We just have to value the ball a little bit more."
The Chicago Sky fall to 1-2 on the season so far. They host the Seattle Storm this Sunday at 6:00 pm EST.
Washington is now 2-1 on the season with their win. Next up, they travel to New York to take on the Liberty this Friday at 7:30 pm EST.
