Mystics use late run to beat Dream

By Pierce W. Huff

For the AJC

Dressed in pink uniforms as part of their partnership with the Avon Breast Health Center at Grady and playing in front of their second largest crowd of the season (9,072), the Dream missed a great opportunity to add to their lead in the Eastern Conference standings on Tuesday.

The Washington Mystics, playing fun, carefree basketball, outrebounded and outhustled and used a key fourth-quarter run to defeat the Dream 86-78 at Philips Arena.

The Dream (18-10) remain in first place in the Eastern Conference, but now they lead two teams (Washington and Indiana) by one game and one team (New York) by two.

Washington (16-10) has a three-game winning streak. Indiana (16-10), which lost to New York 82-72 on Tuesday, plays host to the Dream on Friday. New York (15-11) has a four-game winning streak.

“We’re always looking back over our shoulder because the East is so tough," Dream coach Marynell Meadors said.

Washington is the first team other than the Chicago Sky (twice) to defeat the Dream at home this season. The Dream have a 10-3 home record.

"We’ve got to get the home games. It’s tough on the road," said Dream forward Angel McCoughtry, who scored 30 points.

Trailing 64-58 with 5:58 remaining, the Mystics regained their composure and took control of the game. Washington completed a 12-0 run when Chasity Melvin made a layup to make the score 70-64 with 2:51 left.

"Our defense was not up to par tonight," Meadors said. "It was not good."

The Mystics began the game with an 11-4 run that ended on a layup by Crystal Langhorne. Washington led 19-14 at the end of the quarter.

But the big news of the quarter came when power forward Sancho Lyttle, who is third in the WNBA in rebounding (10 per game), picked up her second personal foul and was replaced by Yelena Leuchanka. Lyttle finished the first half with three fouls.

The absence of Lyttle forced the Dream to rely on team rebounding, which slowed their fast break and forced them to rely on their half-court offense.

"She is just a terrific player, and we can’t afford to have her in foul trouble," Meadors said. "We’ve got to have her on the floor."

The Mystics’ Matee Ajavon made a layup to give her team a 30-22 lead with 4:51 remaining in the first half.

Washington led 39-31 at halftime. The Mystics had a 22-17 edge in rebounding and a 9-3 edge in fast-break points in the first half. Washington also shot 46.9 percent (15-of-32) from the field. The Dream shot 31.6 percent (12-of-38) from the field.