Elena Delle Donne scored a game-high 18 points to lead the visiting Washington Mystics to an 80-59 victory over the Chicago Sky on Thursday.
Delle Donne shot 7 of 14 from the field to go along with eight rebounds and four assists, while Natasha Cloud added 16 points. Ariel Atkins and Shakira Austin finished with 12 and 10 points, respectively, for the Mystics (8-4), who defeated the Sky for the second time in five days.
Brittney Sykes tallied eight points and a game-high 11 rebounds for Washington, which was much more dominant against the Sky (5-8) on Thursday than during its 77-69 win on Sunday.
The Mystics, who have won three straight games, shot 33 of 69 (47.8 percent) from the field, including 6 of 19 (31.6 percent) from 3-point range. Washington outrebounded the Sky 41-30.
Chicago, which has dropped five straight games and seven of its past nine, was led in points (13) and rebounds (eight) by Alanna Smith.
Marina Mabrey added eight points for the Sky, who shot 18 of 61 (29.5 percent) from the field, including a woeful 4 of 17 (23.5 percent) from beyond the arc.
Leading 43-30 at halftime, Washington pushed its advantage to 57-37 on Cloud’s jumper with 2:30 left in the third quarter.
The Sky’s five-game losing streak is their longest since a seven-game skid in 2021. However, they recovered to win their lone WNBA title that season.
The Mystics took control midway through the first quarter.
After Elizabeth Williams’ layup pulled the Sky to within 11-9 with 4:07 left, the Mystics closed the quarter on a 14-0 run to take a 25-9 advantage entering the second quarter.
Delle Donne and Cloud each scored nine points in the first half for Washington, which shot 18 of 44 (40.9 percent) from the field before the break, including 5 of 14 (35.7 percent) from beyond the arc.
Mabrey led Chicago with eight in the half.
The Sky shot 10 of 33 (30.3 percent) from the field prior to halftime, including 3 of 9 (33.3 percent) from distance.
–Field Level Media
