SerpApi.Org
Georgia Amoore’s 7-word mic drop after Mystics knocks off Aces appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Rebuilding squads aren’t supposed to win two straight games against top-three teams in the league, but the Washington Mystics are on a different wavelength. They beat the third-seed Las Vegas Aces 100-99 at home on Wednesday after beating the second-seed Golden State Valkyries 90-82 in San Francisco on Monday, and they’re now eighth at 14-12 heading into the All-Star break.
Point guard Georgia Amoore didn’t hold back after the Aces game, via 7News DC’s Jade Lawson.
“We are who we think we are,” the rookie said.
Watch sports LIVE with fuboTV (free trial)
One of the best ways to describe the Mystics is “tough.” They’re the best rebounding squad this season with 37 boards per game, and they won the rebounding battle by a combined total of 69-47 over the last two contests. They’ve also outrebounded their opponents in five straight games, including a 75-56 home loss to the Portland Fire on July 16.
However, Washington is 12th with a 43.7% field goal clip, 14th with a 29% three-point clip and last with 16.8 average turnovers. That’s no surprise for the second-youngest team in WNBA history (per Across the Timeline), but its rebounding and defense gives it a foundation to keep it competitive. It ranks third-best with a 42.7% opponent field goal clip.
Consistently securing possession on defense, keeping possessions alive on offense and containing opposing offenses are all winning qualities. The Mystics are second with 10.2 offensive rebounds per game, and it’s no coincidence that they mostly score inside and at the charity stripe. They lead the league with 51.5% of their points scored in the paint and 22.9% of their points scored on free throws.
Crashing the offensive glass often leads to put-back layups and/or drawn shooting fouls, and being elite at those aspects can mask inefficiency. For example, Washington is 14th with a 73.3% free-throw clip, but leads with 25.2 average free throws attempted and is tied for third with 18.5 made free throws. Basically, the rest of the league is in trouble once this team shoots more efficiently.
At the same time, the Mystics’ rebounding prowess doesn’t always save them. For example, they outrebounded the Fire 45-30 in the aforementioned loss, but shot just 30% from the field and 10% from deep. Portland shot 43% (28% 3-point) and won the turnover battle 20-11.
Head coach Sydney Johnson addressed that postgame.
“Yeah, 20 offensive rebounds. I don’t know if I’ve ever coached a team that’s done that,” he said. “It’s amazing. We played really hard, our players kept going in there and battling off of those extra possessions. Look the turnovers [were an issue], and then conversion. We had 65 field goals, they had 67, and we lost by 20. That’s not normal…We didn’t help ourselves from the field. If that happens, it’s hard to win. The effort, the togetherness, those are the things we wanna make sure we hold to and have a better account of ourselves at Golden State.”
To Johnson’s point, Washington has shot at least 45% in each game since then and is 2-1 over that stretch. The only defeat was a 74-69 loss at Golden State on Saturday, in which it lost the turnover battle 14-8 and had nine fewer attempted free throws.
On Wednesday, the Mystics combined their rebounding acumen with a hot shooting night. They shot 49% from the field (54% 3-point), led by veteran center Shakira Austin (25 points, 10-18 FG) and second-year guard Sonia Citron (7-16 FG, 1-3 3-point). That helped counteract a 38-point (12-16 FG, 2-3 3-point) performance by reigning back-to-back MVP A’ja Wilson, who also tallied seven rebounds, five assists, five stocks (steals and blocks) and just one turnover over 35 minutes for Las Vegas.
That was after the Mystics shot 52% (43% 3-point) against the Valkyries in Monday’s win. Second-year forward Kiki Iriafen led the charge with 23 points (8-12 FG, 1-2 3-point) and Citron added 17 points (5-12 FG, 0-1 3-point).
There’s no telling if Washington will maintain that efficiency, but those games show what the team is capable of.
Sonia Citron holds keys to Mystics’ success
Citron, Iriafen and Austin are undeniably Washington’s top-three players right now. Citron leads the team and is 17th in the league with 17.2 points per game on 46.9% shooting (26.9% 3-point), while Austin leads the team and is tied fourth in the league with 9.5 rebounds. Meanwhile, Iriafen is right behind her with 9.2 boards.
Citron and Iriafen each earned their second All-Star nods in as many seasons this year, and Austin is one the best players who has yet to receive that honor. But now that the Mystics have set this foundation, Citron’s shooting is the next step toward reaching the upper echelon.
Washington is 1-9 when Citron takes 10 or fewer shots and 11-2 when she takes more. It’s also 2-1 when she hasn’t played, as she’s battled knee and foot ailments. Her last absence was during a 62-49 home loss to Golden State on July 6.
Ironically, Citron admitted to ClutchPoints on July 10 that she wants to be selectively aggressive.
“I’d say my pace and knowing when to be aggressive versus when not,” the 22-year-old said when asked what she wants to improve on the most.
While it’s appropriate to settle into games and not force contested shots, the Mystics need her to be an offensive alpha. Austin (15 points per game) and Iriafen (14.8 PPG) are consistent threats inside and are developing three-point shots, but the New York native has more upside as a three-level scorer. She averaged 14.9 points on 47% shooting (44.5% 3-point) as a rookie last season, with 4.1 average attemps from deep. She’s shooting just as much from long range this year, but is now struggling in that area.
Citron has partially made up for that with her two-point efficiency, up to 59.6% after 48.6% last season. If the Notre Dame alum maintains that while also finding her rookie form from downtown after the All-Star break, she’ll be unstoppable. However, that can only happen if she keeps shooting, preferably 11-plus times per game.
Washington is currently 2.5 games ahead of Portland for the eighth and final playoff spot and just a half-game behind the New York Liberty for sixth. That’s an accomplishment at this point in the rebuild, but it might be unimpressive compared to what’s next if Citron gets even better.
Like ClutchPoints’ content? Be sure to follow us.
