Mystics beat Fever 93-77 to close within a game of fifth place

The Washington Mystics beat the Indiana Fever 93-77 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Sunday afternoon, never trailing and never allowing a tie, and moved within a game of fifth place in the WNBA standings with two regular-season games left. The crowd was 17,274.

The Mystics are 26-16 and now trail the Fever, who are 27-15, by one game. Washington is level on record with the New York Liberty and the Dallas Wings. Indiana is one game behind the Atlanta Dream, who are 28-14. The standings reflect games completed through Sunday afternoon.

How the game went

Georgia Amoore scored the game's first points on a 26-foot three, set up by Sonia Citron, and Washington was in front from there. The Mystics led 34-19 after the first quarter and 51-30 at halftime. Their biggest lead was 26 points, 51-25 with 43 seconds left in the second quarter, and the Fever made up only five of those points before the break.

Indiana won the third quarter 31-26 and the game's second half 47-42, but it was never a real threat. Washington led 77-61 going into the fourth quarter, and the closest the Fever got in the period was 14 points, at 77-63 with 9:41 to play. Washington had the last word too. With 1:52 left Kelsey Mitchell made a one-foot shot off an Aliyah Boston assist, but Angela Dugalic answered at 1:28 with a 10-foot jumper off a Lauren Betts pass, and the 16-point margin held.

The numbers

Washington shot 57% (37 of 65), made 9 of 18 threes and had 27 assists to Indiana's 13. Indiana shot 37% (26 of 71) and made 6 of 28 threes, 21%. The Mystics scored 50 points in the paint to the Fever's 38, out-rebounded them 37-30 and turned the ball over four more times, 16 to 12. Indiana had the edge at the free-throw line, 19 of 21 to 10 of 15, and in fast-break points, 17-7. Indiana's bench scored eight points to Washington's 19.

Caitlin Clark scored 25 points for the Fever. She made all 10 of her free throws and shot 6 of 20 from the field and 3 of 10 from three-point range, with five assists and five turnovers, and Indiana was outscored by 14 in her 34 minutes. Mitchell added 22 points on 8-of-20 shooting, and the two guards were a combined 14 of 40 from the field. Makayla Timpson made all four of her shots and scored 13 with seven rebounds and three steals. Boston played 19 minutes, picked up five fouls and scored seven points.

For Washington, Kiki Iriafen had 21 points and 14 rebounds, six of them offensive, making 9 of 13 shots. Shakira Austin scored 20 on 7-of-13 shooting, making six of eight free throws, and had 10 rebounds and five assists. Citron finished with 16 points and 10 assists, and Amoore scored 11 on 4-of-6 shooting with three threes. Betts scored five points but had three steals and two blocks in 24 minutes. Alicia Florez came off the bench for six points and three assists, and Washington outscored Indiana by 16 in her 15 minutes.

Scoring.

Washington: Kiki Iriafen 21, Shakira Austin 20, Sonia Citron 16, Georgia Amoore 11, Michaela Onyenwere 6, Alicia Florez 6, Lauren Betts 5, Betnijah Laney-Hamilton 3, Cotie McMahon 3, Angela Dugalic 2.

Indiana: Caitlin Clark 25, Kelsey Mitchell 22, Makayla Timpson 13, Aliyah Boston 7, Raven Johnson 6, Lexie Hull 2, Myisha Hines-Allen 2.

By quarter: Washington 34, 17, 26, 16. Indiana 19, 11, 31, 16.

What is next

Washington hosts the Connecticut Sun (10-32) on Tuesday, September 22, and the Chicago Sky (15-27) on Thursday, September 24. Indiana hosts the Minnesota Lynx, who have the league's best record at 32-10, on Tuesday, September 22, and plays them again in Minnesota on Thursday, September 24.