Just days after registering an emphatic overtime win over the Indiana Fever, the Washington Mystics were reminded just how unforgiving the league can be. Hoping to build on that momentum against the Dallas Wings, the Mystics instead suffered their biggest defeat of the season in a crushing 92-69 blowout loss. And it didn’t take long for one Washington player to point out the reasons behind the disastrous performance.

Speaking at the postgame press conference, Shakira Austin clearly pointed to the Washington Mystics’ turnover issues and lack of cohesion as the biggest reasons behind the disastrous loss.

“I mean we were just giving them the ball,” Austin said. “So, turning the ball over allows them to have extra possessions. I think the coach said they had a total of 80 shots compared to our 40 or 50. So, you know, having that first quarter start just kind of set us back, and I don’t think we ever matched the intensity or punched back.”

“We’re an inside-out team, and we’ve had success with that. But today and last year, we’ve also seen a lot of times where teams packed the paint, and teams helped off other players with double teams. I think we didn’t have enough recognition of what to do or where to go. So, we just got to get back to practice and get on the same page. I think we just were never really in sync when it came to that,” Austin further added.

The opening quarter was an absolute disaster for the Washington Mystics. Outside of a couple of baskets from Kiki Iriafen and Austin, the offense looked completely out of rhythm. Their turnover issues only made matters worse, as careless giveaways piled up throughout the opening 10 minutes and allowed Dallas to seize complete control early on.

Dallas put together a dominant opening quarter and built a 10-point lead early. From that moment on, the Washington Mystics were stuck playing catch-up for the rest of the night. To their credit, Shakira Austin and co. showed signs of life in the second quarter, outscoring Dallas 20-19 in the second quarter. But early in the third quarter, Bueckers pulled the strings back to extend the lead.

The Wings guard scored 5 points and dished out 3 assists to take a 20-point lead going into the fourth quarter, diminishing almost every bit of hope for the Mystics to leave Dallas with a win.

The Washington Mystics also struggled badly on the defensive end, allowing the Wings to attempt 70 shots while committing 19 turnovers that led to 23 Dallas points. They were also outrebounded 31-24 in the paint, which is a major concern for a team featuring the likes of Iriafen, Lauren Betts, and Austin. Mystics head coach Sydney Johnson echoed similar concerns during the postgame press conference.

“I think turnovers really hurt us,” Johnson said. “I think we had 6 in the first quarter and 18 for the game. So, just not giving ourselves enough opportunities to kind of show what we can do, and get good shots.”

Paige Bueckers’ team, on the other hand, nailed almost every metric of the game. They played tightly with the ball, committing only 9 turnovers and allowing only 11 points off them. Bueckers led the night for them with a team-high 18 points and 7 assists, but she wasn’t the only Wings player who punished the Mystics throughout the night.

Arike Ogunbowale chipped in with 16. The team’s No. 1 draft pick, Azzi Fudd, recorded her first double figures in points with 12. Offensively, the Wings were pretty solid. But for Bueckers, there was a different aspect of her team that appealed to her even more from the Mystics game.

Paige Bueckers Points Towards Her Team’s Approach as the Main Crux Behind the Washington Win

Coming off consecutive losses against Atlanta and Minnesota, the Wings were under immense pressure to return to winning ways. Furthermore, after the last defeat, head coach Jose Fernandez had called the team selfish for not moving the ball the way he would have liked against the Lynx.

Thus, the Washington Mystics game was a chance at redemption for Paige Bueckers and the team. And as reality set in, they did exactly that. The team showcased immaculate efficiency while moving the ball, as reflected in the team’s 30 assists on the night.

“It felt really good,” Bueckers said in an on-court interview after the win. “It started when we set the tone of the jump. Defensively, we held them to a 9-point first quarter. And after that we just wanted to dig in and get stops. We played selflessly tonight. And we scored 92 points. We moved the ball really well…It was a really good response from our team.”

Notably, this was also one of the best defensive performances by the Dallas Wings in the season. After all, limiting the Mystics team that has players like  Austin,  Iriafen, Betts, and Sonia Citron to just 69 on the board isn’t easy.

Avoiding unnecessary fouls remains an issue for the team. Even in a blowout win, the team gave away 20 fouls. It’s an area the team will need to take far more seriously moving forward, especially because mistakes like these can easily cost them in close games. With this home win, Paige Bueckers and the team conclude their three-game stretch at the College Park Center.

They will be on the road for the next three games now. The stretch begins with a game against the Chicago Sky at the Wintrust Arena on May 20. And it will be followed by games against the Atlanta Dream and the New York Liberty.