Mystics vs. Aces final score: Washington unable to hold on to lead in 88-77 loss

If there is one story that will define the Washington Mystics in the 2024 WNBA season, it’s that they can play any team pretty closely from start to finish. The tough part is that the Mystics until very recently lose nearly every single time.

And yeah, they lost today to the Las Vegas Aces, the two-time defending champions, 88-77 earlier today.

Don’t let the score fool in this one. The Mystics lost by double digits in the final score, but they were ahead for most of this game, including early in the fourth quarter. Washington also led 69-67 heading into the fourth quarter, kept the rebounding battle quite event, and led in team assists. I was happy to see that Stefanie Dolson and Myisha Hines-Allen combined to score 33 of their 37 points in the first three quarters. Their three point shooting game was also strong with Dolson making 5-of-6 long range shots in that period alone.

That said, Hines-Allen was scoreless in the fourth quarter, but she scored 14 points. Dolson scored 4 more points to get 23 total points for the game. But Washington shot just 4-of-13 from the field for 8 total points. They didn’t attempt a single free throw.

Las Vegas wasn’t on fire from the three point line today, only going 9-of-25 overall (and they made no three pointers in the fourth quarter. However, they shot 8-of-15 overall with a relatively even team effort to regain and maintain the lead.

Jackie Young led the Aces with 26 points while Chelsea Gray added 22. For Washington, Julie Vanloo had a near double-double with 8 points and 8 assists, while Ariel Atkins added 13 points.

The Mystics now head off for a four-game West Coast road trip in July. First up will be the Los Angeles Sparks on Tuesday. Tip-off is at 10 p.m. ET. See you then.