Mystics Must Be Aggressive

'Inside Game's Got to Pick Up'

Sacramento's Lady Grooms snatches rebound from Washington's Coco Miller recently. Poor rebounding, few trips to foul line have hurt Mystics. (Kevin Clark -- The Washington Post)

For nearly all of the season, and especially in their most recent game, the Washington Mystics have showed a lack of what Coach Marianne Stanley calls "interior aggressiveness."

"Our inside game's got to pick up offensively," she said while hoping it would improve with power forward Chamique Holdsclaw returning for at least limited action today against the Minnesota Lynx at MCI Center. "We've got to get some points on free throws, some points on put-backs. We're not being aggressive enough . . . and [the perimeter players] also have to attack the rim more."

Holdsclaw, the Mystics' leading scorer and rebounder, will play today but not start after missing five of the last seven games with a right hamstring injury. She practiced yesterday for the first time since re-injuring the hamstring nine days ago and missing Tuesday's home loss to the Connecticut Sun.

Stanley said Holdsclaw's minutes would be determined by how the hamstring responds. Holdsclaw said "30 minutes" seemed possible. Asjha Jones will open at Holdsclaw's power forward spot. Stanley said the other starting lineup changes she made against the Sun -- rookie Aiysha Smith at center and Murriel Page moving from center and replacing Stacey Dales-Schuman at small forward -- would continue.

Whatever the lineup, Stanley has made improved front-court play a point of emphasis.

Free throws are a measure of aggressiveness. Many coaches try to have their teams make at least as many foul shots as their opponents attempt. In falling three games behind the next-to-last-place team in the WNBA's Eastern Conference, the Mystics (2-8) are 125 shy of that. They have not even taken as many foul shots as their opponents, averaging 8.6 fewer per game.

Never was that more dramatic than in the 65-63 loss Tuesday to the Sun at MCI Center, a game decided in the final second on a three-foot bank shot by Taj McWilliams-Franklin after Coco Miller had tied the score with two three-point shots. The Mystics got to the foul line once over the entire 40 minutes, with Jones going 2 for 2. The Sun was 11 for 14.

Only once all season have the Mystics shot more free throws than the opposition, 19 days ago during a home victory over the San Antonio Silver Stars. They even achieved that aggressiveness goal every coach wants that night, making 18 (of 30) free throws while the Silver Stars tried just 16.

Otherwise, the negative imbalance has been sharp. And it's even worse without Holdsclaw, who has made all 18 of the foul shots she has tried over five games.

Without Holdsclaw, the Mystics also lack rebounding punch. And when they do snatch an offensive rebound, they do not get enough put-backs and foul shots to satisfy Stanley or the players.

"We've got to make that extra effort [on follow-up shots] to make contact," said Page. "Sometimes we're [falling away from the basket] and the refs won't give us the call. We have to get a better base [with their feet], just not throw it up there."

In many ways, the switches Stanley made against the Sun were effective. Page had 12 rebounds. Jones had 12 points and three assists, Smith had nine points and six rebounds and Dales-Schuman had 10 points as a reserve.

At 6 feet 2 and 173 pounds, Smith is more suited to power forward than center in the WNBA. But she played both positions at LSU and seems more able to carry her comfortable level during practice into games.

"I wasn't sure how physical you could be," she said. "It turns out you can be a lot more physical than in college."