A Second Victory to Start With

Mystics 77, Dream 71

A season ago, a double-digit deficit at the conclusion of the first quarter would have been enough to write off the Washington Mystics for the rest of the game. But in their home opener yesterday, these Mystics refused to fold.

After a sluggish opening, with nine missed shots and no field goals halfway through the first quarter, Washington rattled off a 30-point second quarter, fueled by six three-pointers, to erase the deficit, take a lead it would not relinquish and capture a 77-71 win over the Atlanta Dream for the first 2-0 start franchise history.

"The great thing about [the slow start] is no one got rattled," said Alana Beard, who scored a game-high 27 points. "We kept our poise. Matee Ajavon and Marissa Coleman came in off the bench and gave us so much energy. They were the ones that really turned the game around."

After strutting out on a catwalk to introduce themselves to the 11,759 fans at Verizon Center, the new Mystics had little additional fanfare for the opening 10 minutes. They registered only eight points, forced shots, made a dismal 3 of 18 field-goal attempts, were outrebounded and looked eerily similar to the team they were last year. There was a silver lining though, as the Mystics created opportunities off turnovers. They just couldn't find the basket.

"I thought we settled for a lot of outside shots," Coach Julie Plank said. "We weren't hitting."

With the team down 22-8 and searching for a spark, the trio of Ajavon, Coleman and Tasha Humphrey came off the bench in the second quarter. Atlanta (1-1) had been double teaming the Mystics post players, so Washington changed it up and began kicking the ball out looking for chances behind the arc.

The Dream hardly had any chance to respond to the changes before Ajavon and Humphrey each recorded two three-point field goals and led the Mystics on a 19-4 run at the start of the quarter that culminated with two free throws by Nakia Sanford that gave Washington a 27-26 lead with 4 minutes 23 seconds remaining in the quarter. Of the Mystics' 30 points scored in that furious second quarter, 24 came from bench players -- all of whom have no more than one year of WNBA experience.

"That quarter just set the tone for the rest of the game," said Coleman, who recorded two three-pointers and seven of her nine points in the second quarter. "Our depth is exciting. I'm not sure how many other teams in the WNBA can match that coming off the bench. We essentially have a whole other starting five coming off the bench."

By halftime, Washington had a 38-30 lead and came out in the second half ready to make Atlanta, who had played a double-overtime game the night before, run even more. The Mystics forced Atlanta into 25 turnovers and used their speed advantage in transition to exploit the Dream's lumbering lineup for a 17-6 advantage in fast-break points.

No player appeared more energized late in the game than Beard, who sparked Washington's offense with a 21-point showing in the second half. The Mystics' franchise player showed a swagger on the court that had been missing in past seasons, as she drove to the basket with authority and forced Atlanta to foul her or let her score.

She had enjoyed watching her younger teammates torment the Dream in previous quarters, but, perhaps most importantly, she was rejuvenated by learning she doesn't need to win a game by herself.

"[The starters] don't feel that pressure to be in the game," Beard said. "Anybody can come in and score on any given night. I think we have 10 legitimate scorers and that's the beauty of this team. I don't have to put a lot of pressure on myself or feel like I've got to carry the load every single night."

Note: Dream forward Chamique Holdsclaw, who was selected by the Mystics with the No. 1 pick in 1999, became the ninth player in WNBA history to score 4,000 points when she made the second of two free throws 1:46 into the game.