Mystics Look to Move Up by Clamping Down

Late in the fourth quarter Saturday night, the Washington Mystics called a timeout and prepared to face a situation they had grown uncomfortably familiar with during recent weeks. Their sizable lead had evaporated, their opponent had tied the score and they had less than four minutes to respond.

Each of their three most recent losses had been decided in the final frame by seven or fewer points, and the Mystics were sick of watching games slip through their fingers.

"Alana [Beard] and I were talking about it earlier that day," center Crystal Langhorne said. "Some of these games we've just been choking at the end. We needed to get stops and be able to close out a game. The ability to get our defensive stops will push us through this home stretch and through the season."

In those final 3 minutes 20 seconds against the Los Angeles Sparks, though, everything clicked. The Mystics displayed an opportunistic scoring ability but perhaps more importantly, they illustrated how well they can dictate the outcome of a game when their defense is in sync.

The Mystics zipped around the court, limiting the Sparks to obstructed jump shots and rushed layups, denying second and third opportunities with an impressive effort on the glass -- Washington outrebounded Los Angeles, 9-3, in the waning moments -- to close out the 75-63 win. By the final buzzer, they had also neutralized WNBA MVP Candace Parker (two points, 1-for-5 shooting) and the league's second-leading career scorer, Tina Thompson (eight points, 2-for-10 shooting).

Now comes the tough part, as Washington (6-5) tries to replicate that defensive tenacity beginning at 11:30 a.m. today when it hosts San Antonio at Verizon Center.

"Something we said at the beginning [of the season] was that we wanted to be known as the best defensive team in the league," point guard Lindsey Harding said. "It's just a matter of having that focus, that emphasis on one more stop. That's been all we've needed in some of these games, just one more stop, so we've really been focusing on just making the next stop."

The greatest asset in the Mystics' quest to become a respected defensive team may be their rebounding. They're fifth in the WNBA, averaging 35.4 per game, up from 33.3 in 2008, and are creating matchup problems for opponents with a plethora of players who like to snare loose balls.

In addition to post players Langhorne (8.2 rebounds per game), Chasity Melvin (6.0) and Nakia Sanford (4.5), guards Monique Currie (4.4), Alana Beard (3.9) and even Harding (3.5) chip in on a regular basis. Down the stretch against the Sparks, four of the five Mystics on the floor recorded at least one rebound.

With an average height just under 6 feet, Washington relies more on its speed and positioning to wrestle rebounds away from opponents, like the Sparks, with a distinct size advantage.

"We're small but I think we're really athletic," said Langhorne, who is third in the league in rebounding. "It's a lot about hustle. We just go and box people out, you have to push them and get around the bigger girls. . . . I'm not a great leaper, I'm not going to out-jump people, I just have to work hard and get those dirty rebounds."