WASHINGTON (AP) — Sonia Citron scored 21 points, Kiki Iriafen had 16 points and 15 rebounds, and the playoff-bound Washington Mystics beat the Chicago Sky 101-93 in their regular-season finale on Thursday night.
Washington (27-17) earned the No. 5 seed and a first-round matchup with fourth-seeded Atlanta when the playoffs open Sunday. Indiana (27-17) fell to No. 6 after losing the season series with the Mystics and will play the No. 3 seed, either defending champion Las Vegas or Golden State, in the best-of-three opening round.
Chicago (16-28) fell behind quickly and trailed by 25 in the fourth quarter before getting within 95-91 on Courtney Vandersloot's four-point play and layup with a minute left. Citron ended the threat when she fed Iriafen for a bucket with 39 seconds to play.
Washington won seven of eight games down the stretch and 16 of its last 19, going 3-0 against Chicago. Michaela Onyenwere also had 16 points, Georgia Amoore had 14 and Cotie McMahon 12 off the bench. Shakira Austin had 11 rebounds as the Mystics had a 44-27 advantage on the boards.
Vandersloot, Kamila Cardoso and Sydney Taylor each had 16 for Chicago.
The Mystics shot 60%, with two 3-pointers, and Chicago went 0 for 9 from behind the arc to fall behind 31-16 after one quarter. Washington pushed the lead to 20 in the second quarter and led 52-34 at the half.
Chicago kept pace in the third quarter but went into the fourth down 79-60.
No. 1 overall NBA draft pick AJ Dybantsa of the Washington Wizards was courtside, along with All-Star point guard Trae Young.
Up next
Chicago: Season over.
Washington: The Mystics play Sunday in the first round of the playoffs, their first appearance in the post season since 2023.
___
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
The Associated Press
