Dream-Mystics Preview

By ALAN FERGUSON
Posted Aug 08 2011 3:56PM

Sancho Lyttle was a key contributor to the Atlanta Dream's run to the WNBA finals in 2010, which began with a series victory over the Washington Mystics. A leave of absence to play overseas and an injury have kept her from having a similar impact for much of this season.

Now back in the starting lineup, Lyttle will try to bolster her team's chances of returning to the playoffs when the Dream face the last-place Mystics on Tuesday night.

A year after winning the Eastern Conference title, the Dream (9-11) have struggled for consistency. That's likely due in part to Lyttle missing 12 games, as she took six contests off to play for Spain in the European championships and sat out another six while recovering from a back injury.

The 6-foot-4, 193-pound Lyttle's physical presence was a big reason why Atlanta earned the first playoff series win in franchise history in 2010, beating Washington. She averaged 15.0 points and 10.0 rebounds in the three games and had 20 points and 10 boards in the clinching victory.

"Sancho is always talking to her teammates and making sure everyone is in their right place," coach Marynell Meadors said. "Sancho is just a great team player and a great player to have."

In Lyttle's first start since June 14, the Dream had one of their best defensive efforts of the season in a rematch of last year's WNBA finals. They forced 29 turnovers - tying a league season high - in a 70-53 victory over Seattle on Sunday.

Atlanta avoided a third straight loss and pulled within percentage points of Chicago for the final East playoff berth.

Angel McCoughtry had a team-best 17 points in her first start after dealing with illness. The league's second-leading scorer at 19.9 points per game had come off the bench in the previous two contests.

McCoughtry averaged a team-best 22.7 points in the playoff series win over Washington and had 33 in an 86-79 win at the Verizon Center on July 20. A knee injury suffered in training camp limited her to three minutes during a 98-90 overtime defeat to the Mystics on June 9.

Washington (4-14) dropped 13 of 15 after that win before beating New York 91-81 on Saturday. Matee Ajavon matched a career-high with 32 points to power her team's second-best scoring performance of the season.

Crystal Langhorne added 20 points and the Mystics made 28 of 29 free-throw attempts while recording their second win over a conference opponent. Langhorne, fourth in the league with 18.4 points a game, had a season-high 30 along with 13 rebounds during the win over Atlanta in June.

"We're focused," Ajavon said. "We've dropped some games, and we just know that it's not over."

The Mystics have won five of the last seven regular-season matchups with the Dream but have dropped two of the previous three meetings at home.

Lyttle's big shot helps Dream drop Mystics 72-70

Posted Aug 10 2011 2:25AM

WASHINGTON (AP) Sancho Lyttle hit a 13-footer with less than a second remaining to give the Atlanta Dream a 72-70 comeback win over the Washington Mystics on Tuesday night.

Angel McCoughtry scored 19 points for Atlanta (10-11), which has now won seven of its last nine. Erika DeSouza added 18 points and 12 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season.

Matee Ajavon scored 17 of her 28 points in the fourth quarter, but couldn't prevent the Mystics from falling to their second last-second loss in three games.

``They did fight hard and probably should've won the game,'' said Atlanta coach Marynell Meadors, whose team entered Tuesday tied with Chicago for the fourth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot. ``But crazy things happen in this league and you never know when your opportunity is going to present itself.''

Crystal Langhorne added 23 points, as Washington (4-15) put together a 19-6 run during the fourth quarter to take a 67-61 lead, only to see Atlanta close the game out on a 11-3 spurt.

Lyttle, in her second game back in the starting lineup after gradually returning from a back injury, hit the game-winner after catching a kickout feed from Armintie Price.

The Mystics had their own chance to take the lead, calling timeout with about nine seconds left, just a fraction before Ajavon lost the handle on the ball. But DeMya Walker was called for a double-dribble while driving the lane on the ensuing possession, setting up Lyttle's game-winner.

``I remember sitting next to (Lyttle) on the bench, with under a minute, saying if you're open, you take your shot,'' said Atlanta point guard Lindsey Harding, who herself missed the entire second half with an injured left hip. ``She took it. She was comfortable, confident, and it went in.''

Price had hit the game-tying layup in transition with 15 seconds left off McCoughtry's steal and assist. The Mystics had a chance to regain the lead after taking a timeout with about nine seconds to play, but DeMya Walker was called for a double dribble while driving the lane.

McCoughtry and Iziane Castro Marques also hit 3-pointers in the final minute, part of a game-winning run that all came after Ajavon's third 3-pointer of the quarter made it 67-61 with 1:49 to play.

``It hurts when you keep losing games like this,'' said Langhorne, whose team also suffered a 61-59 loss at home against Indiana on July 29, thanks to Shannon Bobbitt's buzzer-beating layup. ``I guess it's going to give us a great hunger to win the next one.''

Atlanta leads the season series 2-1, with all three games won by the road team.

• Dream: --
• Mystics: --

• Dream: --
• Mystics: --

• Lead Changes: 11
• Times Tied: 13

• Arena: Verizon Center, Washington, DC
• Officials: #4 Sue Blauch, #34 Maj Forsberg, #48 Marissa Whaley
• Attendance: 9536
• Duration: 2:04