Mystics-Shock Preview

By NOEY KUPCHAN
Posted Jul 07 2012 1:37PM

Sitting at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, the Washington Mystics appear to be reaching their wits' end. Frustration is surely taking a toll on the WNBA-worst Tulsa Shock as well.

The Mystics try for their first road win of the year and a sweep of the Shock on Sunday.

Five days after snapping a season-high five-game losing streak with a 90-77 win over Phoenix, Washington (3-11) saw its struggles resume in a 78-73 defeat to San Antonio on Friday. Monique Currie had a team-high 15 points while Crystal Langhorne scored 13, but the Mystics were done in by the Silver Stars' 17-4 run in the third quarter.

"It's very frustrating. I'm not used to losing," said veteran center Michelle Snow, who signed with Washington during the offseason.

"You just want to scream, you want to blow up, you want to fight, whatever it takes to wake everybody up. Honestly, a change is going to come. You can be part of that change here or you'll just be part of that rotation (leaving town). That's the way any job is."

While the Mystics' 3-6 home record leaves much to be desired, it looks good compared to their road efforts. Washington is 0-5 away from home and has lost 14 straight there overall.

A matchup with Tulsa (2-13) could be just what the Mystics need to put those woes behind them. The Shock have dropped seven of nine on their own court, giving them the worst home mark in the league.

Tulsa is coming off back-to-back double-digit losses at Bank of Oklahoma Center, falling 86-75 to Connecticut on Friday in its most recent game.

Shooting a league-low 38.8 percent from the floor, the Shock were limited to 21.1 percent and outscored 25-10 in the first quarter.

"That really was the difference, the slow start," coach Gary Kloppenburg said. "We're just not good enough to have lapses like that."

Averaging a team-high 14.1 points, Ivory Latta was the lone bright spot for Tulsa, scoring 24 and going 9 of 14 from the floor.

Latta had 16 points but was the only Shock player to score in double figures in a 64-61 loss at Washington on May 26 - Tulsa's sixth defeat in eight meetings in the series.

Though the Mystics have dominated the Shock of late, they were handed a 77-59 defeat in their last visit to Tulsa on June 18, 2011. Latta scored 22 points and helped limit Washington to 33.8 percent shooting.

Shock earn 3rd victory with win over Mystics

Posted Jul 08 2012 6:50PM

TULSA, Okla. (AP) Ivory Latta had 18 points to lead a balanced scoring attack and the Tulsa Shock used a strong second half and earned a 78-62 victory over the Washington Mystics on Sunday.

The 62 points were the fewest scored by a Shock opponent this season.

``I was very pleased with our effort. We have been wanting to sustain our effort for 40 minutes and I thought we did that tonight,'' Tulsa coach Gary Kloppenburg said.

``We wanted to go after them on defense and we made them make tough shots throughout the game. That's the effort we need every night to give ourselves a chance to win.''

Leading 43-40 with 3:30 left in the third quarter, Tulsa (3-13) finished the period on a 14-8 run to match its biggest lead of the game at 57-48.

Riquana Williams opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer to push the lead to 60-48 and Washington (3-12) would get no closer than 10 points the rest of the game.

``We knew they would pressure us and our turnovers led to easy baskets for them,'' Washington coach Trudi Lacey said.

``Late in the game, we were trying to be aggressive and get to the free-throw line, but it wasn't enough.''

Temeka Johnson had 17 points for the Shock and Glory Johnson added 16, despite leaving the game with 7:55 remaining after a flagrant foul by Washington's Monique Currie on a layup attempt.

In a first half filled with runs, Tulsa grabbed its largest lead of the opening half with a 9-0 burst to take a 34-25 lead and force a Washington timeout with 2:51 left before halftime.

Latta started the run with a 3-pointer and later added a steal and layup, one of Washington's 13 first-half turnovers.

``We gave them too many points tonight,'' Lacey said. ``The second-chance opportunities really hurt us.''

The Mystics closed the half with a three-point play from Crystal Langhorne to pull within 36-30 at the half.

Langhorne finished as Washington's leading scorer with 13 points.

• Mystics: --
• Shock: --

• Mystics: Ajavon
• Shock: --

• Lead Changes: 5
• Times Tied: 3

• Arena: BOK Center, Tulsa, OK
• Officials: #37 Matthew Myers, #35 Billy Smith, #38 Lamont Simpson
• Attendance: 4003
• Duration: 1:55