Mystics-Sky Preview

By PAUL DIGIACOMO
Posted Sep 21 2012 10:54PM

The Chicago Sky will head into another offseason thinking about what went wrong in their quest to reach the playoffs for the first time.

The Washington Mystics have even bigger problems facing them over the next eight months.

Two days after being eliminated from postseason contention, Chicago hosts the WNBA-worst Mystics on Saturday night in the season finale for both teams.

The Sky (13-20) were in a tight battle with New York for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but a slump down the stretch cost them.

Chicago lost for the third time in four games Thursday night, 75-66 at home to Atlanta, and was eliminated from the playoff race because it needed to win its last two games and have the Liberty lose their final two.

New York did fall 78-66 at lowly Tulsa on Thursday night but secured the final postseason berth because it owns the second tiebreaker over Chicago with a better conference record.

"I think the biggest lesson is trying to help with creating a sense of urgency all the time," coach and general manager Pokey Chatman said. "They're pros. They know what's going on. We need to find a way to give the players the confidence to want the ball in their hands."

Chicago, completing its seventh season in the WNBA without ever appearing in the playoffs, was short-handed over the final two weeks with Olympic center Sylvia Fowles missing six straight games with a calf strain.

Second on the Sky with 16.2 points per game and averaging team bests of 10.4 rebounds and 1.2 blocks, Fowles will also miss the finale.

This is will be the last game for Chicago point guard Ticha Penicheiro, who announced her retirement this week. The 15-year veteran is the league's all-time assists leader with 2,597.

"I would just like to thank, in a general way, the people involved in my career: from my coaches to my teammates to the WNBA and of course the fans," she said. "Basketball has given me more than I could ever imagine, and I will continue to give back and stay close to this amazing sport."

Chicago won the first two meetings with Washington this season before losing 75-71 in overtime in the nation's capital Aug. 19. That was the last win for the Mystics and one of five in 2012 to go along with their 28 losses.

A victory Saturday would match Washington's 6-28 record from last season and also end a franchise-record 12-game skid. The Mystics set that mark Friday night, getting held to their fewest points this season in a 66-53 home loss to Indiana as leading scorer Crystal Langhorne sat out with a left foot strain.

"We're taking this whole season and trying to learn from it, that's why you haven't seen us really give up toward the end," guard Jasmine Thomas said. "We're still trying to win games."

Sky close season with 77-58 win over Mystics

Posted Sep 23 2012 12:16AM

ROSEMONT, Ill. (AP) Courtney Vandersloot scored 20 points to help the Chicago Sky beat Washington 77-58 on Saturday night, handing the last-place Mystics their 13th straight loss.

Epiphanny Prince added 12 points for the Sky (14-20), who had a season-low 23 points in the first half and a season-high 54 in the second half. Swin Cash and Sonja Petrovic added 10 points each.

``We wanted to see the third quarter as a new start and forget that first quarter,'' Vandersloot said.

Sky center Carolyn Swords agreed, adding the team wasn't worried after the poor first half.

``I think we knew that everything going on was in our control and if we just focused on one pass at a time we'd be in good shape,'' Swords said.

Veteran point guard Ticha Penicheiro was scoreless with two assists in about 11 minutes in the final game of her 15-year career. Penicheiro, the league's all-time leader in assists and No. 2 in steals, spent 12 season with Sacramento and two with Los Angeles before joining Chicago this season.

``I only played here this year, but the way the fans embraced my retirement made me feel really humble,'' Penicheiro said. ``Everyone worked really hard to make it all right, and to see me off in a good way. It was an amazing ceremony. I was trying not to cry. .. I don't think it has truly hit me yet. It feels like this has been a dream and not really happening.''

Chicago was without Olympic center Sylvia Fowles (strained calf).

Monique Currie scored 15 points and Jasmine Thomas had 12 for the Mystics (5-29), who finished one game worse than last season. Washington's .147 winning percent was the second-worst in franchise history, only better than the .100 (3-27) in its inaugural season in 1998.

``Our biggest lesson is how to overcome adversity,'' Mystics coach and general manager Trudi Lacey said. ``I think they were a courageous group with big hearts. They persevered through injuries and tough losses.''

The Mystics, who last won Aug. 19 in overtime at home against Chicago, were without leading scorer Crystal Langhorne (foot).

Currie scored 11 points in the first half to help the Mystics take a 28-23 lead at the break.

``I felt like we always fought hard,'' Currie said. ``We may not have fought smart all the time, but we continued to work individually and hope that we take this time off to ourselves and get better as a team.''

• Mystics: --
• Sky: --

• Mystics: --
• Sky: --

• Lead Changes: 4
• Times Tied: 3

• Arena: Allstate Arena, Rosemont, IL
• Officials: #8 Daryl Humphrey, #9 Denise Brooks, #11 Lauren Holtkamp
• Attendance: 6721
• Duration: 1:51