‘Donne’ deal: Mystics star’s Durant-like dominance was unreal

Washington, D.C — The Washington Mystics hosted the Seattle Storm in WNBA action at the Verizon Center on Tuesday afternoon.

Although Seattle (6-7, 1-4 away) had a strong start to the season, they haven't been the same team on the road as they are at home.

Washington (9-5, 6-2 at home) was confident they could pull out a win. They had home court advantage, a strong offense and Elena Delle Donne on their side.

“In this league, these teams are too good. If you come out for one second and you relax, that's when a 25-point lead turns into 15 or 16, and now you've got a game,” said Washington center, Krystal Thomas who pulled down 12 boards today. “It was just about coming out, keeping our foot on the gas pedal, keep being aggressive, and competing.”

In Tuesday afternoon’s game, the Mystics proved they were stronger than the Storm. Washington didn’t just win, they dominated in a 100-70 victory over their opponent, marking the second-straight game the team has won by 30-or-more point

“Washington is playing really, really well. We ran into a buzz saw,” stated Seattle’s head coach Jenny Boucek after the loss. “We missed shots we normally make early and they caught fire, and once you give a good offensive team like this that much momentum, it's tough to stop them."

The Mystics shot 32-64 (.500) from the field (tying a season-high field goal percentage), 10-24 (.417) from beyond the arc and 26-29 (.897) from the free throw line on their way to their second 100-point game of the season and the sixth in franchise history.

Delle Donne sealed the deal, with 25-points, just two shy of her season high, making her the high-scorer of the game. The Mystics forward previously won the 2015 WNBA MVP, and she was living up to her MVP title.

The 6’5”, Delaware native was 7-of-10 from the field, her second-highest shooting percentage of the season, 2-4 from three-point range and 9-9 from the free throw line. It’s reminiscent of the type of play, that most saw from DC native Kevin Durant in the NBA Finals.

Efficiency at its finest.

‘’Elena [Delle Donne] got 25 points on 10 shots. Obviously, she got to the free throw line, but that’s almost an unheard of statistic,” said Washington head coach Mike Thibault. “We took care of the ball for the most part. That’s a really, really good win.”

Kristi Toliver finished with 14 points for the Mystics, including three triples. Tayler Hill added 14, Tierra Ruffin-Pratt had 11 points and 12 rebounds.

The Mystics are now 1-1 against the Storm this season, having dropped the first of the teams’ three matchups this season, 81-71, on May 21 in Seattle.

The teams will meet for a third and final time in the regular season on Sept. 1 at 7 p.m. at Verizon Center.