Recap: Mystics lead Aces at halftime in suspended game

Friday’s highly-anticipated game between the Washington Mystics and Las Vegas Aces was cut short at the half for precautionary reasons, as a 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit about 200 miles west of Las Vegas. At the time of suspension, the Mystics were leading 51-36.

Heading into the game, Washington had won five straight and was at the top of the WNBA standings, while Las Vegas was just a game and a half back. The seeding implications made this game a must-watch, as well as the potential revenge factor; it was just a couple weeks ago that the Mystics beat the Aces by 23 points.

For the first half, though, it was much of the same. Washington used a 30-18 first quarter (highlighted by a 19-2 run) to jump out to an early lead, forcing two Las Vegas timeouts in the frame and putting the Aces on their heels. The Mystics won the second quarter as well, 21-18. Their leading scorer at the half was LaToya Sanders, who recorded 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting. Elena Delle Donne and Kristi Toliver scored eight points apiece, while Liz Cambage led the Aces with 12 points.

Before the Aces could regroup at the half, Mother Nature had other ideas:

The effects of the earthquake extended halftime considerably before the WNBA made the call to suspend the game. Here’s the official statement, courtesy of the WNBA Twitter account:

Obviously, we’ll have to wait to see what the league decides. Washington clearly had the upper hand in this one when the game was called, so the suspension could have been a blessing in disguise for the Aces.