The loss was the Mystics\u2019 eighth straight, dropping them to 16-26 this season. Before this stretch, they hadn\u2019t lost more than four in a row all season, despite being by far the WNBA\u2019s youngest team<\/a> until the trade deadline. In fact, they were hovering near .500 for most of the year and were a surprise contender for a playoff spot<\/a> until an Aug. 30 loss to the Golden State Valkyries \u2014 the sixth in their skid \u2014 eliminated them.<\/p>\n The IX Basketball, a 24\/7\/365 women\u2019s basketball newsroom powered by The Next In some games during the losing streak, the Mystics just couldn\u2019t close quite well enough. Three of the eight games were decided by 6 points or fewer.<\/p>\n In other games, the Mystics didn\u2019t play like themselves for long stretches. For example, they lost two games by double digits to the Connecticut Sun, who were in last place at the time, to begin the streak.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to come in every day and do the same thing over and over and [stay] consistent with it,\u201d point guard Sug Sutton<\/a> told The Next before Thursday\u2019s game. \u201cI think we kind of fell from that \u2026 throughout the season. Some days we weren\u2019t ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n Though the last eight games have all been losses, the differences in how those games have felt have loomed large for the rebuilding Mystics. That\u2019s because they\u2019ve evaluated themselves all season not on results, but on the daily habits that are central to Johnson\u2019s culture. Those habits include playing hard, getting better, communicating, being humble and finding joy.<\/p>\n \u201cThere were a couple games through this stretch that we didn\u2019t like how [they] felt,\u201d Clark told reporters after Thursday\u2019s loss. \u201cAnd even tonight, it\u2019s hard. We\u2019re professionals. We want to win, but it\u2019s how you lose. I can walk away from this saying I gave everything, that my team gave everything.\u201d<\/p>\n Along with the Connecticut games, the Mystics seemed to lose their way in a 26-point loss to the New York Liberty on Aug. 28 and the 37-point loss to the Valkyries two days later. The Liberty shot 50.0% overall and 47.6% from 3-point range, getting 24 points off the Mystics\u2019 turnovers. Similarly, the Valkyries shot 55.0% overall and 38.7% from deep while scoring 19 points off turnovers.<\/p>\n \u201cWe might bend, but we can\u2019t break,\u201d Johnson told reporters on Aug. 31. \u201cWe\u2019ve had, in particular, two really tough outings. \u2026 I thought [in] New York \u2026 we came close to breaking. I just didn\u2019t feel like we were very connected.\u201d<\/p>\n The Mystics played much better in a 3-point loss to the Los Angeles Sparks on Aug. 31, holding the Sparks to 40.0% shooting from the field and 27.8% from deep. That prompted Johnson to say he was \u201celated to see the team that I recognize.\u201d<\/p>\n The Mystics showed up well again on Thursday against the Mercury, who entered the day tied for third in the WNBA with a 26-14 record.<\/p>\n \u201cI just loved how we competed,\u201d Johnson said postgame. \u201cLosing is not what we want to do. \u2026 [But] we fought, and that\u2019s kind of been who we\u2019ve been for like 90% of our games. So just super proud of that.\u201d<\/p>\n Want even more women\u2019s sports in your inbox?<\/p>\n Subscribe now to The IX Sports<\/a> and receive our daily women\u2019s sports newsletter covering soccer, tennis, basketball, golf, hockey and gymnastics from our incredible team of writers. That includes Basketball Wednesday from founder and editor Howard Megdal.<\/p>\n Readers of The IX Basketball now save 50% on their subscription to The IX.<\/p>\n Since the trade deadline, and especially since the Mystics were eliminated from the playoffs, the Mystics have experimented more with lineups and schemes<\/a>. For example, they\u2019ve had All-Star rookie<\/a> Sonia Citron<\/a> initiate the offense more, to get the ball in her hands sooner and more easily.<\/p>\n \u201cSonia has an amazing feel for the game where she\u2019s going to make the right play,\u201d player development lead Clinton Crouch told The Next on Saturday. \u201cAnd for players that make the right play, you want to find ways to put the ball into their hands to make the game easier for everyone else. So \u2026 now she gets to see the game from a different lens, a different angle, and \u2026 I think it\u2019s going to be really good for her career long-term.\u201d<\/p>\n The Mystics have also played zone defense on 10.9% of opponents\u2019 halfcourt possessions in their last 11 games. That\u2019s up from 2.6% in the previous 31 games, according to Synergy Sports<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to be disruptive defensively,\u201d Johnson said before Thursday\u2019s game. \u201c[We] haven\u2019t been able to do that for various reasons, some of it being what comes after that if we don\u2019t disrupt. We haven\u2019t really reacted well defensively. And so part of a zone, frankly, is finding a way to just break rhythm. \u2026 That\u2019s where that comes from is defensively really not just always trying to guard people\u2019s playbook, but disrupt it.\u201d<\/p>\n On Thursday, the Mystics played zone on 11 of the Mercury\u2019s 71 halfcourt possessions, or 15.5% of the time. Phoenix head coach Nate Tibbetts told reporters postgame that it was the most zone his team had seen all year. And though the Mercury made 13 3-pointers, he acknowledged that the zone \u201cjust kind of slowed us down a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou could see it sometimes,\u201d Mercury guard Sami Whitcomb<\/a> added. \u201cObviously, the ball gets stagnant a bit, probably doesn\u2019t move as much as we want it to. And I think sometimes you fall into shooting threes. \u2026 A lot of them were great looks, but I think sometimes you settle for those.\u201d<\/p>\n The Mystics weren\u2019t expected to make the playoffs this season, and they\u2019ve focused on growth and development<\/a> all year as they rebuild under Johnson and first-year general manager Jamila Wideman<\/a>. But being eliminated from the playoffs still stung.<\/p>\n \u201cEverybody\u2019s upset about it, from coaches [to] players,\u201d Sutton said on Thursday.<\/p>\n Responding to being eliminated and continuing to battle is also a new challenge for the Mystics and their culture.<\/p>\n \u201cWe realize that we\u2019re out of playoff contention,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cAnd so for us, it\u2019s really zeroing in on making sure that our focus doesn\u2019t wane in terms of how we want to go about it. It\u2019s very easy to just kind of [think], \u2018Oh, what are we playing for?\u2019 And I think that\u2019s a real test for us in terms of making sure we have pro habits. \u2026 Whether it\u2019s practice, whether it\u2019s your rehab, your skill development, it all needs to stay the same.\u201d<\/p>\n So far, several players and coaches say that things have stayed the same and that they\u2019re competing just as hard every day \u2014 motivated in part by wanting to snap the losing streak.<\/p>\n \u201cI just want to win,\u201d Citron told The Next before Thursday\u2019s game.<\/p>\n \u201cI love the game. I\u2019m playing for this team,\u201d Sutton added. \u201cI\u2019m playing for us to get better. I\u2019m playing to get better individually as a point guard, and whatever happens, I\u2019m just trying to do this for our team and trying to continue to pull us together.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecoming Caitlin Clark\u201d is out now!<\/p>\n Howard Megdal\u2019s newest book is here! \u201cBecoming Caitlin Clark: The Unknown Origin Story of a Modern Basketball Superstar\u201d captures both the historic nature of Clark\u2019s rise and the critical context over the previous century that helped make it possible, including interviews with Clark, Lisa Bluder (who also wrote the foreword), C. Vivian Stringer, Jan Jensen, Molly Kazmer and many others.<\/p>\n
The IX Basketball<\/a>: A basketball newsroom brought to you by The IX Sports<\/a>. 24\/7\/365 women\u2019s basketball coverage, written, edited and photographed by our young, diverse staff and dedicated to breaking news, analysis, historical deep dives and projections about the game we love.<\/p>\n![\"Washington](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/54709179360_fd55d3212b_o.jpg\")
Washington Mystics head coach Sydney Johnson (center) encourages his team during a game against the Minnesota Lynx at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn., on Aug. 8, 2025. (Photo credit: John McClellan | The Next)<\/p>\n![\"Washington](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/54709177360_750b6d3b6e_o.jpg\")
Washington Mystics guard Sonia Citron (22) high-fives forward Kiki Iriafen (44) during a game against the Minnesota Lynx at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn., on Aug. 8, 2025. (Photo credit: John McClellan | The Next)<\/p>\n![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/1757198410_581_Untitled-design-13.png\")
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![\"Washington](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250821_DSC2619_chrisposs-Edit-1024x952.jpg\")
Washington Mystics forward Alysha Clark (right) looks to pass the ball during a game against the Connecticut Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., on Aug. 21, 2025. (Photo credit: Chris Poss | The Next)<\/p>\n