First Ladies of D.C. Sports

The Washington Mystics may keep D.C. from falling into a serious sports depression this year. The team is off to their best start in franchise history at 2-0, and in a town that currently houses the worst teams in the NBA and MLB, this group of 11 ladies are a welcome exception. The Mystics won their season opener 82-70 Saturday on the road in Connecticut (against a team that finished second in the East Conference last year) and their home opener Sunday against the Atlanta Dream. The final score was 77-71.

“I think this team has great, great potential,” said first year head coach Julie Plank after the game. “And we’re not satisfied.”

The Dream, who beat the Indiana Fever in a double overtime game Saturday night, took a 10-1 lead against the Mystics in the first quarter before Matee Ajavon sparked the Mystics’ offense with a three point shot to start the second.

“I thought Matee Ajavon came into the game and really changed things for us,” Planksaid. “We were kind of so-so, and then she just sparked us…People fed off that.”

Ajavon also got the crowd roaring with her pre-game introduction dance moves, which she told DCist took her all of two seconds to choreograph.

The Mystics scored 30 points in the second quarter to take the lead 38-30 at halftime. Alana Beard, who led the team in points last year but didn’t play at all in the preseason, finished with a game-high 27 points against Atlanta, while Crystal Langhorne followed up with 10. Much heralded rookie Marissa Coleman had a solid opening weekend, leading the team Saturday with 16 points and finishing with 9 against Atlanta.

“We have a lot of depth,” Plank said of the Mystics’ roster. “We’re bringing people off the bench that could be starters.”

The Dream's Angel McCoughtry, the WNBA's top draft pick, fouled out in the final minutes of the fourth quarter with 10 points.

The Mystics next face the defending WNBA champion Detroit Shock on the road Wednesday, then visit the Dream in Atlanta. You can catch them at home again on June 20 against Chicago. Also, be prepared: the Mystics have started a new tradition of asking fans to stand until the team scores its first basket at home games, which they did Sunday, sitting down only after Nikki Sanford made a free throw shot with 6:48 left in the first.