The Washington Mystics and Seattle Storm meet Sunday in game 2 of the WNBA Playoffs First Round at the Climate Pledge Arena. The Washington Mystics need a win to force a game 3 on Wednesday. The Seattle Storm look for another win to advance to the next round.
The Washington Mystics are averaging 83 points on 48.5 percent shooting and allowing 86 points on 50.8 percent shooting. Elena Delle Donne is averaging 26 points and 3 rebounds, while Natasha Cloud is averaging 16 points and 6 rebounds. Ariel Atkins is the third double-digit scorer and Shakira Austin is grabbing 7 rebounds. The Washington Mystics are shooting 36.8 percent from beyond the arc and 85.7 percent from the free throw line. The Washington Mystics are allowing 50 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 27 rebounds per game.
The Seattle Storm are averaging 86 points on 50.8 percent shooting and allowing 83 points on 48.5 percent shooting. Breanna Stewart is averaging 23 points and 12 rebounds, while Jewell Loyd is averaging 16 points and 2 rebounds. Gabby Williams is the third double-digit scorer and Sue Bird is dishing 2 assists. The Seattle Storm are shooting 50 percent from beyond the arc and 75 percent from the free throw line. The Seattle Storm are allowing 36.8 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 31 rebounds per game.
The Mystics are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games playing on 2 days rest and 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games following a ATS win. The Storm are 9-4 ATS in their last 13 vs. Eastern Conference and 2-7 ATS in their last 9 games playing on 2 days rest. The under is 5-1 in Mystics last 6 Sunday games. The over is 6-0 in Storm last 6 overall. The Mystics are 5-2 ATS in the last 7 meetings in Seattle and 1-4 ATS in the last 5 meetings.
The Washington Mystics have the offensive horses to hang in this series, as they showed in the first game, and it's worthy of considering them in the underdog role here. With that said, the Mystics played well enough to win and still ended up on the losing side. That could impact the Mystics mental in this spot, and we could see some heads down if they don't get off to a fast start here. The Seattle Storm are too talented and experienced for this time of year, and they usually play their best ball at home. With another strong offensive performance, I'll lay the points with the Storm.
AUTHOR: Randy Chambers
Follow Randy Chambers on Twitter @WizardOf0dds