Sonia Citron swished an 18-foot turnaround fadeaway at the buzzer to give the Washington Mystics an 86-85 victory over the visiting Toronto Tempo on Friday night.
Citron’s heroics ruined a Toronto rally as the Tempo went on a 15-3 run to claim their only lead of the second half on Brittney Sykes’ layup with 11.1 seconds to go.
With 2.1 seconds to go, Washington center Lauren Betts won a jump ball against Sykes and tapped the ball toward the left wing for Citron. She pivoted away from Tempo defender Julie Allemand and released her game-winner with 0.5 seconds on the clock.
Betts came off the bench to pace five Mystics in double figures with a career-high 18 points. Citron and Michaela Onyenwere scored 17 apiece while Shakira Austin contributed 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Marina Mabrey produced 27 points for Toronto (7-6, 2-2 Commissioner’s Cup) while Sykes added 20 points.
Washington (5-6, 2-2) seized control with a 21-6 run in the third quarter to carry a 65-52 lead into the fourth.
The Mystics still owned a 74-61 lead when Mabrey checked back into the game with 6:14 to go. She proceeded to reel off 18 points in a 3:13 frenzy to nearly steal the win. She sank three straight 3-point tries, including one that became a 4-point play, to cut Washington’s lead to 84-83 with 31.6 seconds to go.
After Citron missed a floater, Sykes drove for a layup to give Toronto an 85-84 edge with 11.1 seconds to play.
The Mystics dominated the glass despite the absence of forward Kiki Iriafen with an ankle injury. Washington outrebounded Toronto 44-29 and won the battle of second-chance points 16-6.
Washington travels to the New York Liberty for a Sunday afternoon game, while Toronto will host the Atlanta Dream on Sunday.
–Field Level Media
