Mystics beat Storm 100-77 for 5th straight victory
WASHINGTON (AP) — Elena Delle Donne scored 30 points, LaToya Sanders had 17 points and 10 rebounds and the Washington Mystics beat the league-leading Seattle Storm 100-77 on Thursday for their fifth straight victory.
Washington never trailed and led by as many as 27 points.
Despite the loss, Seattle clinched one of the top two seeds in the playoffs when Atlanta beat Los Angeles later Thursday. The Storm have a bye to the semifinals.
Natasha Cloud had 14 points and eight assists for Washington (19-11) and Ariel Atkins added 12 points. The Mystics are a game behind the second-place Atlanta Dream. Delle Donne was 11 of 16 from the field as the Mystics shot 57 percent, including 12 of 26 from 3-point range.
Natasha Howard and Jewell Loyd each scored 15 points for Seattle (23-8), which had its five-game winning streak snapped. Breanna Stewart was held to 10 points on 2-of-5 shooting and Sue Bird scored seven points in 18 minutes.
Seattle started the fourth quarter on an 11-0 run to pull to 83-67 and a Jordin Canada 3-pointer made it 89-75. But the Mystics scored the next nine points to secure it.
