Washington Mystics vs. Seattle Storm Prediction, Preview and Odds - 6/22/21
It’s an interconference clash on the parquet floor as a pair of WNBA teams lock up in the Pacific Northwest. The Washington Mystics are on the road as they make the trip to face the Seattle Storm Tuesday night. Washington earned an 82-77 home win over Indiana in their previous game Saturday. Seattle swept a two-game road set with Indiana with a 79-69 victory Thursday night in their most recent contest. The teams split two meetings in the bubble with the “home” team prevailing both times. In the most recent matchup, it was Seattle earning a 71-64 victory on September 2, 2020, snapping Washington’s three-game win streak in the series.
Washington Mystics Look to Stay Hot
Washington won their second straight and their fourth in the last five games as they knocked off Indiana at home Saturday in their most recent contest. The Mystics improved to 6-6 on the season and enter this game holding the sixth seed in the WNBA playoff picture. Against Indiana, Washington trailed 8-0 early, by six after one quarter and by as many as 12 in the first half before finishing the half on a 27-8 run to take a seven-point lead at intermission. The Mystics were in a back-and-forth second half, trailing 67-66 with 5:56 to play before going on a 14-4 run over the next four and a half minutes to take control for good. Washington shot 37% from the field, including seven of 34 from three-point range, and held a 40-36 edge on the glass in the win. Tina Charles led the Mystics with 30 points, 15 rebounds and three steals in the win.
The Mystics are fifth in the league in scoring offense with an average of 82.8 points per contest this season. Washington comes in 7th in the league in rebounding (34.7 boards per game) and is 7th in assists by handing out 18.5 dimes a night. The Mystics are ninth in the league in scoring defense by allowing an average of 83.1 points a contest. Tina Charles leads the Mystics with 24.5 points and nine rebounds per contest this season. Ariel Atkins is one of two other players scoring in double figures as she puts up 19 points a night. Erica McCall, Myisha Hines-Allen (14 points, 7.1 boards), Natasha Cloud, Theresa Plaisance, Sydney Wiese, Kiara Leslie, Stella Johnson, Shavonte Zellous, Leilani Mitchell and Jillian Alleyne are key pieces for coach Mike Thibault. Washington is 11th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 40.2% from the floor as a team. The Mystics are second in the league in threes per game (9.5) and stand 10th in the league in three-point percentage (33.3%) on the year. Washington is excellent at the charity stripe as they are second in the league by sinking 85.3% of their chances this season. Elena Delle Donne is currently still out as she continues her recovery from offseason back surgery. Hines-Allen (knee) and McCall (knee) are out while Leslie (concussion) and Cloud (ankle) are both questionable. The Mystics signed Megan Gustafson Monday after being granted a hardship exemption by the league.
Seattle Storm Seeking Sixth Straight Win
Seattle won their fifth straight game as they swept a two-game road set from Indiana with Thursday’s victory. The Storm improved to 12-2 on the season and own a 1.5-game lead over the Aces for the top seed in the WNBA playoff picture. Against Indiana, Seattle led by five after the opening quarter, trailed by five midway through the second quarter and closed the first half on a 14-5 run to take a four-point halftime lead. The Storm found themselves tied with 3:52 to play in the third quarter before going on a 10-0 run over the next two-plus minutes to take the lead for good. Seattle didn’t led Indiana closer than three the rest of the way. The Storm shot 43.1% from the field, including six of 20 from three-point range, and controlled the glass by a 40-32 margin. Breanna Stewart led Seattle with 21 points and 15 rebounds in the win.
The Storm comes into this contest second in the league in scoring offense with an average of 88.2 points per game. Seattle is third in rebounding (36.6 boards per contest) and is first in the league in assists by dishing out 23.1 dimes per night this year. The Storm are 4th in scoring defense as they allow 79.1 points a game so far this year. Breanna Stewart leads the team with 21.1 points and 10.1 rebounds per contest. Jewell Loyd (18.9 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists) and Sue Bird (11.4 points, six assists) are solid secondary options. Coach Noelle Quinn has a solid group to work with as her team can get production from Katie Lou Samuelson, Jordin Canada, Candice Dupree, Ezi Magbegor, Stephanie Talbot, Kennedy Burke, Epiphanny Prince and Kiana Williams. The Storm are second in the league in field goal percentage as they convert 46.3% of their shots from the floor this year. Seattle is third in the league in three-point field goals made per game (9.3) and first in three-point percentage as they knock down 39.9% percent from beyond the arc. The Storm are average at the line, ranking sixth in the league by converting 81% of their chances. Mikiah Herbert Harrington is out for the year as she is pregnant.
Pick: Seattle Storm
Both teams are playing good basketball with the Mystics winning four of five while the Storm have raced out of the gates to a 12-2 mark on the season. The problem for Washington here, other than having to go on the road and face the defending champs, is the injury issues that they are facing. Losing Hines-Allen and McCall took a couple of proven options out of the mix, without even contemplating the fact the Delle Donne has yet to take the floor. Facing a Seattle team that is extremely dangerous on the offensive end of the floor and who has shown improvement on the defensive end on the road is too much for a game but wounded Washington team. Give the edge to the Storm here.
Total: Under
Seattle is the second-highest scoring team in the league this season behind only Las Vegas, a major reason they have won 12 of their 14 games. With that said, the Storm have been under machines of late as they have stayed under the mark in eight of their last nine games after going over in each of their first five. Washington has seen the over hit in eight of their 12 games but the fact that they are dealing with a shorter rotation than usual could prove problematic when it comes to putting points on the board. The Mystics run into a Seattle team that has improved defensively and that ends up pushing this contest under the total.
