By: Jennifer Portee
7/13/2026
Washington didn’t separate until the fourth, and that felt about right. Shakira Austin had been consistent all game, then picked the exact moment to take it up a level, scoring 10 of her 27 in the final quarter as the Mystics closed out Seattle 84-79.
It wasn’t pretty. It didn’t need to be. The Mystics had enough help across the board to survive the messiness. Kiki Iriafen battled for 12 points and 13 rebounds, picking up her ninth double-double of the season. Sonia Citron gave them 19, and rookie Lauren Betts added 11. That kind of night a little scoring here, a little rebounding there, somebody making the right cut or getting the loose ball is usually what gets you through a game that starts getting tight.
Seattle never got into a flow. The Storm turned it over 19 times, and Washington made them pay for it in the fourth, where Seattle shot just 4 of 14 and got outscored 20-11. Once the game got late, the Storm looked rushed. Possessions got sloppy. The ball stopped moving the way it had earlier.
Natisha Hiedeman did what she could to keep them afloat. She dropped a career-high 31 on 14-of-24 shooting, and for long stretches, she was the only thing that looked comfortable on Seattle’s side. Dominique Malonga added 10 points, 15 rebounds, two blocks and two steals, but the rest of the group never gave Hiedeman enough help. Seattle finished with just 35 percent shooting from the field outside of her.
That matchup in the frontcourt had its own physicality too. Malonga, the 6-foot-6 rookie, and Awa Fam spent the first half in foul trouble, and more often than not, the whistle was louder than the action. Not much rhythm there. Just contact, stops, and bodies trying to stay on the floor.
Washington moves on with a win that felt earned more than not easy while Seattle keeps looking for answers.