BENJAMIN STANDIG
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The next time Becky Hammon visits, the Mystics would be wise not to make their home court quite so hospitable.
Hammon set season-high’s with 17 points and four 3-pointers, and the San Antonio Stars fended off the Washington Mystics 73-65 Sunday for their fourth straight road win.
Danielle Robinson added 15 for the Stars (8-8), including four in the final 2:13 after the Mystics rallied within one point. San Antonio had lost two straight, including 81-70 at home to Washington on Tuesday.
The Stars blew a 10-point third-quarter lead and trailed 58-56 in the fourth after Washington rallied with a 16-4 run, but moved ahead for good with an 8-0 spurt. Kayla McBride scored 12, Sophia Young-Malcolm 11 and Danielle Adams had 10.
San Antonio’s early cushion came thanks to Hammon’s perimeter prowess.
“I just wanted to be aggressive and I’ve always loved shooting in this gym,” Hammon said of Washington’s Verizon Center. “I don’t know. It must be the lighting. There a few gyms you really like to play in. This is just one of them for me.”
Just in case there was a thought about the 15-year veteran making Washington her professional home, teammate Jayne Appel spoke up. “We’re not trading her.”
San Antonio played without second-leading scorer Jia Perkins (strained right hamstring).
Hammon entered Sunday shooting a league-high 51.2 percent on 3-point attempts, though she missed her two 3’s in the earlier loss to Washington.
In the rematch, Hammon made all four shots from beyond the arc in the first half as San Antonio led by 13 and entered halftime up 40-32.
“That’s Becky Hammon being a leader,” Stars coach Dan Hughes said. “That’s Becky saying you know what, we’re going to miss Jia, but here I come.”
Monique Currie matched her season-high with 18 points for the Mystics (7-10). She scored six straight in the fourth to pull Washington to 66-65 with 3:19 remaining, but the Mystics never scored again, missing their last five shots from the field.
“We didn’t execute. I think more so than being fatigued or worn out it was execution,” Currie said of Washington’s poor finish.
Ivory Latta had 14 and Emma Meesseman 10 points for Washington.
The Stars made 7 of 15 on their 3-point attempts. The Mystics missed their first 11 3-point tries and finished 2 of 17 on 3s overall, and their 12 turnovers led to 18 points for the Stars.
“You know they’re not just going to roll over. You expect them to come out and throw a punch. The key is to stay with what you’re doing,” Hammon said. “I thought we played really smart for the most part. Our zone kind of messed them up a little bit.”
Hammon stepping up did as well.
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