Mystics 90, Sun 85: New season, weird feelings

It was the most normal of times and it was the strangest of times at Mohegan Sun Arena Sunday afternoon. You had a healthy fired up crowd of 7,834 and everything else that’s associated with Opening Day.

Five years ago, maybe even three, you would have talked about how awesome the atmosphere was, and how the Sun was a solid WNBA franchise that would be part of the league as long as it wanted to be.

You can argue with Caitlin Clark lovers and haters about how much she had to do with it, or whether it was the natural progression of women’s sports, but we live in a different WNBA now. For the players, it should open up opportunities they deserved long ago and be awesome to watch for long-time watchers of the league that witnessed its humble beginnings.

However, for the Sun, it may be the end of the road. I’ll try not to harp on that point too much this season, but it’s obviously a huge storyline as we move through the summer, and you could tell by talking to fans in the arena, they know it, too. 

They also knew it was a totally different team they were coming to watch, one that might struggle this season, something that would be foreign to Sun fans, who have seen eight straight (non bubble) winning seasons and some deep playoff runs.

That was all forgotten, of course, once the ball tipped and the Sun raced to a 14-2 lead, one they held for most of the first half. The young Washington Mystics fought back, many of the Sun’s shortcomings (including lack of depth) were exposed and Connecticut dropped its opener, 90-85, the Mystics’ first win over the Sun in nine meetings.

There’s still 43 games to go, but this one hurt a bit. It hurt because Washington - although 2-0 on the young season - probably won’t be a contender, and a quick look at the upcoming schedule sees A’ja Wilson and Las Vegas coming to town Tuesday, but also road games against Minnesota, New York, and Indiana in the next two weeks.

What will happen to the atmosphere at Mohegan Sun Arena for games that don’t include Paige Bueckers if the team begins to struggle mightily? Is it fair to judge a franchise’s fanbase on its first losing season in a decade? Will that play any role in a possible move?

How about this hand-written note on my seat as I arrived Sunday, spelling errors and all. The Sun do truly care about their fans, and I'm not sure it will be that way if they end up somewhere else.

Alright, I’ll stop with the doom and gloom. Hopefully, Saniya Rivers, Aneesah Morrow, and Leila Lacan will be in uniform soon, Marina Mabrey will get some shots to fall, and the wins will come with them.

And how can I be upset when I got to see the best halftime act in all the land, Red Panda Acrobat, hit her routine perfectly? She deserves everything she gets, too.

What else did we learn from the opening loss to Washington?:

1. De-fense, de-fense - Connecticut has been in the top two in the WNBA in defensive efficiency in each of the last four seasons, and led the league at 0.941 points per possession in 2024, so we’re obviously spoiled. It’s also hard to make too many sweeping conclusions off one game, but the Mystics put up 1.11 ppp after a horrific start and starting basically two non-shooters at guard and two rookies (and Sonia Cintron struggled and was in foul trouble), which is not a great sign going forward. Much will be made of Marina Mabrey’s 5-for-21 shooting performance, but she struggled defensively as well. Jacy Sheldon was no match for Brittany Sykes (27 points and 7 assists despite making no three-pointers). Haley Peters is a great story, but is a just a huge defensive liability as well.

2. The Sun need its rookies - Again, nothing personal toward Peters, Robyn Parks, and Kariata Diaby, but the WNBA is a tough, tough league, especially so for veterans that haven’t been in it before (or for a while). Rachid Meziane had no choice but to give them a combined 35 minutes in which they finished -24. I’m sure there were plenty of nerves and things should get better, but as I pointed out, the schedule is not going to get easier, either.

3. Freedom of movement while it lasts -  The game featured 60 fouls (amazingly, 10 off the league record), which has been consistent with how the opening weekend was called league-wide. That probably hurt the advanced defensive numbers a little (miraculously, Tina Charles got called for her first foul in the final minutes). Both Olivia Nelson-Ododa and Mabrey had to sit in the first half in foul trouble, and it’s going to take some adjusting to how the games are called. In theory, it should help people like Mabrey and Sheldon create, but Washington locked them down for the most part Sunday.

Player of the game:  Tina Charles - It was fun to watch the 36-year-old Charles take it to 21-year-old rookie Kiki Iriafen as the Sun looked to close the game out in the fourth quarter. Charles (who largely got away from those mid-range jumpers) finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Of course, Iriafen, who had 17 and 14, got the victory, and I think it’s safe to say if she can put together a career like Charles’, she’ll gladly take it.

Inside the numbers : 14 -  Number of three-pointers attempted by Connecticut. It’s easy to focus on the low number of 3 made (two by Bria Hartley and one by Mabrey), but the Sun weren’t even getting them off for the most part. Sheldon tried just one, while Lindsay Allen took none in 24 minutes, and that just allowed Washington to put more pressure on Mabrey, who looked frustrated and will continue to do so if someone doesn’t relieve that pressure.

Under the radar: Bria Hartley hit two three-pointers in the second quarter (two of Connecticut’s three for the game), but did not play down the stretch, with Meziane opting for Allen instead. Hartley did finish a team-low -10 and without a true point guard on the floor, the Sun looked a bit disjointed (Brittany Sykes and Sug Sutton had the best of Sheldon and Hartley trying to handle the ball), but maybe having another offensive option would have freed Mabrey up?

Quotable:  “I think we showed in the first quarter and the first half that we can do it, but it’s just doing it for 40 minutes, and it’s hard. We have to be able to handle that and fight through fatigue. We’ll look at the film and find areas to grow.” - Tina Charles

Next up: Tuesday vs. Las Vegas, 7 p.m.