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Austin scores 25, has go-ahead 3-point play as Mystics shock Aces 100-99

WASHINGTON (AP) — Shakira Austin scored 25 points, converting a three-point play after an offensive rebound with 12.8 seconds left, to lead the Washington Mystics to a 100-99 victory over the Las Vegas Aces on Wednesday night.

Austin rebounded Sonia Citron’s miss on a driving layup to cap the Mystics’ rally from nine down with four minutes left. She had 11 points in the rally and Citron, who finished with 20 points, had four in the last minute.

Lauren Betts had 13 points off the bench for the Mystics (13-13), the lowest-scoring team in the league at 79.6 points a game. Kiki Iriafen added 12 points and 10 rebounds, while Michaela Onyenwere and Georgia Amoore both had 10 points.

A’ja Wilson scored 38 points for the Aces (18-8), who go into the All-Star break two games behind league-leading Minnesota. Wilson was 12-of-16 shooting and made 12 of 13 free throws, but the miss came with 17 seconds left to open the door for Austin. Jackie Young had 24 points and Chelsea Gray 19.

The Aces led 87-78 midway through the fourth quarter but the Mystics were within 96-95 when Citron made a pair of free throws with 43 seconds left.

The Mystics led 46-45 at the break.

Las Vegas shot 55% to 49% for the Mystics but was outrebounded 34-24, including 12-4 on the offensive end.

Up next

Aces: Home against Portland on Tuesday.

Mystics: Home against Connecticut on Tuesday, the second of a six-game homestand.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Mystics’ Kiki Iriafen, Sonia Citron selected to USA for FIBA Women’s World Cup

A'ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum will miss the FIBA Women's World Cup for health reasons and will be replaced by Washington teammates Kiki Iriafen and Sonia Citron, USA Basketball announced Monday. Wilson, the four-time WNBA MVP, has shouldered quite a workload in the first part of the season for the Las Vegas Aces and needed a break to rest and get ready for the playoffs. She was voted the most outstanding player of the 2024 Paris Olympics and the 2022 World Cup. She will be sorely missed by the United States. Plum has been dealing with a calf injury for most of the WNBA season and it still hasn't 100% healed. She was a catalyst in the Paris Games gold-medal contest against France and sparked the Americans to the one-point victory. Iriafen and Citron were both part of U.S. camps this past winter. Iriafen played on the American team that went to Puerto Rico and won the World Cup qualifier. Citron had to miss that tournament because of an injury, so she'll be making her national team debut in Germany.
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