Even on a night of celebration, the Washington Mystics got bitten by the injury bug once again. Two-time All-Star Ariel Atkins set the franchise record for most threes made in the first quarter of Tuesday’s game against the Seattle Storm. However, her night ended early as she got carted off the court with an ankle injury.
Atkins surpassed Ivory Latta with her first and only made three of the game. Atkins now has 309 three-pointers made in a Mystics uniform. Unfortunately, she did not play much longer after that, as it appeared she got her ankle stepped on. After getting attended to, she got carted off the court.
The Mystics still beat the Storm despite 39 points from Jewell Lloyd. Washington will take the win, but the focus is on the health of Atkins.
The team is already without leader Elena Delle Donne, second-year center Shakira Austin, and cagey veteran Kristi Toliver. Delle Donne will be out at least two weeks after reinjuring her ankle in Washington’s loss Sunday against Connecticut.
Austin has been out since June 25 after she suffered a hip injury. Toliver has dealt with plantar fasciitis since mid-June.
Atkins has been initially diagnosed with an ankle sprain. Mystics head coach Eric Thibault said Atkins has a “good bit of swelling” following the game, per Kareem Copeland of The Washington Post. The team will know more in a couple of days.
The good thing is Atkins will have some time to recover with the All-Star break. Washington won’t play against until July 19. Losing another core player is damaging to the Mystics.
Ariel Atkins entered Tuesday’s game second on the team in scoring with 12.9 points per game. Depending on Atkins’ status, Washington could be without three of its top-five scorers. Austin was the second behind Delle Donne before her injury.
The Mystics have an 11-8 record and are fourth in the WNBA standings heading into the break.
