Coming off their most dominant victory of the season on Friday night against the Fever, the Mystics (7-6), hoping to continue their winning ways, will play host to the Connecticut Sun (7-6) on Sunday evening at Verizon Center (7p.m.). The Sun, limping into this matchup having lost their past five contests, seek revenge for a tightly contested 73-68 opening night loss to the ‘Stics over a month ago. After that game, the Sun went on a tear, winning seven straight games before hitting the rough stretch they currently find themselves in. The Sun’s streaky ways combined with the Mystics’ overall inconsistent play throughout the season has resulted in this matchup of two teams tied for third place in the ultra-competitive Eastern Conference standings.

The Sun were supposed to face the Indiana Fever on Saturday night at home; however, the game was postponed due to travel issues for the Fever. So, the Sun will have to wait one more day to try to get back to their winning ways, but it won’t be easy if the Mystics have anything to say about it. After a rough three-game losing streak for the ‘Stics that included two blowout losses on the road, they returned to Verizon Center on Friday night and returned the favor, playing some of the best basketball they’ve played all year long en route to a blowout win of their own. Newcomer LaToya Sanders and blossoming star Emma Meesseman led the way for the Mystics with 14 points apiece, and 10 and 13 rebounds respectively.

If the Mystics want to come out of Sunday night victorious, they’ll have to continue the great ball movement and team defense they’ve put on display as of late, and they also must continue to improve on the boards, something they’ve been stressing in practice every day. The Mystics come into this contest the league leaders in assists per game (18.2 apg) and second in the league in points allowed (71.1 ppg). However, they’ve struggled in the rebounding department throughout the season, yet the Sun feature the second worst rebounding mark (30.6 rpg) in the entire WNBA, so a golden opportunity awaits the ‘Stics.

But just because the Sun are reeling does not in any way mean the confident Washington squad is overlooking this matchup. Latoya Sanders pointed this out, saying, “They could be a different team from a month and some change ago. But, even though they’re struggling, we know they’re a good, young, energetic team, physical team.” They certainly won’t be taken for granted.

Coach Thibault similarly noted, “I think we’ve been in a mode as best we can to try to play each game in the old cliché of one at a time and not look past anyone… Despite the fact [Connecticut has] been losing, they’ve been in every game but one. They’re very physical, they have some terrific players.”

And speaking of terrific players, the Sun are led by young, All-Star-hopeful guard Alex Bentley. She is averaging 17.1 ppg and 2.6 spg, and she, combined with

Fellow youngster, center Kelsey Bone (14.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg), have formed a formidable dynamic duo so far this season. It should make for an extremely intriguing matchup as the Sun duo take on the Mystics’ own young, star-studded duo in Meesseman (13.7 ppg, 7.2 rpg) and Stefanie Dolson (12.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg). These young superstars going at it Sunday night could be a preview of what the future of the WNBA has in store for years to come.

After the Mystics completed their game on Friday night, they have only a 48-hour turnaround before going to battle on the hardwood once again. But this does not scare them. It’s something they’ve done before and something they certainly will have to do again.

Dolson is confident in her team’s ability to rally and get ready quickly, stating, “We just need to keep it up in practice. You know, camaraderie within the team. Make sure we go into practice with the same energy we had in the game [Friday] and carry that momentum onto the game on Sunday. We know Connecticut’s a really good team, a tough team… so we’ll definitely prepare for them mentally and physically.”

The Mystics look to continue forward on Sunday with newfound momentum from an encouraging performance just two nights prior. This team is confident, fearless, and hungry. Sanders summed it up best, “We just have to play like we played [on Friday] and I know we’ll be ok.”