Alana Beard had 31 points and five assists to lead the Washington Mystics to an 81-72 victory over the Chicago Sky on Saturday night.
Crystal Langhorne had 14 points and six rebounds for the Mystics (4-1). Chasity Melvin added 12 points and nine rebounds.
Jia Perkins led the Sky (3-3) with 15 points, six rebounds and six assists. Kristi Toliver had 13 points and Candice Dupree added 12 points and six rebounds.
Chicago missed eight straight shots and went 7:35 without a basket late in the fourth quarter.
Beard shot 11 of 18 from the field, including 2 of 5 from behind the arc, and 7 of 9 at the free-throw line.
Beard converted a layup off a steal, blocked a shot, and hit a jumper before her 3-pointer gave the Mystics a 67-65 lead with 5:27 remaining.
The Sky got 17 second-quarter points from their bench and closed the period with a 16-1 run for a 39-29 halftime lead.
Beard made her first three shots of the game and followed with a three-point play off a steal that gave the Mystics a 12-3 lead.
Washington scored nine points off six first-quarter Chicago turnovers and led 18-13 after one.
