The Washington Mystics are 2-1 ahead of Monday night’s road battle with superstar guard Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings, which gives them the chance to defeat a WNBA titan for the second straight game. They beat fellow superstar guard Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever 104-102 in overtime on Friday, and they couldn’t have done it without Sonia Citron.
The second-year guard/forward tallied a career-high 30 points (10-14 FG, 1-4 3-point) with six rebounds, four assists, one steal and one block over 38 minutes. She was then asked postgame about handling the physicality of the WNBA, given her recent tendency of fighting for buckets around the rim.
“That was something I really worked on in the offseason,” Citron admitted. “Everyone knows how physical the W is…Coming out as a rookie, it’s so fast, it’s so physical, everybody’s so strong. I think this year, I knew what to expect, but I didn’t want to just be able to handle it. I wanted to be able to give it back, especially in the paint. Just like they use their body, I can use mine to leverage and get my shot off…Even now, I practice my post moves all around the paint, just trying to be more like Kiki [Iriafen].”
Indeed, playing with Iriafen gives Citron an up-close look at what an effective inside scorer looks like. For example, the fellow second-year forward notched a career-high 25 points (11-17 FG, 1-1 3-point) with 13 rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block across 36 minutes on Friday and has scored 70.2% of her points in the paint this season, per WNBA Advanced Stats. Additionally, she’s averaging 19 points on 59% shooting (25% 3-point).
Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen combined for 55 points in the Mystics’ OT win vs. Caitlin Clark and the Fever 🤝
Citron:
🔹30 points (career-high)
🔹6 rebounds
🔹4 assists
🔹10-of-14 FG
Iriafen:
🔹25 points (career-high)
🔹13 rebounds
🔹2 assists
🔹11-of-17 FG pic.twitter.com/ZjWspG0Xz9
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) May 16, 2026
Citron is unlikely to ever get to Iriafen’s level of inside scoring, as she’s listed at 6-foot-1, 175 pounds, while the latter player is 6-foot-3, 202 pounds. However, the 22-year-old is scoring 46.4% of her points in the paint after scoring 34.7% of her points there last season.
That’s helped make up for an uncharacteristically slow start from long range, as Citron’s made just 25% of her three-pointers (5.3 average attempts) after hitting 44.5% last season (4.1 attempts). Despite this, the Notre Dame alum still ranks sixth in the WNBA with 24.3 points per game on 60.5% shooting.
Although the 2026 season is young, Citron has shown that she’s not one-dimensional. The 2025 All-Star and All-Rookie honoree is a three-level scorer who’s a plus defender and secondary ballhandler, as she’s third on Washington with a 22.8% usage rate, second with a 2.3 steal percentage, and third with a 2.8 block percentage.
Basically, Citron can hurt opponents in different ways, and that versatility could help the Mystics soar in the second year of their rebuild.
Mystics’ Sonia Citron outdueled Caitlin Clark on the road
Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
Although Clark scored two more points than Citron in Indiana on Friday, she shot just 10-for-28 (7-17 3-point) over 37 minutes. The two-time All-Star did hit a game-tying three-pointer to force overtime in the final seconds of regulation, but her ineffectiveness from two-point range was partly why the Fever lost.
Citron then sank a half-court heave that would have been the game-winner had she not released it just after the buzzer. However, the New York native recorded five points and two assists in overtime to close out the victory.
Citron’s outing not only encapsulated her growth since being drafted No. 3 overall by Washington last year, but also was a reminder that she can last in the ring against WNBA heavyweights. If she outplays Bueckers on Monday, it’ll be another statement after finishing as the Rookie of the Year runner-up behind her last season.
Monday’s matchup starts at 8:00 p.m. ET on Peacock/NBCSN.
The Washington Mystics are 2-1 ahead of Monday night’s road battle with superstar guard Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings, which gives them the chance to defeat a WNBA titan for the second straight game. They beat fellow superstar guard Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever 104-102 in overtime on Friday, and they couldn’t have done it without Sonia Citron.