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WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- Rita Williams scored a career-high 17 points to lead five players in double figures as the expansion Indiana Fever snapped a 10-game losing streak with an 81-58 blowout of the slumping Washington Mystics. Williams, a former Mystic, made 5-of-9 shots from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers for Indiana, which avoided matching Washington's WNBA record 11-game losing streak. "It was really great," Williams said of her return to Washington. "The fans were supportive, they've always been supportive of me throughout my career. It was great to come back and get a win." Monica Maxwell and Stephanie McCarty added 13 points apiece for the Fever (4-14), who had not won since a 79-54 triumph at Orlando on June 17. Indiana also ended a four-game road losing streak and won its first meeting with Washington. "It feels good," said Maxwell, who also began her career with the Mystics. "Me and Rita, we enjoyed our time here, but at the same time, this is a business. We just wanted to come out and play well and play with the team and get a win." Kara Wolters scored 12 points and Alicia Thompson chipped in 11 for the Fever, who shot 53 percent (28-of-53) and scored 32 points off turnovers. Vicky Bullett netted 15 points and Nikki McCray 14 for Washington (8-11), which lost 11 in a row from July 13-August 7, 1998. These teams were scheduled to meet in Indiana on June 15, but inclement weather forced the Mystics to cancel their flight. Murriel Page made three straight layups to give Washington an early 15-7 lead, but Maxwell and Williams combined to score 19 first-half points, helping the Fever forge a 36-36 tie at the break. Indiana used long-range shooting to pull away in the second half. Maxwell, Thompson and McCarty made 3-pointers during a decisive 11-2 spurt that gave the Fever a 53-44 lead with 13:56 to play. The Mystics did not get within six thereafter. "Threes killed us," McCray said. "We were coming in and they were shooting a lot of 3s. A team hitting 3s can really break you. It seems like we'd get our momentum back, and then they'd hit a 3." Indiana was 9-of-15 from 3-point range.
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