On Tuesday, the WNBA action returned with an early afternoon game featuring the Washington Mystics and San Antonio Stars. Not only was it the WNBA's return from their recent All-Star Game break, but it was also the return of Mystics' star Elena Delle Donne. Her return was a triumphant one as well, with her leading the way as Washington won 85-76.

Here's the latest recap of the Mystics vs. Stars game as well as a standings update and what's next for these two WNBA teams.

Game recap

With Delle Donne back on the court, the Washington Mystics received a major performance from the All-Star guard.

Delle Donne finished with 29 points on 10-for-18 shooting which included her hitting three of her three-pointers. Delle Donne also grabbed 10 rebounds, dished out four assists, and blocked three shots in the win. Her teammate, Kristin Tolliver, had just eight points but also 10 assists, while Emma Meesseman finished with 16 points on 5-for-9 shooting. Tolliver's assists stat tied her career-high.

On the losing side, the San Antonio Stars received 12 points from Kayla McBride, although she shot just 3-for-10 during the game. Alex Montgomery had seven points and 11 boards, while rookie Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby each contributed 15 points from off the bench. The team managed to shoot slightly better than the visitors, but it wasn't enough to make a late comeback.

A 25-9 scoring start to the game helped Washington grab control after one quarter. By halftime, the Mystics led 41-28. They maintained their lead into the fourth. San Antonio went on an 11-0 run at one point, but couldn't chip the lead to below six points. So when the Stars outscored the Mystics 29-22 in the final quarter, it was simply too little, too late.

Overall, the home team shot 41 percent compared to 40 for their visitors. Washington snatched 39 rebounds while San Antonio had just 34.

Standings & what's next

With the win, the Washington Mystics now move to 13-9 for their season, with a 5-7 record on the road. Next up, they'll take on the Connecticut Sun at home on Friday, July 28th at 7 p.m.

Eastern Time in a pivotal Eastern Conference showdown.

The San Antonio Stars will stay at the bottom of the WNBA standings with a record of 3-19 overall and just 2-9 on their home court. The Stars have another home matchup coming up this Friday, but it will be against the league's second-best team, the Los Angeles Sparks. That game gets started at 8 p.m. Eastern Time.
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