Capitals watch party provides electric atmosphere for WNBA's Mystics

Amanda Christovich and Jack White | USA TODAY Sports

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WASHINGTON -- At Capital One Arena, Washington Capitals fans became Washington Mystics fans, and Washington Mystics fans became Washington Capitals fans.

The Mystics moved Thursday's game against the Minnesota Lynx to 4 p.m. ET in order to accommodate an official watch party for the Capitals' appearance in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final in Las Vegas against the Golden Knights.

Watch party tickets, which were free, were made available Wednesday afternoon and were gone in minutes. Those who purchased Mystics tickets were also allowed to stick around for the watch party, so some Mystics ticket holders were able to sell them for up to $500.

What began as a relatively sparse, but still enthusiastic Mystics crowd slowly grew into a Capitals pregame extravaganza.

Fans of both teams joined to cheer people on the Jumbotron holding “We Want the Cup” signs.

Eli White, who sang the Star-Spangled Banner for the Mystics game, donned a Caps shirt. Fans yelled “Red!” and “Oh!” as White sang the lyrics, a Caps fan tradition. And unicyclist Red Panda wore an Alex Ovechkin jersey during her halftime performance.

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“It’s exciting to see them have this much support,” Mystics season ticket holder Barclay Collins said. “Of course, all the Caps fans are into them, too. Everyone is wearing red. I think the game started with a lot of energy, because they’ve had a lot of support. I’d love to see more people turn out.”

And they did.

Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final was in Las Vegas, but you wouldn't know that from the crowd inside and outside Capital One Arena in Washington. pic.twitter.com/iHbTDXaJA2 — USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) June 8, 2018

Though many Caps fans may not have known about the Mystics game, they cheered as the home team jumped out to an early 10-point lead over the defending WNBA champions.

By the fourth quarter, the 18,000-seat arena was full. Caps fans began waving their team's towels to cheer on the Mystics, started “Let’s go Mystics!” chants and booed Lynx players during free throws.

“The atmosphere was great,” Mystics coach Mike Thibault said. “If you didn’t enjoy that game, then you’re probably not going to be a real basketball fan anyway…I hope a lot of those people decide, hey, (the Mystics are) a group we’d like to come back and see.”

After the game, an 88-80 Mystics loss, Thibault, guard Natasha Cloud and several other players stuck around for the watch party.

“You know we support each other in this city … It’s a family here in D.C.,” Cloud said. “(The Caps) are a phenomenal team, they’re a great group of guys, so we’re just excited for them.”

Lynx power forward Rebekkah Brunson, a D.C. native, appreciated the Caps fans' enthusiasm.

"The hockey fans are a lot different than the basketball fans," Brunson said. "But if you’re ready for a great atmosphere, they were loud, they were in it, so I appreciate it and I hope that we won over some WNBA fans that probably initially didn’t watch the games.”