It’s no secret that Sandy Brondello loves the three ball.
“Three is better than two” has been a common refrain from both her and Toronto Tempo players in the early going of the team’s inaugural season.
“We forced too many mid-rangers, which is not a good shot in the game,” Brondello said after the Tempo’s first game.
But in their last game against the Chicago Sky, they successfully improvised, hitting Nyara Sabally on the roll and driving closeouts as they were run off the line. Given that their opponent on Wednesday, the Connecticut Sun, came into the game top five in limiting opponents’ three-point attempts, they were in for another round of hard closeouts.
“Chicago did the same thing, didn’t they? We had 18 three-point attempts, and that’s the lowest for the season,” Brondello said pregame. “We only made four, and Izzy made two, which is quite remarkable in that regard. But in the end, take what the defence gives us. You know, it’s good to great, you know, paint to great. If we’re getting high-quality shots, you know I’m happy with that.
“We are a really good three-point shooting team and hopefully a little bit more quicker ball movement will get us more open looks.”
The Tempo played inside-out on Wednesday, struggling to get up 3s against a swarming Sun defence. But 38 points from the unyielding driving of Brittney “Slim” Sykes overcame Connecticut’s determined closeouts and domination in the key, allowing Marina Mabrey to redeem a poor shooting night with a triumphant overtime performance.
In the first quarter, faster ball movement didn’t materialize — Toronto took only five 3s, making two — but they were once again effective at countering. Laura Juškaitė’s aggression and timely cutting netted her six, Allemand played both fast and slow, organizing the offence and also running out for a trio of transition makes, and Slim led the way, relentlessly driving the gaps for a team-high 11 (she also lifted off staggered pin down screens and banged a 3).
But Aaliyah Edwards dominated down low, overwhelming the Tempo’s bigs with both fancy footwork and sheer strength. The Kingston, Ont.-born forward led Connecticut with 10 points on perfect 4-of-4 shooting near the start of the second quarter and her team led 37-36.
Edwards kept bulldozing her way downhill, and the Tempo had little recourse aside from sending her to the line. Meanwhile, their offence stagnated as few players aside from Slim were able to finish at the hoop. Juškaitė provided a spark after she checked back in, taking a high pitch from Allemand all the way to the basket. But they got up only 11 triples by half and didn’t make another after Mabrey and Slim’s in the first.
Leila Lacan canned her deep balls though, going 3-of-6, including a 28-foot bomb. A pair of free throws from the starting guard had the Tempo stuck 11 at the half.
Then Lacan stuck another triple to start the third. With the Sun’s lead rising, it was Juškaitė once again who galvanized the Tempo and kept them afloat. Her exuberant energy translated into back-to-back steals, both resulting in points. She was one of the few Tempo players who made the right read when the game sped up — she pushed the ball in transition and found Sabally with an open lane.
Eventually, Marina Mabrey let it rip on a 35-foot pull-up that caught all net, forced a Connecticut timeout and cut the deficit to five. And now we have a ballgame.
That seemed to open the floodgates as Mabrey canned another and Slim knocked down a catch-and-shoot triple, ending an 0-for-7 run from distance. Strong ball movement and advantage-extending drives created another open look for Julie Allemand, but it caught rim.
The real Slim stood up in the clutch, first hitting an acrobatic spinning fade in the dying seconds of the third. Then she flared off a screen and stuck another middy, before nailing a roof-raising 3 that made it a two-point game as Cola-Cola Coliseum erupted.
And while Slim starred, it was Juškaitė’s reliable finishing and strong decision-making that lifted the Tempo at critical moments and underpinned their fight. She followed another resilient drive and finish by draining an open, in rhythm, triple. Her first of the night. Juškaite had passed up other 3s previously in pursuit of better looks, but this one was just right.
The finish of the fourth was a ton of fouls, a ton of coaches’ challenges, a ton of free throws, and it all culminated in a 96-all tie at the buzzer. Coca-Cola got dead quiet as Slim drained the last two from the line, the crowd quickly oscillating from roars to silence. Free hoops.
The Tempo’s first overtime basket was a Marina Mabrey corner 3 on a grenade DHO. A play that failed them before. Edwards responded with a wing triple of her own and wore her heart on her sleeve with an emphatic celebration after.
The extra frame was Mabrey’s redemption. She scored only 15 points on 18 shots in regulation. But with the game on the line, she got another tough, measured drive to go and then grabbed a decisive steal. Another Slim layup and pair of free throws sealed it. What a win for the Tempo.
Connecticut SunConnecticut Sun 102 – 106 Toronto TempoToronto Tempo
Nyara Sabally Nyara Sabally30 MIN, 15 PTS, 5 REB, 3 AST, 0 STL, 3-5 FG, 0-1 3FG, 9-10 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 6 +/-Nyara's been so steady for the Tempo despite adjusting to a new role and she was quietly brilliant again in this game. Despite being overmatched at times in the paint and leaving much to be desired on the glass, her decision-making and craft were sublime.
Laura Juskaite Laura Juskaite37 MIN, 19 PTS, 6 REB, 2 AST, 4 STL, 5-7 FG, 1-1 3FG, 8-8 FT, 1 BLK, 0 TO, 16 +/-Note perfect game from Juškaitė. Big hustle putbacks, great cutting, aggressive and effective drives, fronted the post for a steal, made the right reads, perfect from the line. Couldn't ask for more.
Brittney Sykes Brittney Sykes41 MIN, 38 PTS, 4 REB, 1 AST, 2 STL, 11-20 FG, 3-6 3FG, 13-13 FT, 1 BLK, 2 TO, 4 +/-Ties a career-high and makes the free throws to both send it to OT and seal the win (in eerie silence). Her herky jerky driving and unflagging will is truly breathed life into the Tempo in this game.
Marina Mabrey Marina Mabrey34 MIN, 21 PTS, 1 REB, 1 AST, 3 STL, 8-20 FG, 4-12 3FG, 1-2 FT, 0 BLK, 3 TO, 4 +/-Really rough shooting night, missing plenty of triples and mid-range looks. But she made up for it by making crucial baskets in overtime. Money Mabrey Plus her off-ball defence was strong as she timed her help well and effectively face-guarded Diamond Miller at times.
Julie Allemand Julie Allemand36 MIN, 6 PTS, 2 REB, 4 AST, 2 STL, 3-5 FG, 0-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 4 TO, 14 +/-Tough game for Allemand. She had a couple brain-fart turnovers and look more hesitant than usual as she killed advantages. Did do well organizing the offence though, as usual, calling for a couple sets in the first. She also played fast, scoring all six of her points by pushing in transition in the first quarter.
Isabelle Harrison Isabelle Harrison13 MIN, 5 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST, 0 STL, 1-5 FG, 0-1 3FG, 3-8 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -3 +/-After an exceptional debut, Harrison was overmatched by Edwards and the Sun frontcourt in this game. It's reasonable to give her time to acclimate and get up to speed after the missed time. Did have a hard take along the baseline that drew free throws.
Maria Conde Maria Conde15 MIN, 0 PTS, 2 REB, 2 AST, 1 STL, 0-2 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 1 BLK, 2 TO, -10 +/-Did well as a secondary ball handler, but there weren't many other bright spots. Also struggled with Connecticut's physicality and made defensive miscues. Her transition back to the wing has ebbed and flowed.
Teonni Key Teonni Key9 MIN, 0 PTS, 3 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 0-4 FG, 0-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -9 +/-Stonewalled a drive in the lane and forced a turnover but struggled to finish over the Sun's bigs. Her intention is usually good but the execution has been lacking.
Kia Nurse Kia Nurse3 MIN, 0 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 0-1 FG, 0-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -1 +/-Missed her lone triple by a lot. Not much else to go off but Nurse's veteran presence as a connector and communicator is important.
Tima Pouye Tima Pouye8 MIN, 2 PTS, 2 REB, 2 AST, 0 STL, 0-0 FG, 0-0 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -1 +/-Played for a stretch in the fourth for her first significant minutes with the Tempo, and looked solid. She took care of the ball and had good instincts. Made the simple play and kept the ball moving, finding Slim's hot hands for a pair of assists.
Sandy Brondello Sandy BrondelloMost of the plays the Tempo ran didn't amount to much in this game, which wasn't because they're poorly drawn up sets, but rather just a mix of the Sun sitting on actions, playing good defence and the Tempo not executing. This stuff is mostly up to the players and Brondello is an unquestionably capable coach. Instead, their points came via random offence, where Brondello's principles of playing fast and making quick reads came through in the biggest moments.
Things we saw
A boatload of free throws, 80 total as the Tempo went 36-of-43 and the Sun went 25-of-37. Slim and Juškaitė both were perfect — 13-of-13 and 8-of-8, respectively.
The Tempo overcame a minus-17 deficit on the glass.
How did they win while getting buried on the boards? Toronto had 12 steals to Connecticut's three. That and the free-throw disparity were enough.