TORONTO — “For me, most importantly, I’m just focused on us playing better than we did last game.”
The message from Toronto Tempo head coach Sandy Brondello heading into Wednesday night’s matchup against the Seattle Storm was clear.
Despite her team clawing back against the Washington Mystics in what ended up as a three-point loss, and even acknowledging the role of “nerves,” it was evident that moral victories were not going to cut it anymore even after a feel-good, history making effort last Friday.
“When you can keep a team to 68 points, that’s a game you should win.”
Well, why didn’t they?
“Our running habits, we lingered,” Brondello explained pre-game on Wednesday. ” … and moving the ball, we can’t have 10 assists and expect to win.”
So, with their mindset clear and boxes waiting to be checked, the Tempo tipped off against an upstart Storm squad and did what was required to capture an 86-73 win, the first victory in the expansion franchise’s history.
Weathering the storm
While the Tempo may have been satisfied with their overall defensive effort from Game 1, if there was one glaring weakness, it was how they handled the Mystics bigs, with Shakira Austin and Kiki Iriafen both racking up double-doubles. And the early goings of Wedneday’s game looked to be telling a similar story.
Storm forward Dominique Malonga racked up 14 first-half points, with centre Stefanie Dolson not far behind with 10 points. The duo combined to make 9-of-16 shots, including 4-of-5 from beyond the arc. Malonga opened the half with a right-wing triple and would’ve ended it with a couple more points had she hit her free-throws after getting fouled by Brittney Sykes on a breakway layup right before the buzzer.
But as the Tempo went into the break surely looking to find ways to slowdown Malonga and Dolson, there was solace in knowing the offence which “lingered” throughout Game 1 had found somewhat of a rhythm.
The same team that logged all of 10 assists against Washington had racked up nine at halftime against Seattle. And that was a testament to both sides of their offensive actions. Passing came sooner and recipients were far more willing to let it fly — like Maria Conde, who not only drilled back-to-back threes as part of a 13-6 run, but took more shots through one half than she did all game against the Mystics.
The Spaniard finished the half with 10 points off the bench on 4-of-5 shooting, matching Marina Mabrey for a team-high as the pair helped reduce the halftime deficit to 45-44.
Not far behind the pair was rookie Kiki Rice, who after going scoreless in her regular-season debut, more than made up for it with nine points in the opening half on Wednesday.
To say Rice had found her confidence would’ve been an understatement. The guard was relentless in her pursuit of shots up close, firt a pair of line drive layups, then a deep paint touch into a fading turnaround and lastly an attack off a closeout into a quick cross and finish at the basket.
Rain and drain
While there’s no denying Wednesday’s game was being played in Toronto at the Coca-Cola Coliseum, and not Seattle, there was reason to believe otherwise considering how much it was raining in the building.
The pair of Conde and Mabrey once again led that charge, combining to shoot 4-of-8 from deep in the third quarter, as they spearheaded the Tempo’s turnaround, flipping the halftime deficit into a 67-62 lead headed into the final frame.
“I want them to shoot it when we’re open,” Brondello explained pre-game. “I thought we actually gave up some threes for some of our role players (against Washington). They need to shoot it, they have to be prepared to shoot it.”
It’s safe to say Brondello’s players heeded the words of the bench boss, as the Tempo went on to finish 11-of-29 shooting from beyond the arc.
Mabrey knocked down two more three-pointers herself in the fourth quarter, including a 29-footer from the right-wing at the 4:00 mark that gave the Tempo their first double-digit lead of the night and sent the 8,142 fans in attendance into a frenzy as Seattle was forced to call a timeout. She’d finish with a game-high 26 points.
From there the Tempo took care of business, doing so on the heels of their perimeter production and a standout defensive efofrt in the clutch — holding the Storm to just 11 points on 3-of-10 shooting in the fourth quarter.
As for Malonga? She was held to just seven points and six shot attempts in the second half.
Up next
The Tempo return to action on Friday, when they visit the Los Angeles Sparks to tip off a four-game road trip.
Seattle StormSeattle Storm 73 – 86 Toronto TempoToronto Tempo
Nyara Sabally Nyara Sabally26 MIN, 8 PTS, 5 REB, 3 AST, 2 STL, 2-4 FG, 0-1 3FG, 4-6 FT, 2 BLK, 2 TO, 8 +/-With no Temi Fagbenle available, Nyara Sabally certainly stepped up. She popped as a rolling threat all night, despite the low box-score results. But her work on the defensive end is what truly stood out. She made post-entry passes difficult, racked up deflections and was even rejecting shots up close.
Teonni Key Teonni Key8 MIN, 2 PTS, 1 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 1-1 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 1 BLK, 0 TO, 1 +/-The rookie was put in a tough spot, starting in place of the injured Temi Fagbenle and opposite star sophomore Dominique Malonga. And while she had some positive moments early, namely a nice swat on fellow rookie Flau’jae Johnson and than a nice dunker-spot catch and finish off a feed from Brittney Sykes, Key’s impact largely stopped there. She was replaced by Maria Conde to start the second half, as the Spaniard had it going.
Brittney Sykes Brittney Sykes33 MIN, 18 PTS, 8 REB, 6 AST, 1 STL, 5-14 FG, 0-2 3FG, 8-9 FT, 1 BLK, 4 TO, 11 +/-A mixed bag of a game for Slim. She was relentless, which led to positive moments such as a nice offensive rebound, putback and subtle flex for good measure. But also some negatives, like an errant kickout pass that led to a turnover right before the break — compounded with a foul on Dominique Malonga, who was out and running the other way. She found her groove in the second-half, however, showing off her quick burst with a couple of impressive line-drive layups.
Marina Mabrey Marina Mabrey29 MIN, 26 PTS, 4 REB, 3 AST, 4 STL, 9-20 FG, 6-11 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, 14 +/-If there was any thought that Mabrey’s tough-shot taking and making from Game 1 was a fluke, she quelled those concerns quite emphatically. A pair of early step-back threes, the first of which came after some dazzling dribble moves, really gave a sense of just how deep her bag is. She then kept it going all night, hitting deep three after deep three, including one from the right-wing in the fourth that sent Coca-Cola Coliseum into a frenzy and gave the Tempo their first double-digit lead of the night.
Julie Allemand Julie Allemand29 MIN, 2 PTS, 3 REB, 6 AST, 3 STL, 1-5 FG, 0-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 3 TO, 19 +/-Another quiet offensive night for the Tempo’s floor general. The hope is she will start to get more aggressive offensively, although pulling up into a one-legged stepback in the paint was thoroughly entertaining to watch. In the meantime, Allemand has been an absolute ballhawk defensively. Her three first-half steals all came thanks to some keen timing to step into gaps and passing lanes.
Maria Conde Maria Conde29 MIN, 16 PTS, 8 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 6-13 FG, 4-8 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, 11 +/-After taking four shots all game in her WNBA debut, the Spaniard bounced back in a BIG way. She hunted looks all game, starting with a pair of threes in the first that sparked a 13-6 run. This is the Maria Conde the Tempo raved about when picking her in the expansion draft.
Nikolina Milic Nikolina Milic10 MIN, 2 PTS, 1 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 1-1 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, 3 +/-Not the most impactful 10 minutes but the fact that Sandy Brondello was willing to use one of Milic's 12 development-contract games so early, shows the trust she has in the forward.
Laura Juskaite Laura Juskaite7 MIN, 0 PTS, 1 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 0-1 FG, 0-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 4 +/-After a strong debut and pre-season this was the Lithuanian's quietest game thus far. Passing up on early shots proved to be a precursor for a somewhat passive night.
Kia Nurse Kia Nurse7 MIN, 0 PTS, 0 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 0-1 FG, 0-1 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -1 +/-The vet didn't hinder the flow of traffic on offence and wasn't notably hunted on the other end throughout her seven minutes. Can't ask for much more on most nights.
Lexi Held Lexi Held2 MIN, 0 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 0-0 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -2 +/-Lexi’s role has remained limited in a deep backcourt rotation but she came in briefly and immediately make an impact by drawing an offensive foul. While her role remains in flux, winning her minutes will always help her case.
Kiki Rice Kiki Rice21 MIN, 12 PTS, 2 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 5-9 FG, 1-3 3FG, 1-1 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -3 +/-After going scoreless in Game 1 of her WNBA career, it was clear that Kiki was looking to rectify that. Two bee-line drives up the court got her on the board and then she canned a nice post-turnaround before attacking a closeout for a sweet finish up close. Adding her first three at the pro-level for good measure didn't hurt either.
Sandy Brondello Sandy BrondelloSandy Brondello made it clear coming into the game that the team could not linger and that ball movement would be paramount. 17 transition points (plus-15) and 21 assists (plus-3) later, it's safe to say her game plan was executed to a tee. Swapping Key for Conde to start the second half was also a nice adjustment.
Things we saw
The Tempo have harped on defence being the defining characteristic of their game. Holding the Storm to one made field-goal in the final seven minutes serves as quite the proof of concept.
Ex-Raptor Chris Boucher, Raptors 905 head coach Drew Jones and former Canadian senior women's team captain Natalie Achonwa (assistant coach with the Storm) were all attendance! Great to see the Tempo bridging so much of the basketball community.
Speaking of attendance, make that back-to-back sellout crowds for the Tempo. Hell yeah.