Quick Reaction: Tempo 86, Storm 73

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 after her team shot a woeful 27 per cent from the field in their season-opener. ” … 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.

“You look at last game, you don’t want to repeat it,” Brittney Sykes said after the victory. “Win, lose or draw, I think we got better tonight, that’s the biggest takeaway.”

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 (mis)handled the Mystics’ bigs, with Shakira Austin and Kiki Iriafen both posting double-doubles. And the early goings of Wednesday’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 on 10. 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 Brittney Sykes fouled the Storm sophomore on a breakaway layup right before the buzzer.

But as the Tempo went into the break, surely looking to find ways to slow down Malonga and Dolson, there was solace in the fact that the offence, which previously “lingered,” had found somewhat of a rhythm — outpacing their four-quarter scoring effort against Washington in just three frames versus Seattle.

The same team that logged all of 10 assists against the Mystics had racked up nine at halftime against the Storm, and finished with 21 on 30 made shots, much to the prideful acknowledgement of Brondello post-game.

“When we’re moving the ball and playing together, it looks good,” the Tempo bench boss said. “We made steps forward. Obviously, not our end destination, we know we can keep getting better, but it was nice to get the win, and these players play like they did.”

And that was a testament to both sides of their offensive actions. Passes came sooner, and recipients were far more intentional about carving out scoring opportunties — 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 on Wednesday than she did all game against the Mystics.

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The Spaniard finished the opening half with 10 points off the bench on 4-of-5 shooting, matching Marina Mabrey for a team-high in scoring as the pair helped reduce the halftime deficit to 45-44.

“You see what (Conde) is capable of,” Brondello said after the WNBA rookie finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and a steal in 29 minutes off the bench. “Very high IQ player … her overall energy, rebounding, really proud of her.”

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, first a pair of line-drive layups, then a deep paint touch into a post-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 played at Toronto’s Coca-Cola Coliseum, and not in 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.

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“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 bench boss’ words, 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 while Seattle was forced to call a timeout. She’d finish with a game-high 26 points, marking the first time in Mabrey’s eight-year career that she’s posted back-to-back performances of at least 25 points.

From there, the Tempo took care of business, doing so on the heels of their perimeter production and a standout defensive effort in the clutch — holding the Storm to just 11 points on 3-of-10 shooting in the fourth quarter, coupled with five Seattle turnovers.

As for Malonga? She was limited to just seven points and six shot attempts in the second half, including none in the final 10 minutes.

“If you’re in our practices, you hear Marina every water break ‘fourth and defence,'” Sykes explained. “We know that’s going to win games, we’re just going to have to lock down and defend … it’s a game within the game, defence can’t go nowhere.”

Brondello echoed that sentiment: “When we need to, it starts with that defensive identity. That’s where we get the energy, get out and run.”

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 Storm

73 – 86

Toronto Tempo

B+	Nyara Sabally 26 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.
C-	Teonni Key 8 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.

B	Brittney Sykes 33 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.
A	Marina Mabrey 29 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.
C+	Julie Allemand 29 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.
A-	Maria Conde 29 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.

C-	Nikolina Milic 10 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.
C-	Laura Juskaite 7 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.
C-	Kia Nurse 7 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.
Inc	Lexi Held 2 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.

B+	Kiki Rice 21 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.
A	Sandy Brondello Sandy 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.