The Toronto Tempo continue to struggle against the best teams in the WNBA, falling 111 – 92 to the Atlanta Dream. To make matters worse, it seems like every time the Tempo play the Dream, controversy ensues.
We break down the good, bad, and outlook from this game.
The Good
Despite the loss, we have to give so much credit to Marina Mabrey. Chef Mabrey bounced back from a cold shooting night against Washington to lead all players with 26 points on an efficient 7 of 12 shooting. Tempo fans are now accustomed to seeing Mabrey dazzle each and every night, but that wasn’t always a given.
If you haven’t listened to this recent Bird’s Eye View podcast featuring Chef Mabrey and Brittney Sykes, it is a must listen. You will have a better appreciation of how incredibly hard Mabrey has worked to become a reliable number one option for this team.
In addition to Mabrey, the Tempo showed once again that when they are at their best, they can run with any team. When the ball is being shared and the extra passes are made, the Tempo play a very pretty brand of basketball that leads to the open 3’s that have become our bread and butter.
Despite a bad third quarter, we also saw the Tempo fight hard in the first half of the 4th quarter using a quicker pace and a barrage of threes to cut the Dream’s lead from 11 to 6. The team and Coca Cola Coliseum were humming; the Tempo were in the bonus and we thought there may have been a chance for a comeback – then the wheels fell off.
The Bad
This game featured the Tempo at their best and their worst.
Over the course of the season, we have seen the Tempo expose their defenidve Achilles Heels in two main areas: transition defense and protecting the paint. Atlanta took the game over by exploding those areas once again.
On multiple occasions, when the Tempo tried to set up their offense, they would either be too loose with their initial pass or the Dream would predict the first pass and shoot the gap. This led to 11 steals and 11 fast break points by the Dream (to zero by the Tempo, which stings more because of how good the Tempo are when we are the ones in transition).
At one point in the third, Laura Juskaite bobbled then dropped ball. When the Dream defender went on a fast break with the steal, Juskaite didn’t chase back with the intensity needed. On another play in the second half, the Tempo made a basket and immediately, the Dream lobbed the inbounds on a fast break for an easy layup. These points are deflating and the Tempo really need to crank up their defensive intensity to run back on every play.
We also feel like a broken record at this point, but the Dream outscored the Tempo in the paint, 60-38. Like other losses, the Dream also got 11 offensive rebounds to the Tempo’s four, leading to 15 second chance points (to the Tempo’s 10). Again, stop us if you feel like you have read these types of stats before.
Finally, we have to address the elephant in the room.
Following Nyara Sabally’s injury while defending a drive by Angel Reese, Coach Sandy Brondello complained about the call, calling Reese “a protected species”. The comment understandably drew criticism for racist intent. The following day, Brondello offered an apology to Angel. She has subsequently been suspended for one game by the league.
While a racist attack on Angel was not likely the Coach’s intent, and would be a far cry from Brondello’s past behavior and reputation, as her apology states, the impact of her remark is what’s most important.
We hope that this will serve as an important signal to Coach Sandy and all involved with the league that racist remarks aren’t tolerated from players, fans, coaches and announcers, regardless of intent. There is more interrogation of individual and structural racist realities facing black women in this league to be done.
The Outlook
This game was unfortunately another example of when the Tempo can start games well, show flashes of being able to beat great competition, but ultimately can’t finish. Our hope is for this team to last a little longer and be more consistent.
Of course, the fact that injuries continue to plague the team does not help. We hope Sabally will be able to see the court again as soon as possible.
The July from hell doesn’t get easier for the Tempo, as the defending WNBA champions, Las Vegas Aces, come to town. This will be the first time the Tempo and Canadian fans will see the best player in the league, A’ja Wilson. Wilson, paired with the championship core of Jackie Young and the point gawd, Chelsea Gray, will be ready to put on a show. The Tempo will also be without Coach Sandy Brondello. The Tempo will need to bring their absolute best from the first to the fortieth minute to have a chance at stealing this game.