There’s something about the Washington Mystics that the Toronto Tempo haven’t seemed to figure out this season.
After tonight’s 79-62 loss, the Tempo are now 0-3 against this Mystics team, and Tuesday’s 62 points was their worst offensive performance of the season.
The last time the Tempo scored 65 points or less was in their first game of the season, also against the Mystics.
“Credit to Washington,” said head coach Sandy Brondello after the game. “They really took us out of our stuff and made it really hard for us.”
It was a tough game all around offensively for the Tempo, with only point guard Julie Allemand scoring in double digits. She had 15 points, five rebounds and two assists in the game, and no one else on the roster scored more than Isabelle Harrison and Marina Mabrey’s eight points each.
“[Washington’s] physicality, rim protection, they’re really big,” Brondello said. “Their post players are massive. They got through screens on the perimeter extremely well.
“We went away from moving the ball as quickly as we could, and to have zero points in transition, that is our strength.”
Mabrey’s 3-for-13 shooting from the field was an out-of-character night for the first-time WNBA All-Star, who has been averaging 21.6 points per game this season. In an ideal situation, a lower output night from her would be balanced by the effort of Brittney Sykes – but Sykes has been out with injury since June 16.
“I think since the beginning of the season, I’m wondering if we have had one game with the full roster,” Allemand said. “Like, this is insane, and this is sad also because imagine if we have the full roster. It would be great.”
Sykes is recovering from a plantar fascia injury in her foot, and while there is no set timeline for her return, she is progressing in her recovery. After being seen walking around in a boot in the weeks following, she has since ditched it. She has started doing solo work in Tempo practices and is continuing her rehabilitation in Toronto.
Rookie Kiki Rice suffered a grade three ankle sprain on June 3 against the New York Liberty, an injury that typically has a recovery timeline of six weeks at the minimum. She has also been seen in Tempo practice working with trainers on her own. Brondello has said at practice that they “aren’t rushing” either player’s return to play, but the team does expect both Sykes and Rice to make a return this season.
Until then, the Tempo are trying to remain resilient with the players they do have. Toronto has the highest strength of schedule index as of Tuesday night in the entire league – meaning they have the most difficult opponents remaining in their schedule. They still have to play the Las Vegas Aces three times, the Minnesota Lynx twice, and the Indiana Fever twice.
“The bottom line, we just gotta do better,” Tempo centre Nyara Sabally said after the loss to the Mystics.
The Tempo will be back in action at home Friday night in their third game against the Atlanta Dream, another team Toronto has yet to win against this season.
