Despite her blockbuster 36-pointer, Marina Mabrey and the Toronto Tempo couldn’t save the boat against the Atlanta Dream on August 10. And the Tempo Guard knew what went wrong.

“Personally, I feel like if we had cleaned up the offense in the second quarter, I think it would have been a little easier if we were defending a half-court set and not a transition D every time,” she said in the postgame conference.

The Tempo’s 107-95 blowout loss to Atlanta marked its 9-game losing streak, putting the team at 10-22. Despite Mabrey’s scoring surge and rookie guard Kiki Rice adding 18 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists, the Dream bit the Tempo’s ankle hard in the 2^nd quarter.

Dream star Angel Reese had 20 points and 14 rebounds, Rhyne Howard chipped in 22 points and 7 assists, and Jordin Canada racked up 20 points and 9 assists. They outscored Toronto 30-17 in the 2^nd quarter.

Both teams went toe-to-toe throughout the whole game, but Mabrey’s squad never quite recovered from the 2^nd quarter downfall. And there were definitely more.

“I think we didn't do a good job on offense,” she added. “We were giving the ball to them, and our spacing was bad. They're really good in transition. So, if we don't get a good shot on goal, a turnover or a bad shot, they're probably going to score.”

However, we do know who could save the Tempo in this scenario.

Toronto Tempo Needs Brittney Sykes Back

If a team cannot produce, the best they can do is guard, block and stop the opposition. The Tempo having just Mabrey as an offensive powerhouse compared to the Dream’s three 20-point scorers, exposed a vital defensive lack. Which is why Sykes’ return is an urgent need.

“We can't allow people to score 107 points,” Tempo coach Sandy Brondello added. “Defense is such a big need for us, and that's what Slim (Sykes) does well. I think that will give the others confidence too because of her ability to play one-on-one and guard the best player.”

Before being out with a plantar fascia injury on June 16, Sykes was averaging 20.1 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists. So, having her back solves a lot of all-around issues.

The coach didn’t give an exact timeline for Sykes’ return but gestured that she’s recovering well.

Do you think her return will finally provide the help Tempo needs currently? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Deblina Roy