The Toronto Tempo's postseason hopes officially ended Wednesday night. The Washington Mystics beat the expansion side 93-82, eliminating the Tempo from the WNBA playoffs in their inaugural season and stretching their losing streak to 12 games.
Short-Handed Toronto Outmatched on the Glass in Tempo vs Mystics
Toronto suited up without four key starters as Marina Mabrey, Brittney Sykes, Nyara Sabally, and Maria Conde were all sidelined with lower-body injuries. The game also came on the final stretch of a back-to-back, one night after a loss to the Indiana Fever. Meanwhile, the Mystics entered on an eight-game home winning streak.
Washington dominated the boards, outrebounding the Tempo 43-27 and turning that into a 23-7 advantage in second-chance points. Kiki Iriafen led all scorers with 21 points and 13 rebounds, while Shakira Austin added 11 and 10 for her own double-double.
For Toronto, rookie Kiki Rice posted a career-high 19 points. Aneesah Morrow added 13 points and 8 rebounds. Still, a 9-point second quarter, a franchise low for any single period, put the Tempo in a hole they couldn't climb out of.
At 10-25, the Toronto Tempo sit in last place in the league with about a month of regular season play remaining. The focus now turns from playoff berths to development heading into year two.
