Shakira Austin had 18 points and 11 rebounds and scored the game’s last four points as the visiting Washington Mystics defeated the expansion Toronto Tempo 68-65 in the season opener for both teams Friday night.
Sonia Citron led the Mystics with 26 points and Kiki Iriafen added 12 points and 16 rebounds.
Marina Mabrey scored 27 points and Brittney Sykes added 14 to lead the Tempo.
Toronto scored the first five points of the third quarter to close within 37-35. Citron made a jumper for Washington’s first points of the period, but Mabrey’s 3-pointer pulled the Tempo within one point.
Citron made consecutive 3-pointers during an 8-0 run that gave Washington 47-38 lead. Mabrey made a free throw to end the run and Sykes scored the Tempo’s final four points to trim the lead to 51-47 at the end of the third quarter.
Toronto’s Laura Juskiate scored on a put-back to start the fourth quarter and trim the lead to two before Iriafen scored the next three points to give the Mystics a 54-49 lead. Mabrey scored four points during an 8-2 run that gave Toronto a 57-56 lead.
Citron scored five points as Washington took a five-point lead, but Sabally made a layup and Juskaite added a 3-pointer to tie the score at 63 with 1:53 left. Iriafen made one free throw, but Mabrey made two to give the Tempo a 65-64 lead with 32 seconds remaining.
Austin canned two free throws with 18 seconds left to retake the lead. Sykes missed a 3-pointer and Austin added two more free throws with 11 seconds left to go up by three.
A Mabrey turnover on a jump ball ended things.
The score was tied three times and the lead changed hands twice before Georgia Amoore’s 3-pointer completed a 9-0 run that gave the Mystics a 13-6 lead.
Julie Allemand’s 3-pointer ended the run as well as a 4 1/2-minute scoring drought for the Tempo. Nyara Sabally added a layup to pull Toronto within two points before Iriafen’s layup with 32 seconds left gave Washington a 17-13 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Citron’s layup started the second-quarter scoring and pushed the lead to six points before Mabrey’s six straight free throws pulled the Tempo even at 19. The Mystics scored the next five points, but Mabrey and Sykes each made a basket and two free throws to help Toronto take a 27-26 lead.
The score was tied at 28 before Washington scored five straight points on its way to a 37-30 halftime lead.
–Field Level Media
