Flau’jae Johnson led the scoring with 20 points, supported by Dominique Malonga with 18, as the Seattle Storm defeated the undermanned Toronto Tempo 90-78 in a Wednesday night matchup. Jade Melbourne contributed 16 points and seven assists for Seattle, who had struggled in recent games, winning only one of their last 15 matches. Awa Fam and Zia Cooke each added 10 points to the Storm’s victory.
Toronto faced challenges with their top scorers sidelined; Marina Mabrey with an adductor injury, Brittney Sykes with a foot issue, and Nyara Sabally nursing a calf injury. Despite this setback, rookie Kiki Rice excelled with a season-high 24 points for Toronto, while Isabelle Harrison recorded 17 points and 14 rebounds.
Seattle took control in the third quarter, finishing with an 11-4 run to claim a 64-61 lead, and extended their advantage in the fourth quarter with a 9-2 spurt, securing a 10-point lead.
In their upcoming games, the Toronto Tempo will face Las Vegas on Friday night, while the Seattle Storm will host Los Angeles on Sunday.