Not even Diana Taurasi’s former coach could believe Marina Mabrey’s 53-point game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Toronto Tempo head coach Sandy Brondello is one of the WNBA’s most successful coaches ever.
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Brondello has led locker rooms with big personalities and bigger skillsets. She has coached players like Brittney Griner, Diana Taurasi, Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu to championships. Only Minnesota‘s Cheryl Reeve has more wins than Brondello among active coaches.
But even Brondello, with 14 years of experience, couldn’t believe what Marina Mabrey did to the Los Angeles Sparks on Thursday night.
MORE: Marina Mabrey ties WNBA scoring record with monster performance vs. Sparks
Mabrey tied the WNBA record with a 53-point outburst in a 125-97 thrashing of the Sparks, and Brondello said that she had “never seen anything like that” — not even from Taurasi, the WNBA’s all-time leading scorer.
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Factually, Brondello is correct. Taurasi’s career high was 47 points, set during a triple-overtime win for the Phoenix Mercury over the Houston Comets on Aug. 10, 2006.
But Mabrey achieving her 53-point game — with nine 3-pointers — in regulation speaks to just how impressive it is.
Mabrey’s impact on the Tempo has become even more pronounced since her backcourt partner Brittney Sykes went down with a foot injury.
The seven-year veteran has averaged 37.7 points per game over the past three, and her 21.2 point-per-game average (fourth in the WNBA) is a career-best.
Nearly halfway through their first WNBA season, the Tempo are 9-9 and in the thick of the playoff race.
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Money Mabrey’s emergence as a lights-out shooting guard under Brondello’s tutelage is a major reason why.
