The Golden State Valkyries set the bar for future WNBA expansion franchises last season. In 2025, the Valkyries finished 23-21 and became the first expansion franchise to reach the playoffs in its inaugural season, all while setting an all-time WNBA attendance record.
The Toronto Tempo have accepted the challenge.
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The Tempo are only five games into their inaugural WNBA season, and they couldn’t have realistically asked for a better start.
They lost their season opener to the Washington Mystics, but they played it before a sold-out crowd at Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto. Former UCLA star Kiki Rice, the franchise’s first-ever draft pick, has shown why she was selected sixth overall in April. But above all, veteran guards Brittney Sykes and Marina Mabrey are having an out-of-body experience.
On Tuesday, the Tempo defeated the Phoenix Mercury, 98-90. Mabrey scored 30 points on 11-of-23 shooting from the floor, including 6-of-14 from three. Sykes, a one-time All-Star and four-time All-Defensive selection, one-upped her, literally — scoring 31 points on 10-of-19 shooting, including 4-of-8 from three.
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“Brittney Sykes and Marina Mabrey are the first teammates in WNBA history to each record 30-points in a single game during a franchise’s first season,” ESPN Insights posted on X.
Mabrey and Sykes made history in Toronto before the season even started.
The Tempo selected Mabrey from the Connecticut Sun and 10 other players in the WNBA Expansion Draft on April 3. About a week later, they signed Sykes to a multi-year contract in free agency.
“With each agreeing to two-year deals at about the max in Year 1, they are the first known million-dollar backcourt pairing under the WNBA’s new collective bargaining agreement and a huge splash for the expansion team,” ESPN’s Alexa Philippou reported on April 10.
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The Tempo (3-2) will next visit the Minnesota Lynx (2-2) on Thursday night.
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