“Sorry. Next time.”
That’s what Marina Mabrey said about breaking the WNBA single-game scoring record after her 53-point and record-tying outburst on Thursday night.
And as Edwin Garcia wrote, “Knowing the kind of player Mabrey is, the next time will be coming sooner rather than later.”
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Next time is here, with Mabrey and the Toronto Tempo hosting a Phoenix Mercury team that not only ranks in the bottom five defensively in league but also will be without their best defender in Alyssa Thomas, who will be absent due to a one-game suspension (2 p.m. ET, CBS).
Obviously, it’s absurd to imagine that Mabrey could even come close to matching the magic that she authored on Thursday night.
And yet, if anyone in women’s professional basketball is capable of dropping back-to-back 50-balls, it’s gotta be Marina!
She not only now owns a share of the WNBA single-game scoring record, but also is the sole proprietor of Unrivaled’s single-game points mark, as she ensured the 3×3 league’s road trip to Philadelphia would be memorable with a 47-point explosion.
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In Philly, the Lunar Owl drained an Unrivaled-record 10 3s as she lit up Rose. On Thursday, she swished nine triples, tying the WNBA single-game record for the second time in three games.
So, even though Mabrey ran out of gas on Thursday, electing not press for 54 points (or more) until the final buzzer sounded, it’s not hard to imagine that she has 10 or more 3s in her.
She also has more scoring upside from the foul line. Mabrey, in contrast to Liz Cambage and A’ja Wilson, the two players with which she shares the record, did not feast on free throws on her way to 53 points. Cambage benefitted from 15 made free throws, while Wilson added 20 points at the line. Mabrey was 10-for-12 from the lines.
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If Marina were to make 10 3s and 15 free throws, she would be at 45 points. Then, she would need just five 2-pointers to get to 55 points; on Thursday, she was 8-for-10 on 2s.
So, the math is there for Marina. And, we know she can conjure the magic!
What do you think? How likely is it that Mabrey does the impossible and ignites in record-breaking fashion for the second-straight game?
It’s worth noting that the Mercury’s Kahleah Copper witnessed Mabrey’s Unrivaled record as a member of Rose. Copper also is the partner of Mabrey’s older sister, Michaela. Marina, who jokingly noted that her sister only was in attendance for her record night because Copper and the Mercury were coming to Toronto on Saturday, also credited her sister for contributing to her success.
But maybe, there will be a reversal of fortunes on Saturday, with Kah, experiencing this underwhelming Mercury season, instead catching fire to lead Phoenix to a win? She just set her single-game career high, netting 41 points only two weeks ago. (The Sparks, again, were the victim.)
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Only 13 more points and the WNBA record becomes Copper-plated. Can Kah pull if off?
Or, should we look at roster of the Sparks’ next opponent to identify the WNBA star who is most likely to score more than 53 points?
Saturday’s matchup, unfortunately for LA, features a strong candidate.
After getting roasted and toasted in Toronto, the Sparks, now owners of the worst defense in WNBA history, visit another high-scoring team: the Indiana Fever (8 p.m. ET, CBS).
Toronto averages 91.4 points per game, the second-most in the league. The leaders? Yep, the Fever at 93 points per game.
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Kelsey Mitchell is responsible for 21.4 of those points, and with Caitlin Clark slated to be out of the lineup after she exited the Fever’s previous game with a back issue, KMitch could be primed for an explosion.
While Fever head coach Stephanie White’s offensive strategies have been much scrutinized this season, “Let Kelsey cook,” seems like a smart one.
Mitchell possesses elite ignitability. She is one of six players who, like Mabrey, has hit nine 3s in a WNBA game. She also has five games with seven 3-pointers, the most seven-triple games in W history. That list includes her latest game.
Mitchell, similar to Mabrey, also can enter a defense-agnostic zone where, even with a defender draped all over her and barely giving her any space to get off her shot, she still is able to fire up an attempt that drops in without hitting the rim. Mitchell also might own the nastiest handles in the game, with her ball skills made even more deadly due to her elite quickness. She can leave you in the dust, stop on a dime or destroy you with a series of dribble moves before the ball goes in the bucket.
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Mitchell has a 12 free-throw game in her career, as well as multiple games with 13 2-point makes. Nine 3-pointers, 13 2-pointers and 12 free throws, that’s 65 points! Scoring 54 points on this flammable LA defense should be light work for KMitch, right?
Surely, the Sparks will go all out to prove that, at least for one night, they are not the very worst defense of all-time, even if the stats currently suggest otherwise.
Although LA is missing the elite, albeit foul-prone, rim protection of Cameron Brink, the absence of Kelsey Plum should benefit the Sparks defense. The players slated to soak up the missing Plum minutes, Erica Wheeler and Rae Burrell, profile as more positive (or less negative) defenders. Wheeler, while undersized, will give lots of effort; Burrell, sometimes too undisciplined, has the athletic tools to be a disruptive defensive force. Add in Ariel Atkins and Nneka Ogwumike, both of whom have multiple defensive honors to their name, and there’s no excuse for LA to again get flamed on the defensive end.
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What are your thoughts?
Can the Sparks muster the resistance required to be respectable defensively? Or, is this team broken on that end and poised to permit yet another star to go off for an electric scoring night? Will Mitchell deepen LA’s defensive misery by putting on scoring show?
