Overview
- Portland defeated Seattle 77-72 on Saturday night with Carla Leite scoring 20 points and making all 12 of her free throws to close a four-game road trip.
- The Fire improved to 9-12 on the season and went 1-3 on the road swing after the win.
- Portland arrived in Seattle fresh from a record-tying quadruple-overtime, one-point loss at Washington that tested the roster’s recovery and depth.
- Coach Alex Sarama’s frequent five-player substitution system helped keep the Fire competitive by limiting long minutes for individual players and sustaining energy late in games.
- Seattle, now 5-17, remains winless against Western Conference opponents and played without Taina Mair while Ezi Magbegor recently returned from a foot injury and made her season debut.