WNBA : Washington edge it after four overtimes as Carla Leite comes agonizingly close to a huge feat
There are nights that just go way beyond the usual. Sunday in Washington against Portland was one of them. After nearly three and a half hours, four overtime periods and 247 points, the Mystics finally came out on top 124-123 in one of the wildest games in WNBA history.
It matched a previous record that had stood for 25 years: only one other game in the league had ever needed four overtimes.
Carla Leite carried Portland to the bitter end
Even in defeat, it was impossible to ignore Carla Leite. The French point guard produced the best game of her young career with 32 points and kept the Fire alive almost single-handedly for long stretches. As Washington looked to have the win in regulation, the 22-year-old sent it to overtime with a three-pointer with just four-tenths of a second left. She then kept landing the big shots, including a long-range effort to force a second overtime for Portland.
In the minutes that followed, every possession seemed to run through her. Even after a heavy fall left her clearly hampered, Carla Leite kept attacking the rim and answering back. With 13 seconds left in the fourth overtime, she even had a chance to tie it at the free-throw line before getting one last possession. Her final floater just missed.
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Washington had the final say
At the other end, Sonia Citron delivered the game of her career with 32 points, including the basket that put Washington in front for good with just over 20 seconds remaining. Michaela Onyenwere added 30 and Kiki Iriafen chipped in 27. The Mystics became the first team in WNBA history to have three players score at least 27 points in the same game. Eight players also played more than 45 minutes, another first for the league.
With 21 ties, 12 lead changes and four overtime periods, this one will go down as one of the defining games of the modern WNBA era. For Carla Leite, the win slipped away, but this performance only underlined just how impressive her season has been for the Fire.
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