Carla Leite went 15 of 17 from the line and dragged Portland out of its slump
Aug 6, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Fire guard Carla Leite (0) drives to the basket during the first half against the Toronto Tempo at Moda Center.
Thursday night in Portland, Carla Leite did not have a big shooting night from the outside. She did something more telling: she attacked the basket relentlessly, drew contact, and converted 15 of 17 free-throw attempts on her way to 27 points, 4 rebounds and 11 assists. The Fire beat the Toronto Tempo 97-83, ending a five-game losing streak and handing Toronto its eighth straight defeat.
Leite finished 5 of 12 from the field, including 2 of 5 from 3-points range — modest numbers on paper for a 27-point outing. The gap was made up entirely at the line. Getting into the paint and forcing the defense into fouls, rather than knocking down jumpers, was the defining thread of her night, according to the WNBA player page.
A game built quarter by quarter
Portland set the tone early. Megan DiLeo scored 8 points on 4-of-5 shooting in the first quarter, helping the Fire take a 25-23 lead. The margin grew steadily in the second period, with reserve Frieda Buhner hitting a 3-pointer that gave Portland its first double-digit advantage at 45-35. Leite then capped the half with a jumper with two seconds left, sending the teams to the break at 51-37.
By the end of the third quarter, Leite already had 20 points, and Portland led 81-59 — the game was effectively decided. Toronto made a brief push late, with Aneesah Morrow scoring off the bench to cut the deficit to 91-83 with just over three minutes remaining, but Portland closed it out.
DiLeo finished with 17 points for the Fire, while Buhner added 10 off the bench. For Toronto, Nyara Sabally led all scorers with 17 points, Julie Allemand contributed 11 points and 12 assists, and Bridget Carleton posted 10 points and 11 rebounds.
It was the second meeting of the season between the two expansion franchises. Portland had already beaten Toronto 99-80 back on May 23 in Toronto, the first-ever matchup between the two teams.
Leite’s season in context
Leite — a 22-year-old point guard from France, a country most WNBA fans are only starting to associate with women’s basketball beyond Gabby Williams — is averaging 15.9 points, 6.4 assists and 2.3 rebounds per game across 29 appearances this season, with a career high of 32 points. Thursday’s line marked her third 20-point double-double of the year, another marker of her growing consistency as the primary engine of a franchise still in the early stages of construction.
Portland improved to 11-19 on the season — nowhere near playoff contention, and this article isn’t about pretending otherwise. But the Fire are clearly building around Leite as their long-term cornerstone. Toronto, meanwhile, has lost 12 of its last 13 games and heads to Atlanta on Monday to try to snap its own skid.
Portland is back in action Saturday, hosting the Seattle Storm as it chases a season sweep of the expansion franchise it has now beaten twice.
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