Our Flame Never Died…Fire Set Expansion Crowd Record for Home Opener
The Portland Fire set a WNBA expansion team attendance record in a home opener with a crowd of 19,335.
From the player introductions, to Ashanti’s halftime performance, to the almost 20,000 person roaring crowd…it was a night to remember in Portland. The Fire set a WNBA expansion attendance record for the largest attendance ever at an expansion team's inaugural home opener, drawing a sellout crowd of 19,335.
Alex Sarama has clearly established the team’s identity. High pressure defense + creatively timed traps, ball movement, and lots of threes. The Fire forced two 8 second violations, to which the crowd lost their minds. It was clear early on, whether or not the Fire end up with many wins, they will certainly be fun to watch.
Speaking of the crowd, that was special. Almost 20,000 people for the Fire’s first official sellout. Skylar Diggins even mentioned the Sky’s struggle to hear in the first quarter as she was thoroughly impressed by the crowd. It was one of the loudest crowds I’ve personally ever been a part of, and Skylar Diggins seemed to agree.
The game was lost in the rebounding disparity. The Fire were out-rebounded 46-24, it’ll be tough to win most games if that’s a consistent issue. The good news is, despite that, the Fire kept the game close throughout the night, even winning the third quarter 30-18. At the end of the day, the Fire had no answers for Kamilla Cardoso and Skylar Diggins as they combined for 43 points, 25 rebounds and 8 assists.
Tonight’s MVPs:
Sarah Ashlee Barker, Bridget Carleton, and Carla Leite.
Thank you for reading, go Fire!❤️🔥
