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Phoenix Mercury Waive Tiana Mangakahia

The former Syracuse star did not make the final roster for the Mercury.
Mike McAllister|
Phoenix Mercury Waive Tiana Mangakahia
Phoenix Mercury Waive Tiana Mangakahia

Former Syracuse star Tiana Mangakahia has been waived by the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury, the team announced on Wednesday. Mangakahia signed a free agent deal with the Mercury after not being selected in the 2021 WNBA Draft. She scored seven points on 2-4 shooting (3-3 from the free throw line), had one rebound, one assist, one steal and five turnovers in 15 minutes in the Mercury's only preseason game. 

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"Wow!!!," Mangakahia wrote on Instagram. "What an experience. Once of the best basketball experiences of my life. Thank you Phoenix Mercury for such an awesome time. I couldn't have asked for better vets to learn from. Diana Taurasi and Skylar Diggins thank you for taking me under your wings and helping me throughout the camp. Forever Grateful for the opportunity. The Marathon continues." 

Mangakahia led college basketball in assists (7.2) during her final season at Syracuse, her first after returning from battling stage two breast cancer. She is the ACC's all-time leader in career assists per game.

One of the best players in college basketball during the 2018-19 campaign, she had to deal with the toughest opponents of her life during the following offseason when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in June 2019. She received a phone call one morning from her doctor to reveal the diagnosis.

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Between July and October, Mangakahia underwent eight rounds of chemotherapy to battle the disease. During a five hour surgery in November, doctors removed what remained of the tumor. They did not find cancer cells in what was removed, and she was diagnosed as cancer free.

After missing the entire 2019-20 season while she recovered, Mangakahia returned to the court one year after being declared cancer free. She led Syracuse to a season opening win at Stony Brook and scored 16 points in the victory.

Mangakahia is a two time Nancy Lieberman Point Guard Award top 5 finalist, and three time top 10 finalist. She is a two time WBCA All America Honorable Mention. She finished her Syracuse career averaging 15.8 points and 8.7 assists per game. 

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Mike McAllister
MIKE MCALLISTER

Title: Publisher All Syracuse Education: Roberts Wesleyan College Location: Syracuse, New York Expertise: Syracuse basketball, football and recruiting.  EXPERIENCE Mike McAllister has been covering Syracuse basketball, football and recruiting for more than a decade. Mike's career started with his own free blog as a way to vent following sporting events. Shortly thereafter, a network of basketball sites called Coast 2 Coast Hoops asked him to run their Syracuse site. That site was called Nation of Orange, and Mike quickly established it as a go-to for Syracuse fans.  After running Nation of Orange for several months, a position with the Syracuse site on the Scout network became available. After one year as the recruiting expert with Cuse Nation, he was named the publisher. Mike oversaw the transition from Scout to 247Sports, and ran the site on that network for years.  Presented with the opportunity to join one of the biggest names in the sports journalism industry, Sports Illustrated, Mike jumped at the chance. All Syracuse was started from scratch by Mike and the Fan Nation team. It has now become a staple for Orange fans of various sports.  Mike has broken news on recruiting, Syracuse basketball and football team information and has established himself as the top recruiting inside in the market. He has appeared on local radio shows, television broadcasts, national radio shows and much more. Mr. McAllister has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting and Information Management from Roberts Wesleyan College. 

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