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WNBA Folds in Sacramento, Seeks Bay Area Owner for 2010

Michelle Smith — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:06:00 EST

Filed under: Kings, WNBA

The Sacramento Monarchs, one of the WNBA's original eight franchises folded Friday, leaving the league to scramble to find a new ownership group, possibly in the San Francisco Bay Area, in time for the 2010 season.

The league announced Friday that it is in talks to find a Bay Area ownership group prepared to take the team over.

WNBA president Donna Orender confirmed Friday evening that negotiations with an investor group are underway.

"The Bay Area is a market we wanted to be in within two years, so this accelerates that process that was already in place," Orender said. "We are hoping to have it worked out very soon."

Joe and Gavin Maloof have owned and operated the Monarchs, but financial losses from their ownership of the NBA's Sacramento Kings forced them to give up the WNBA franchise.

"We love the Monarchs, but it's time to re-focus," Joe Maloof told the Sacramento Bee. "Everyone in this business environment ... you have to do what has to be done. Our focus is to turn the Kings around."

Orender confirmed that she is talking to an investor group, not an individual, but she declined to identify them and said the league would like to speak to anyone interested in ownership of the team. She said she feels strongly a Bay Area team could ultimately be "one of our most successful franchises.''

"It's a market with strong support for women's sports and this is a ready-made team with players that have local ties," Orender said. "The ramp-up for this team would not be as long as it could be in another situation."

The Golden State Warriors are not among the potential new owners.

Oakland city council member Rebecca Kaplan has been pursuing an ownership group for a WNBA team for months. She said she has been in active talks with potential owners in Oakland and has met with Orender. Kaplan is pushing hard to locate the team in Oakland. Orender said she could not say where the team would be located at this point.

"The ideal scenario for this team would be to move to a place that could take advantage of a new fan base, but be near enough for the (Sacramento) fan base to come and watch games and Oakland is as near as you can get," Kaplan said. "There are a lot of reasons that Oakland is an ideal spot."

Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty, who is the chairman of the Oakland Coliseum Authority that oversees Oracle Arena in Oakland, said a WNBA team would be welcome in the area, but it is important to "approach things cautiously" because of the arena's existing relationship with the Warriors, its main tenant.

"We would want to create a deal that's a win-win for everybody, including the WNBA," Haggerty said.

A move to the Bay Area -- whether it be Oakland, San Francisco or San Jose -- would make great sense here, allowing the league to maintain the team roster, which has two key players with Bay Area ties. Leading scorer Nicole Powell was an All-American at Stanford and the team's top draft pick a year ago was Courtney Paris, who grew up in nearby Piedmont.

The team also currently holds the No. 2 pick in the spring draft, and that pick could well be Stanford center Jayne Appel, giving the team three strong ties to the area. The players on the current roster will not be dispersed while the future of the team is being determined.

But placing a team in the Bay Area in the next six months is a tall task. If a deal cannot be reached in the very near future (within a couple of weeks), the league could be forced to disband the team and put the players in a dispersal draft if a solid investor group doesn't come together quickly. The league then could revisit putting an expansion team in the Bay Area without such a rush.

But the news of the Monarchs' demise sent shockwaves through the organization. The players were informed of the decision before the news was released publicly on Friday afternoon.

The team's general manager and head coach, John Whisenant, told a local television station in Sacramento that he was "shocked" by the announcement.

"Joe and Gavin (Maloof) called me (Thursday) night and told me," Whisenant said. "I was kept in the dark like everyone else."

Ticha Penicheiro, one of the team's original players who had been on the roster since 1997, posted on her Twitter Friday that she was "distraught". "This is one of the saddest days of my life," read her Twitter post.

The WNBA has long had an interest in placing a team in the Bay Area, the fifth-largest media market in the country. Other attempts to find an ownership to run the team in previous years have not been successful.

"The Bay Area has been a desirable market for the WNBA and the availability of the Monarchs provides an opportunity to move a well-known franchise and broaden its fan base within Northern California," Orender said in the statement issued by the league.

The biggest issue may be securing a venue. Oracle Arena in Oakland is the home court for the Golden State Warriors. There have been talks with arena management about moving a WNBA team into the venue over the summer months but no agreement has been reached, sources say. There is also the potential that the team could be located at San Jose's HP Pavilion, which shares its facility with the NHL's San Jose Sharks. San Francisco is the longest shot because the city does not currently have an indoor pro sports facility.

The league has already experienced two ownership changes since the season ended a month ago. The WNBA moved one franchise in the last month, relocating the Detroit Shock to Tulsa and shepherded a change of ownership for the Atlanta Dream.

The Monarchs have been among the league's most consistently successful teams, winning the league title in 2005 and the Western Conference crown in 2006. They have made nine trips to the playoffs in 13 seasons.

The team is coming off a 12-22 season, the worst record in the league this past season. Only New York, Los Angeles and Phoenix remain among the league's original franchises in their original cities.

WNBA Folds in Sacramento, Seeks Bay Area Owner for 2010 originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:06:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Could Nancy Lieberman Become the NBA's First Female Head Coach?

Chris Tomasson — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:30:00 EST

Filed under: Mavericks, WNBA, D-League, FanHouse Exclusive, NBA Coaches

The D-League today. The NBA tomorrow.

Why not?

If there ever will be a female NBA head coach in my lifetime, I'm thinking Nancy Lieberman has got a shot. Lieberman took the first step toward that Thursday when she was named head coach of the Dallas Mavericks' D-League team in Frisco, Texas, that will begin play next year.

"If I am successful, I'm sure that I will be looked at (by the NBA),'' Lieberman, while on her way to her press conference to be introduced, told FanHouse by phone. "If I'm not successful, I won't be.''

More: Lieberman Officially Introduced

Lieberman, the first woman ever to be a head coach in the D-League, is thinking primarily about that stint now. But she doesn't deny an eventual goal is to be the first woman to coach an NBA team.

"I'm aspiring to be the best coach I can be,'' said Lieberman, 51, who has been an ESPN NBA analyst in recent seasons but has stepped down from that position to concentrate on next season's coaching gig.

It was the same way when the Hall of Famer was a player. She made the 1976 U.S. Olympic team at 17, starred at Old Dominion and was a top pro.

When there weren't U.S. women's leagues in which to star, she battled the guys. Lieberman made history by playing against men in the United States Basketball League with the Springfield (Mass.) Fame in 1986. She also played against NBA players in summer leagues, being coached by Pat Riley in a 1980 Los Angeles league and by Frank Layden in a 1986 Salt Lake City league.

"I've always been a pioneer,'' she said.

Now, she's one in the D-League. The league is for players trying to get to the next level, so why not coaches?

For now, Lieberman, who has been a head coach in the WNBA, doesn't think it will be a big deal coaching guys.

"The players want to have instruction, and I'm sure they will (have no problem with her being a woman),'' said Lieberman, who long has lived in the Dallas area and said she was approached about the job a "few months ago'' by Donnie Nelson, the D-team's part-owner and a Mavericks executive. "It's like in the (sports media) business. There are woman sports editors who are able to do the job.''

If any player doubts Lieberman, all they need to know is she's a Hall-of-Famer. So how many current D-League coaches are enshrined in Springfield, Mass., which is interestingly where Lieberman broke down barriers 23 years ago?

That would be zero.

Chris Tomasson can be reached at tomasson@hotmail.com and on Twitter @christomasson.

Could Nancy Lieberman Become the NBA's First Female Head Coach? originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WNBA Notebook: League Watching Russian's Murder Investigation Closely

Michelle Smith — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

When Spartak owner Shabtai von Kalmanovic was murdered in Moscow on Monday, the women's basketball world was rocked. Kalmanonic put together a powerhouse team in Russia with Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson. He showered his players with huge paychecks and opulent accommodations, and he raised the standard for top U.S. players overseas.

And he won championships.

The WNBA has not commented on Kalmanovic's death but has to be watching the investigation closely considering that some of the league's biggest names are tied in here. Spartak's current roster includes Taurasi, Sylvia Fowles and Janel McCarville, with Bird and Jackson yet to report because of injuries.

The team's coach is former LSU coach Pokey Chatman. The safety of the athletes and staff has to be of utmost concern -- especially with Russian investigators speculating that the murder may be associated with his ownership of the team -- but not the only one.

The murder -- Kalmanovic was shot 20 times while riding through Moscow in an armored car -- raises plenty of awkward, troubling questions about his business dealings, whether he may have been tied to organized crime, where the money that he paid his players actually came from.

It looks unseemly WNBA to have its star players associated with ill-gotten monies and murder. It probably never looked good to have players involved with a former KGB spy who once faced U.S. charges of theft, fraud and embezzlement, but huge paychecks and generous living conditions kept the uncomfortable conversations at bay for a long time.

Probably not anymore.

TAURASI CASE CLOSED: The news that Taurasi's DUI case had come to a quiet resolution wasn't a big surprise. Her originally scheduled court date on Oct. 30 would have been a media circus. It also would have prevented her from heading to Russia to join Spartak.

Taurasi, arrested July 2, has been nothing but accountable, remorseful and open about her mistake. She has taken responsibility publicly at every turn and that surely had to play well with the judge in her case who suspended nine days of her 10-day sentence. Charges of extreme DUI and speeding were also dropped.

BETTY FINDS RENEWAL: Kathy Betty knew it was time to move forward after the 2007 cancer death of her husband, Earthlink CEO Gary Betty. But she did not know how.

"Nothing was exciting, different ventures came up, but nothing was exciting me," Betty said. "What was so intriguing to me about the WNBA was the opportunity for mentoring and role-modeling for young girls and boys."

And the small matter of what Betty called "the business challenge."

"Everyone is saying it is hard to make money in women's sports," Betty said. "I looked at the team. We've got the coach of the year, the rookie of the year ... we made the playoffs in our second season. What a great product. You've just got to put the business model together to make it work. It became really obvious to me the things that would make me happy in life and this was it."

Betty took over last week as the managing partner of the WNBA's Atlanta Dream, assuming the reins from Ron Terwilliger, who relinquished his ownership rights because of financial difficulties. Dream Too, LLC, an investment group led by Betty will own the team.

Betty said she hasn't had much sleep she took over the team last week. And she's learned that she's got the backing of her community.

"One thing I know, is a lot of people in the state of Georgia know a lot about sports and they have all offered their help," Betty said. "The business leaders of Atlanta are behind us, and now we've got to make a compelling case for why this makes sense, to be supporting women's sports."

WNBA Notebook: League Watching Russian's Murder Investigation Closely originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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'40 Minutes of Hell' Comes to WNBA

Michelle Smith — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

Nolan Richardson was doing his research, trying to decide if he wanted to accept the offer of the ownership group trying to bring a WNBA team to Tulsa, asking old friends what it was like to coach in the women's game.

One of the phone calls he made was to LSU women's coach Van Chancellor, whom Richardson knew from their SEC days (Chancellor coached the Mississippi women when Richardson was at Arkansas.) Chancellor spent 10 years in the WNBA coaching the Houston Comets to four WNBA titles.

"He told me that once you've dealt with women athletes, you are going to wish that you had coached them all your life," Richardson said.

By Tuesday evening Richardson was headed from Tulsa back to his home in Arkansas, ending a long day in which he was installed as the head coach and general manager of Tulsa's new WNBA franchise. It is not, however, a new WNBA franchise.

The good news for Tulsa was not such good news for fans of the Detroit Shock. After 11 seasons in Detroit, the Shock -- winner of three WNBA titles -- is leaving town.

Richardson, who led Arkansas to three Final Fours and an NCAA title in 1994, was approached by the new Tulsa ownership group before they knew they would be getting an established WNBA team. The group hoped a high-profile name like Richardson, with ties to the Tulsa area, will help energize a small-market fan-base into quick acceptance of the city's first pro franchise.

The fact that he has never coached women at the pro or college level was not a stumbling block. Richardson, 67, will have the job of helping the players make the transition to a new coach, a new city, a new fan base and a new way of playing the game. The coach who spent 17 years stamping the men's program at Arkansas with his aggressive, up-tempo, trapping, defensive-oriented game, plans to being his "40 Minutes of Hell" to this team.

"It's going to be '40 Minutes of Hell, Part II'," the coach said. "The fans know who I am and they know how I coach."

Richardson said he had not yet spoken with any of the players, many of whom have already reported to their winter teams overseas. He has nearly eight months before he will see his team in one place. He said he will respect the changes they are being asked to make.

"I'm so pleased and happy to be coaching a well-established basketball team," Richardson said. "But it's like any other job transition. I'm sure there's going to be a period where things are not going to look the same. But that's why they are professionals."

Tulsa represents a homecoming for Richardson, who began his coaching career at the University of Tulsa in 1980, leading the team to the NIT title in 1981. He said he wouldn't have taken the job if he didn't think the community would support the team.

"They are going to fall in love with the team, I know that love affair is going to happen" Richardson said. "It's hot in Tulsa in the summer. People will want to come in and watch basketball."

Richardson said he has paid close attention to the WNBA in recent weeks. He said he was "glued to the television set" during the WNBA Finals.

"I didn't know the Shock would be moving and I watched those games [in the Eastern Conference finals], too," Richardson said. "These are the best players in the world."

And the coach said he will tell anyone who will listen. He thinks he can convince some new fans (i.e. male mainstream basketball fans) to embrace the WNBA.

"Women's basketball is big in Oklahoma and I would be really surprised if Tulsa doesn't have great support for us," Richardson said. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't think I could bring this team to the heights it deserves. This team has won three championships and we want to put it back there."

'40 Minutes of Hell' Comes to WNBA originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 22:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WNBA Will Weather Shocking Move

Michelle Smith — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 11:33:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

It's a bit of whiplash that two weeks after fans filled arenas in Indianapolis and Phoenix, after the WNBA got some momentum out of a fabulous Finals series, one of the league's most successful franchises is packing up and leaving its town.

The Detroit Shock reportedly are headed to Tulsa, a new ownership group ready to take over with former Arkansas men's basketball coach Nolan Richardson at the helm. It's another blow to a league that has gotten awfully adept at absorbing them over the years.

The Detroit Shock debuted in 1998. They earned a reputation as a hard-nosed, battle-ready reflection of coach Bill Laimbeer and won titles in 2003, 2006 and 2008. Just a few weeks ago, the Shock were facing off with the Indiana Fever in the Eastern Conference Finals. And now, they are off to Oklahoma.

But the Shock are not the first team in the league to move or to fold -- in fact, they are the eighth. And they won't be the last. Franchise stability has never been an indicator of the league's stability.

Attendance is down -- but viable -- and the while the TV package isn't as visible as anyone would seem to like, the league still appears on solid footing. Playoff television ratings were up 54 percent, 73 percent during the Finals.

Franchises in Charlotte, Cleveland, Miami, Portland, Utah, Portland and Houston have folded or moved during the league's 13-year-history. And the league has always picked up and moved on.

The demise that's been predicted annually for years isn't imminent and the fact that new ownership groups are willing to step up and invest says as much. It would be much more worrisome for the league if the Shock just went away.

And Detroit might not even turn out to be the league's only move. After just two seasons as an expansion team, Atlanta may be in the midst of an ownership change, with the team's primary owner, Ron Terwilliger, informing the league that he wants to relinquish control. The Dream went from four wins in their inaugural season to the playoffs in their second. Now the team is shopping for new ownership and hopes to stay in Atlanta.

Heck, even the WNBA-finalist Fever needed their owner to issue a statement at season's end that said the team would be staying in Indiana in order to fend off speculation that it was in jeopardy as well.

Detroit is a city that has been hit especially hard by the economic downturn. The Shock drew an average of 8,011 a game this past season, just under the league average, but well off the 9,749 they drew in 2007. Corporate sponsorships couldn't have been easy to find in a beleaguered city suffering through the collapse of the auto industry.

Tulsa represents a fresh start. Oklahoma has been good to women's basketball, providing enthusiastic support for Sherri Coale's Sooners program through the years. Tulsa is a city of 385,000 and will be one of the smallest markets in the league. The team will be looking to fill an arena of 18,000 seats, but at least they are selling big names such as Cheryl Ford, Katie Smith and Deanna Nolan, along with winning basketball.

WNBA Will Weather Shocking Move originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 11:33:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fever Ownership Commits to Future

Michelle Smith — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 22:10:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA, Women's Basketball

The Indiana Fever, who came within one game of winning its first WNBA title last week, is not on the verge of extinction after all.

In an open letter to fans -- who filled Conseco Fieldhouse with sold-out games during the WNBA Finals -- team ownership indicated they are committed to keeping the team for the immediate future after owner Herbert Simon indicated earlier this season that the franchise might be in danger of folding.

The letter was posted Tuesday on the team's website. It read:

"We have just experienced the most exciting season in Indiana Fever history. We are so grateful and proud of our fans and corporate partners. The community came together in a remarkable way to support our players and coaches.

We are committed to the future success of this franchise in Indianapolis. We look forward to another great season in 2010 and for many years to come.

We came so close to a WNBA Championship and we are going to do everything possible to continue to be the best team in the WNBA. Thank you so much for your dedication, loyalty and enthusiasm. With your help, the Fever set a WNBA Playoffs attendance record and created excitement throughout the community. Further, the television ratings reached record levels, and raised the visibility of the WNBA and Fever throughout the country.

We are incredibly proud of the Indiana Fever and our terrific community, and we need your continued support. GO FEVER!"

The letter was signed by Simon, team president Jim Morris and general manager Kelly Krauskopf.

Fever Ownership Commits to Future originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 22:10:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lisa Leslie's Goodbye Party

Elie Seckbach — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 07:00:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA, FanHouse Exclusive

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

Lisa Leslie is arguably the greatest player in WNBA history. In her career, Leslie collected two WNBA titles, three MVP awards, eight All-Star appearances and four Olympic gold medals. But after starting for the Los Angeles Sparks since 1997, this past season was her last. In this FanHouse exclusive, we catch up with Lisa at her farewell party in the heart of Hollywood, where we found friends, family, fans and celebrities.

Check out the video after the jump.

Lisa Leslie's Goodbye Party originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 07:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mercury Rising: Phoenix Wins Second WNBA Championship in Three Years

Michelle Smith — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 00:08:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

PHOENIX -- The best Finals series in the history of the WNBA ended Friday night with the Phoenix Mercury hoisting the trophy for the second time in three seasons.

Phoenix finished off the best-of-five series against the Indiana Fever by winning two straight games, including a 94-86 win at the US Airways Center that gave them the title in front of a boisterous, sold-out home crowd.

They finished as the best team in the league from start to finish, but they also finished as battered and tired as they were victorious after an intense, fiercely competitive series.

"In the locker room I said, I don't think I've played a better team than the Fever," said Phoenix superstar Diana Taurasi, who finished with 26 points and the MVP trophy. "They were composed, staying in it no matter what the circumstance.

"And I think the same could be said about our team and that was probably the biggest pride in being in this series."

Eight months is a long time until the next season, the longest offseason in pro sports.

As its players disperse to their overseas teams, Phoenix management can start to ponder its plan for a repeat, a plan that includes finding another big body inside, according to coach Corey Gaines.

Taurasi, whose offseason is going to include the legal fallout of her drunk-driving arrest in July, said re-signing Australian forward Penny Taylor should be the No. 1 priority.

"Repeating is hard," said Taurasi, who has been able to do it both at Connecticut and as an Olympic gold medalist. "Expectations, that us-against-the-world mentality, which obviously, we didn't have last summer (when the Mercury missed the postseason after their 2007 title). But now we can look back on that experience and not let it happen again."

The Fever, meanwhile, have eight months to absorb their disappointment and use it. They had the momentum in this series, up 2-1 with a home game to go in Game 4 and they failed to close it out.

Tamika Catchings admitted that loss took its toll.

"We had an opportunity to beat them at home, and we didn't take advantage of the opportunity," Catchings said. "So, I think the disappointment for me lies in that more so than tonight."

Not that the Fever came into Game 5 in concession-mode. Indiana got a lead, took a punch when Phoenix made its run to go ahead by 11 points and then slowly, but surely got back in the game.

Indiana eventually tied the score at 80-80 on a Tammy Sutton-Brown jumper with 4:29 to go.

And then came the daggers. Tangela Smith hit two wide-open 3-pointers from the top of the arc on back-to-back possessions.

Fever coach Lin Dunn acknowledged the damage of those two baskets.

"There is no way in this world that Tangela Smith should have a wide-open 3," Dunn said. "You are not going to play a perfect game defensively, but you never, ever leave Tangela."

Cappie Pondexter, her eye bruised and swollen from her second-quarter collision with Catchings, said Smith's shots were the defining moment for the Mercury.

"If she hadn't hit those it probably would have been a whole different ballgame," said Pondexter, who had a few big shots of her own with 24 points.

Smith's shots seemingly cemented Phoenix's destiny. Indiana looked like it was laboring to stay in the game, the Mercury were in charge most of the way. After a slow start, including an 0-for-3 first quarter from Taurasi, Phoenix exploded in the second quarter, scoring 35 points, shooting 76.5 percent and it was Taurasi who led the way.

Indiana was the worst shooting team in the WNBA this season, and there were costly flashes of that offensive inconsistency in these last two games.

It's a lot to ask to keep up with the Mercury. Indiana tried to do it inside Friday, getting a combined 40 points from posts Tammy Sutton-Brown and Jessica Davenport.

Catchings will was there, her help was not. She finished a great series with 16 points, nine rebounds, six assists and five steals.

Coach Lin Dunn admitted there was little room for error for her team. It certainly could not afford for leading scorer Katie Douglas to go cold from the perimeter. In the last two games of the series, Douglas went 6-for-28 and 2-for-16 from beyond the arc.

"Every point is gold. Every layup is gold. Every wide-open 3 is gold," Dunn said. "They hit 10 3s. We hit six. I thought we got some good looks. There was a layup at the end that was important.

"We didn't hit enough shots, but I thought we did what we needed to do to get good shots."

This was a seminal series for the WNBA, a chance for the league to define itself as a high-level, exciting product worthy of big television audiences and the sold-out crowds that showed up to watch the last five games.

"We showed how competitive we are as women," Pondexter said. "It's not about flashiness or being able to play above the rim, but just our heart and our commitment level to each other."

Attendance Record: The total attendance for the WNBA Finals was 82,018, a record for the league. Attendance for the season was up 43.3 percent. The overall attendance average for the postseason was up 18.5 percent over 2008.

Mercury Rising: Phoenix Wins Second WNBA Championship in Three Years originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Sat, 10 Oct 2009 00:08:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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On Eve of Title Game, WNBA Wins Fans

Michelle Smith — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:30:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

People came, they saw and they cheered.

WNBA fans have filled the US Airways Center in Phoenix and Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. They have purchased jerseys and T-shirts and, most importantly, tickets.

They have given the league a huge boost, a proper sendoff for a 13th season that has been marked by the retirement of a legend (Lisa Leslie), stories about comebacks and motherhood (Candace Parker) and a knock-down, drag-out final between two teams sporting some of the most exciting, talented players in the world. It's a fight that ends Friday night in Phoenix with the host Mercury taking on the visiting Indiana Fever in a winner-take-all title game.

As a bonus to the outstanding product on the floor, the WNBA has gotten some high-profile validation from some very valuable, credible sources.

Arizona Cardinal's wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald -- the biggest sports star in the desert -- pulled up a sideline seat in Phoenix last week for Game 2.

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning -- also a pretty big star in his town -- couldn't make it to Conseco on Sunday for Game 3. He was busy playing down the block, beating the Seattle Seahawks. But he was there, Wednesday night, in a luxury box at the Fieldhouse.

Other marquee names have done more than show up.

Larry Bird, the NBA legend and president of the Indiana Pacers, bought all the balcony seats at Conseco for the final game of the Fever's run in the Eastern Conference finals. He gave them away for free. By the time Indiana returned to town for the Finals, there was no more need for free tickets. There were no more tickets.

The local newspaper on Sunday included a large ad purchased by the Colts, wishing the Fever luck in the Finals.

In Phoenix, they followed Bird's lead. Steve Kerr, the Suns general manager, bought out the top section of the arena for Game 1, gave the tickets away for free and the seats were about half-full. Suns coach Alvin Gentry picked up the baton for Game 2 and the sections were nearly full as the game drew more than 16,000.

Now, for Game 5, those same tickets have been picked up by the Suns' Amar'e Stoudemire, Grant Hill and Steve Nash.

The WNBA needs these men, who have credibility with other men and impressive sporting resumes of their own, to show their support for the women, to show that it's OK to appreciate and even root for these teams.

It's one thing for the WNBA to say "Expect Great." It's another for a Super Bowl champion, one of the most visible athletes in this country, to show up because he does.

The league knows its fan base, knows who appreciates the game and who ridicules and degrades it with a hostility that, after all this time, is still difficult to comprehend.

And they know that most of the mainstream male sports fans are probably never coming to their televisions to watch a game or an arena to see their product. But a few more might. And they might tell their friends.

Because if it's good enough for Larry Bird, or Larry Fitzgerald, or Steve Nash, or Peyton Manning, if its good enough for a basketball hotbed such as Indiana, if its good enough for 18,000 people to come out two straight games ... it's just good enough.

On Eve of Title Game, WNBA Wins Fans originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fever Blow Chance as Mercury Force Decisive Game 5

Michelle Smith — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 23:50:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

This was the Indiana Fever's big chance, a golden opportunity to celebrate the franchise's first WNBA championship -- not to mention the city's first pro basketball title in some 30 years -- in front of the a sold-out arena and the city that has so heartily embraced them.

But the Fever missed their big chance -- and may well have missed their chance at the title, as well, as the visiting Phoenix Mercury dominated en route to a 90-77 win in Game 4 of the WNBA Finals Wednesday night, forcing a championship-deciding Game 5 Friday night back in Phoenix.

All Indiana had to do was win Wednesday and it would have captured the best-of-five championship series three games to one. Instead, the series is now tied 2-2 and heads back to the Mercury's homecourt in the Valley of the Sun, where the Mercury have momentum, a big home crowd and a return of the swagger that disappeared for a few days.

You can talk about pace, about how Phoenix did what it liked to do. But Indiana's 2-for-18 effort from the three-point line was a death knell. The team that proved it could score with Phoenix early in this series stumbled and fell trying to do it Wednesday night. Was the problem missing too many of those shots or taking too many of them?

"At the end of the day, we outrebounded them, had more points in the paint, more second-chance points, but when you don't shoot well, you'll have a tough time winning," Indiana coach Lin Dunn said after the game. "We didn't hit enough shots to keep up with them."

It was a particularly difficult night for Indiana native Katie Douglas, who was 2-of-14 from the field, including 1-for-7 from beyond the arc. Rookie point guard Briann January, who has hit some big shots in this series, didn't do so in Game 4, going 1-for-9 from the floor.

Tamika Catchings, who finished with 24 points, 12 rebounds, couldn't do it all. And she didn't get enough help.

"People started missing shots and then there was a lot of hesitation, 'I don't want to shoot because I missed the last one or the last three'," Catchings said "But we can't afford to have that."

The Mercury reversed course from the previous games and took an early lead, shooting 72 percent from the field in the first quarter. Indiana responded by getting within two points at the half and Catchings tied the game at 59-59 with 4:33 to go in the third quarter. But from there, it was all Phoenix.

Indiana scored just 12 points in the final quarter, struggled with a tentative offense, foul trouble, a lack of key defensive stops -- and the game ultimately got away.

Catchings didn't mince words.

"We've got a Game 5. This is what you play for," Catchings said. "If you can't figure out what you need to do ... If you are a shooter, you need to shoot. If you're a penetrator, you need to penetrate."

Phoenix was never going to go easily. The Mercury hadn't lost three in a row all season and havn't lost an elimination game in the postseason since 2000.

"When our back is on the line, we are going to come out fighting, no matter what," said Phoenix guard Cappie Pondexter, who finished with 22 points. "We wanted to take it home really bad."

Reserve guard Penny Taylor said the Mercury rediscovered their attitude after a two-game hiatus.

"Our strength all year has been our confidence and attack," Taylor said. "I felt like we really got that back."

And now as Dunn said, her team has to do it the hard way.

"They did it the hard way tonight and now we have to go there and do it."

Fever Blow Chance as Mercury Force Decisive Game 5 originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 23:50:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Auriemma Takes Reins of Team USA

Michelle Smith — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 19:30:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA, USA Basketball

Camp Geno breaks today.

The current incarnation of the U.S. women's national team, coached by Geno Auriemma, leaves today for Ekaterinburg, Russia to take on a group of club teams in an invitational tournament.

Following six days of training camp in Washington, the 13-player roster was selected for Monday's flight. It includes 2008 Olympians Sue Bird, Sylvia Fowles and Candace Parker, as well as newcomers Swin Cash, Tina Charles, Shameka Christon, Candice Dupree, Lindsey Harding, Ashja Jones, Crystal Langhorne, Angel McCoughtry, Renee Montgomery and Candice Wiggins.

This is Auriemma's first chance to serve as the head coach for the program -- a stint he will continue through the 2012 Olympics in London.

It's a chance he's always coveted and he's not shy about admitting that. Not that the Huskies coach is shy about much.

"I always wanted to do this," Auriemma said Thursday.

Auriemma served as an assistant coach under Nell Fortner in Sydney in 2000 and has worked extensively with USA Basketball in the past. And he's built such a powerhouse program at Connecticut (six national championships and all), it was obvious that is should be his turn for the job last held by Anne Donovan, who led the U.S. to the gold medal in Beijing.

When this opportunity came, he didn't think twice.

"Carol Callan called and I answered the phone and said 'yes,' " Auriemma said. "She said, 'I wanted to ask you...' and I said, 'Yes.' "

Auriemma becomes the first college coach since Stanford's Tara VanDerveer to take over the women's national team.

VanDerveer took over in 1995, leaving her Cardinal program for a year to lead the American women to an unbeaten record and ultimately a gold medal in the 1996 Atlanta Games.

"It's not the same as it was when Tara did it," Auriemma said. "It won't ever be like that again."

But the juggling will still be substantial. Auriemma will be back from Russia just in time for practice to begin at Connecticut. The national team will gather again late next spring after he is through with the college season.

And next year's World Championships take place in September in the Czech Republic and he will be home in time to go back to the sidelines for the Huskies. In other words, Auriemma family vacations could be few and far between for a while.

"It will be busy, but this is something I want to do and it keeps me involved with the game at another level," Auriemma said.

Auriemma is taking over the U.S. team at a time of transition.

Stalwarts such as Lisa Leslie and Tina Thompson are out of the program. Auriemma is looking for new players, particularly in the post, to take over.

He has young, but experienced stars such as Fowles and Parker.

His camp invitations included players such as Indiana Fever forward Ebony Hoffman (who couldn't attend because of the WNBA Finals), Charles, who starred for the U.S. team in the World University Games over the summer, and Stanford standout Jayne Appel (who can't participate because she's recovering from summer knee surgery).

Auriemma is also going to Russia without Diana Taurasi and Tamika Catchings as well as Cappie Pondexter, all playing in the WNBA Finals. But his Russia roster includes five former Connecticut players.

Auriemma said Monday that he is anxious to get on the court with this team, lay the foundation for next year's World Championship team and find out which young WNBA players are part of the national team's future.

"I know we know how to practice and I know we know how to do drills," Auriemma said. "Now we're going to find out if we can take that, transfer it over to game situations and see if I can identify those players who know how to win."

Wiggins, the Minnesota Lynx guard said she is excited to work with Auriemma for the first time in her career.

"Geno is the man. It's my first time playing for him and he's probably one of the easiest people I've ever had to play for my whole life," Wiggins said. "I think he's the perfect guy for this. He's going to get the best team together. He's going to have everybody playing hard."

Auriemma Takes Reins of Team USA originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 19:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mercury Left Reeling After Game 3 Loss

Michelle Smith — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 21:30:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

Phoenix was calm and cool on Thursday night after losing at home to Indiana in Game 2 of the WNBA Finals, and losing the home-court advantage in the WNBA Finals.

No panic, no questioning, said Diana Taurasi. It's not about them, it's about us, said coach Corey Gaines.

The message: We'll go to Indiana. We'll get it done.

But instead, the Fever got it done again Sunday, took a 2-1 lead in the series with an 86-85 victory and the Mercury might want to ask themselves a few things before a very talented and worthy Fever team ends up hoisting the trophy.

Phoenix might have put up the league's best record in the regular season, but Indiana showed why it's the best home team in the WNBA this season, pulling out the win in front of a sold-out crowd.

There's likely to be another on Wednesday night at Conseco Fieldhouse and if Phoenix wants to push this to a five-game series and go back to the desert for the deciding game on Friday, answers better come quickly.

How many times can they play from behind? Indiana has run out to a lead in every game of the series thus far, including a 10-point lead in the first quarter Sunday. And while it's true that it's not how you start, it's how you finish, getting off to a good start might generate some momentum and take the Fever's boisterous home crowd out of the game.

Phoenix scored 17 points in the first quarter Sunday, but rolled out 30 in the second for a 47-44 lead.

How to get the three-point shooting rolling again? Phoenix was 3-for-17 from beyond the arc in the game (11-for-40/27.5 percent in last two games), and Diana Taurasi's 1-for-8 was particularly painful. Taurasi found other ways to do damage, finishing with 18 points and seven rebounds. But the Mercury lives on its ability to score fast and you can't always accomplish that two points at a time.

How to get more bench help? The Mercury is supposed to be one of the deepest teams in the league, and Penny Taylor, wearing a mouthpiece following her split lip and dislodged tooth Thursday night, did her part, scoring 10 points off the bench. But the rest of the bench provided just eight points. DeWanna Bonner has not played like a rookie much of this season. She was very valuable to the Mercury in Game 1, with 15 points and five rebounds. But in the two games since, she's gone 2-for-9 from the field for a total of eight points. Sunday she played less than nine minutes.

How to come out of a slide? Phoenix lost consecutive games only once this season. This is a bad time for a repeat. The momentum is with Indiana, a team that has proven it can score big when it needs to, defend tough when it needs to, and has generally played superior basketball for longer stretches thus far.

"Game 3 is probably the hardest we fought out of this whole series, and it's tough when you lose like that," Cappie Pondexter said after the game. "So now, it's more mental than anything. Game 4, I think we have to be stronger mentally, and the rest will take care of itself."

Mercury Left Reeling After Game 3 Loss originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Sun, 04 Oct 2009 21:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fever Withstand Heat, Top Mercury in Game 2

Michelle Smith — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 00:50:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

PHOENIX -- On Wednesday, the day after her team lost its overtime track meet to Phoenix in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals, Indiana coach Lin Dunn said that's the way it's supposed to be.

"They are supposed to hold serve. You're supposed to win at home," Dunn said. "We just need to steal one."

And Thursday night, in front of 16,758 hostile partisans at the US Airways Center, the Fever did just that.

Slowing the pace, picking up the defensive pressure and getting a stellar game from Tamika Catchings, Indiana not only stole a 93-84 victory, but they stole home-court advantage in the series.

These two teams are even-steven now at 1-1, and Indiana gets to go home for two in a row, with the distinct possibility of playing two games in front of their own sell-out crowds at Conseco Fieldhouse with the team's first WNBA championship on the line. Indiana owned the best home record in the league this season, but Phoenix was one of the three teams to win there.

"This was HUGE, huge for us," said Catchings, who finished the night with 19 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds, narrowly missing the first triple-double in the history of the WNBA Finals.

Equally important was the work she did on the defensive end, harassing league MVP Diana Taurasi into a 7-for-22 night from the field (2 of 10 from the 3-point arc).

"I thought we did tonight what I wish we'd done the other night, we had a great defensive effort," said Dunn. "The difference in 84 points and 120 (from Tuesday) is - I'm not a math major, but it's a significant amount of points."

It makes all the difference to the Mercury, who don't wear low-scoring games very well. Phoenix is 1-8 this season in games in which it has scored less than 85 points.

Phoenix coach Corey Gaines wasn't ceding much to Indiana, wouldn't concede that the Fever had stepped up things defensively. He laid the loss at the feet of his own team, which shot 39.7 percent from the floor and were out-rebounded 40-24.

"They played the same type of defense, we just missed shots," Gaines said. "We missed more shots and we tried to get to the basket and we missed those shots too."

Taurasi and Cappie Pondexter, the Mercury's 1-2 punch, finished 12 for 38 from the floor and a combined 2-for-14 from beyond the arc.

Indiana had it going on both ends, with six players in double figures and a big night off the bench from former Arizona State product Briann January, who contributed 16 points and some key defensive plays.

The Fever also cut off the Mercury's ability to get second-chance points, and when Penny Taylor went out of the game with a split lip with 3:33 to go in the third quarter, an already struggling offense (Phoenix was 5 of 20 in the third quarter) was at a further disadvantage.

"A lot of people question whether we can get up and down with them," Catchings said. "We do run. I think the key for us is they want to run all the time and we have to learn when to slow it down."

The Mercury played from behind most of the game. Indiana led 48-45 at the half and went on a 12-2 to expand its lead to 71-55 in the third quarter.

Phoenix rallied to get within 85-80 with 1:25 to go, but couldn't finish the job.

"Sometimes they go in and sometimes they don't and that's the way it goes sometimes," Taurasi said. "There is no panic. There is no second guessing of any sorts."

The Mercury can afford to come across as unfazed by a costly loss. Phoenix has lost two in a row only once this season.

"We didn't play with that sense of urgency," Taurasi said. "And now we have to get that back. We have two days to prepare. The home court is on their side now. They get to go home with two to close it out. Series can swing either way really quick."

Fever Withstand Heat, Top Mercury in Game 2 originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Fri, 02 Oct 2009 00:50:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Meadors WNBA's Coach of the Year

Michelle Smith — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 20:15:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

PHOENIX -- Pre-game musings before we brace for Game 2 between Phoenix Mercury and Indiana Fever in the WNBA Finals. What a tough act to follow after Game 1's fireworks ...

Atlanta's Marynell Meadors, who took her second-year franchise from four wins in 2008 to the first round of the playoffs this season, was named the WNBA Coach of the Year.

Meadors was the overwhelming choice, receiving 30 votes from the panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. Indiana's Lin Dunn finished second with six votes, with Phoenix's Corey Gaines pulling in four.

Atlanta was a new team -- only four players from last year's team returned -- with the addition of Chamique Holdsclaw and the rookie-of-the-year efforts of Angel McCoughtry. The Dream ranked second in the league in scoring (84.1 points per game) and first in rebounding (37.0 rpg).

"I try not to think about that 4-30 season a lot," Meadors said. "But I loved coaching this team and they came in from day one ready to play."

Draw a straight line between Meadors' award and Thursday's announcement that McCoughtry won the Rookie of the Year award after her outstanding first season with the Dream.

"Angel is a special player," Meadors said. "The No. 1 reason I picked her No. 1 was her ability to play at both ends of the court. The best part of her game is still to come."

In year when the rookie class didn't have quite the name recognition as last year's star-studded group of Candace Parker, Sylvia Fowles and Candice Wiggins, the youngsters had a pretty good year.

Two rookies are playing big roles for their teams in the finals: Phoenix's DeWanna Bonner and Indiana's Briann January. Bonner was the runner-up in the rookie voting.

o. When the two teams tip off Sunday in Indiana, they will do it in front of a very big crowd, and this time Larry Bird doesn't even have to foot the bill.

More than 16,100 tickets have been sold for Sunday's Game 3. There are no seats available in the lower level of the Conseco Fieldhouse (which holds 18,000) and team officials are encouraging fans to buy tickets for Wednesday's Game 4 if they want good seats. Pretty impressive considering that it's an NFL Sunday and the Colts are playing at home.

o. WNBA President Donna Orender is still soaring after Tuesday night's thrilling Game 1, the 120-116 Phoenix win.

"Anything you can do to showcase the athleticism and the talent and the fun of WNBA basketball is great," Orender said. "I think we are getting the opportunity to show that to people. The man who drove me to the arena today said he was going to go and buy some tickets. I feel like we are seeing the promise of the WNBA."

o. In an interesting irony following the news earlier this week that a Tulsa ownership group hoping to be awarded a WNBA team has hired Nolan Richardson as their head coach, Meadors becomes the first female coach in the league to win the award since Suzie McConnell Serio won in Minnesota in 2004. Only three women, including Marianne Stanley in 2002 have won the award since the league's inception in 1997.

Meadors WNBA's Coach of the Year originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 20:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Phoenix Like Home for Indiana's January

Michelle Smith — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 21:42:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

PHOENIX -- Briann January's fairy tale was almost too good to be true.

But the rigors of rock-and-roll got in the way.

Thursday night's game in the WNBA Finals, Game 2 between the Phoenix Mercury and the Indiana Fever, was going to be played at Wells Fargo Arena on the Arizona State campus because the band AC/DC had an Oct. 1 concert scheduled at US Airways Center.

But when AC/DC canceled the show after singer Brian Johnson fell ill, the Mercury got their home court back and January missed her chance to go back and play in the gym where she starred as a Sun Devil.

"I got so excited when I heard we were going to play there," said January, who was a two-time Pac-10 defensive player of the year and the school's all-time assist leader. "I was joking with (USC products and teammates) Shay Murphy and Ebony Hoffman that we were going to bring back the old Pac-10 days."

"This is fine," January said, tongue-in-cheek. "We can play here too."

January is the local girl made good. She is back in Arizona as a WNBA finalist. She's just on the opposing team.

So when she entered the game in the second quarter Tuesday night, her reception from the partisan home crowd was a little less than it could have been.

"I saw some people in ASU shirts and familiar faces," January said. "The first time I came out here, and I subbed in, I heard some noise, but now it's the playoffs and the Mercury fans are serious and I totally get that."

Her former coach, Charli Turner Thorne will be in the seats Thursday night. January went to her old coach's office for a pick-me-up after Tuesday night's loss.

"She's doing great and I'm excited that her season gets to end in Arizona," Turner Thorne said. "She is a great fit for Indiana."

January, who was the No. 6 pick in the 2009 draft, is averaging 9.5 points and 3.5 assists a game off the bench. She began the season as the starter before Fever head coach Lin Dunn went back to veteran Tully Bevilaqua.

"I don't consider her a rookie anymore," Dunn said. "She has come off the bench and won some games for us. She's a tough defender, she plays hard. She brings a lot to our team."

``I'm going to leave everything on the court, and when you play like that, there's no pressure on yourself."
- Briann January January said she's not feeling any pressure playing in her adopted hometown. She and Dunn talked on the topic the first time the Fever played in Phoenix earlier in the season.

"I don't think there's pressure at all. I'm just trying to enjoy the moment and whatever happens, happens," January said. "I'm going to leave everything on the court, and when you play like that, there's no pressure on yourself."

January, a Spokane native, will return to Arizona in a couple of weeks when the season is over. Her younger sister, Kiara, is playing community college ball in Arizona.

"This is the perfect place for me to work out. I love Arizona so much," January said. "I've grown to love it here."

January said her rookie year as a pro could not have turned out better.

"This whole season has kind of worked out just perfect," January said. "I couldn't ask for more. I just feel so blessed to be in this situation, to be able to come back to where my game took off in the first place, to show people where my game has been taken to. It's just awesome to show them what I've done, and it's good because those are the people who've supported me for the past four years."

Phoenix Like Home for Indiana's January originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 21:42:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WNBA Notebook: Can Indiana Keep Up?

Michelle Smith — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 19:15:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

PHOENIX -- Emptying the notebook at the WNBA Finals, where the Phoenix Mercury and the Indiana Fever will tip off Thursday night (9 PM ET) at the US Airways Arena.

Statistics suggest that Indiana can't afford to keep pace with Phoenix and stay in this series for long. The Fever have been averaging 81.5 points a game in the postseason thus far, a number inflated by Tuesday night's 116-point output in the overtime loss.

Indiana will run at its own peril from here on out.

"That's our style," Phoenix coach Corey Gaines said. "I don't want the score to be 75-72. If you play your style, you have the best chance to win. I'd rather go high (scoring) than low."

The Fever proved they are capable of playing up-tempo, of busting out a big offensive night, even if it is not advisable ...

o. Statistics don't also suggest that Indiana star Tamika Catchings will struggle the way she did on Tuesday night, going 2-for-7 with eight points and six personal fouls.

Catchings said she woke up with a fresh outlook Wednesday.

"I just thought, thank God I've got another day," Catchings said.

o. Newly minted MVP Diana Taurasi said she won't go back and watch film of Tuesday night's record-setting game, in which the two teams combined for 83 made field-goals and 236 points, both league records.

"There was a point there where every shot, you'd be going for the rebound and there was no rebound," Taurasi said. "It was exciting to be in it, but with games like that I don't go back and watch. I never went back and watched national championship games (at Connecticut). If you go back and look, you just end up seeing mistakes and turnovers. Just keep it how it is."

o. Gaines' team had the best record in the regular season, but he said Wednesday his players are still looking to preseason prognostications - which had LA winning the conference and title -- for motivation.

"People still say they don't care for the way we play. It's not traditional. They say you can't win that way," Gaines said. "I'd rather our players have that chip on our shoulder. We've still got to prove that we're the No. 1 seed."

Only to themselves.

o. Indiana forward Ebony Hoffman left the court after turning her right ankle late in Tuesday night's game. She was moving well at practice Wednesday and coach Lin Dunn said she was "fine."

o. Phoenix Suns general manager Steve Kerr followed in the footsteps of Indiana's Larry Bird and bought the 7,000 tickets in the upper level at the US Airways Center, giving the tickets away for free to fans who showed up on a first-come, first-serve basis.

The upper section of the arena was, by the naked eye, a little better than half full.

Suns coach Alvin Gentry is now taking his turn for Thursday's Game 2. The 7,000 seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis at the US Airways Center ticket office.

o. Ratings for Tuesday night's game on ESPN2 are in and they are up significantly.

The game pulled a .43 rating, a 39 percent ratings increase over Game 1 a year ago. The viewership number of 555,000 was a 59 percent increase over last season as well.

It was the most viewed WNBA game since Game 4 of the 2007 Finals between Phoenix and Detroit.

WNBA Notebook: Can Indiana Keep Up? originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 19:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WNBA Finals Open With OT Thriller

Michelle Smith — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 01:57:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

PHOENIX -- This game was more than one for the record books. It was one to show the grandchildren, not to mention potential sponsors and season-ticket buyers and the mainstream sports fans on ESPN who sell the women's game short.

It was beautiful, competitive, offensive basketball, a showcase for the WNBA and its world-class talent.

It was not, however, a defensive clinic.

But who says defense wins championships? Not the Mercury.

In what might have ranked as the most appealing, thrilling game in league history, Phoenix -- the team that's used to lighting up the scoreboard every night -- protected its home-court advantage in the WNBA Finals with a 120-116 win over the Indiana Fever in the opening game of the best-of-five series.

It was the highest-scoring game in league history, an unprecedented display of offensive talent and it ultimately played right into the Mercury's high-scoring hands. But not until the final minute and a half when Phoenix finally nailed it down in front of a boisterous home crowd of more than 11,600.

Diana Taurasi, crowned the league's Most Valuable Player before the game, came up with three huge defensive rebounds and guard Cappie Pondexter hit a pair of big baskets down the stretch to give the Mercury a 1-0 lead in the series.

Game 2 will tip off Thursday night in Phoenix and it's got a lot to live up to.

Nineteen lead changes. Thirteen ties. Big shot countered by big shot; a knock-down, drag-out between the league's two best teams.

The WNBA has long been knocked for not offering enough offense. This was more than enough.

"It wasn't the defensive/offensive game that people were expecting," Mercury forward Penny Taylor said, referring to Indiana's reputation as one of the league's toughest defensive teams. "But anybody who saw this game tonight saw amazing displays of talent. I was proud to be a part of it."

Indiana's Katie Douglas, who hit a three-pointer with 7.1 seconds left to send the game into overtime, had to admit it was pretty fun for a while. All, but the ending.

"It's history we don't like because we lost," Douglas said.

And because Indiana played into the Mercury's hands by keeping pace.

"That type of output helps us because in the end, it's about scoring and that's what we do," said Phoenix coach Corey Gaines.

Taylor and Pondexter finished with 23 points each for the Mercury, book-ending their most important contributions.

Taylor had 18 of her points in the first half. Pondexter scored 21 in the second half and overtime periods, sticking with her game even after missing a point-blank follow at the regulation buzzer that would have ended the game.

Taurasi finished with 22 points, nine rebounds and six assists. But her three defensive boards at the end of the game sealed the deal.

"You have to find other ways to contribute and that's one way to get after it in a different way," Taurasi said.

Indiana did not have such a great night from its star player.

Tamika Catchings struggled with foul trouble and finding open shots -- she finished 2-for-7 with eight points when she fouled out in overtime.

"I let my team down tonight and it won't happen again," Catchings said. "I don't need to be sitting on the bench at the end of a game."

Forward Ebony Hoffman picked up the slack with a career night. Hoffman, the USC product, finished with 27 points, going 12-of-14 from the field as the Mercury defense sagged off.

"They played me not to make those shots, so I had to make them," Hoffman said.

Five Indiana players finished in double figures, Katie Douglas leading the way with 30 points and the 3-pointer with 7.1 seconds to go that sent the game into overtime.

"When the ball goes in, we're real good," said Indiana coach Lin Dunn. "We are a running team. We like to run, so I knew we could run with them."

But the thing that got Indiana here, in its first-ever Finals, was defense and rebounding. And they failed on both of those counts. Phoenix won the rebounding margin 34-27, outscored the Fever on second-chance points 24-15.

"This team shouldn't be out-rebounding us," Dunn said.

The WNBA motto is: Expect great. The league and its fans got more than they could have expected Tuesday night.

WNBA Finals Open With OT Thriller originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 01:57:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Diana Taurasi Honored as WNBA's MVP

Michelle Smith — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 21:30:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

PHOENIX -- Diana Taurasi has been an All-Star, an NCAA champion, an Olympian, a leading scorer, and now she's an MVP.

Taurasi was named as the WNBA's Most Valuable Player Tuesday, just a couple of hours before leading her team, the Phoenix Mercury into Game 1 of the WNBA Finals against the Indiana Fever.

Taurasi, who led the WNBA in scoring this season and propelled Phoenix to the league's best record in the regular season, was the runaway choice. She received 27 first-place votes from the panel of sportswriters and broadcasters who vote on the award. Indiana's Tamika Catchings was second with three first-place votes.

She was rewarded for her consistently outstanding, perpetually passionate game on the court in spite of a difficult few months following her arrest for drunk driving on July 2.

But Taurasi, the four-time All-Star, has accepted public responsibility for her mistake, saying she was embarrassed and regretful. She addressed the subject again when asked at the awards presentation.

"For a minute there, I did lose my focus," Taurasi said. "I've learned how fragile life and your career can be, and when its something you love, you can't put it in jeopardy. And I did. And I will keep that in the back of my mind for the rest of my life."

Taurasi, 27, was charged after being pulled over in Scottsdale at 2:30 AM after going out with friends. Her blood-alcohol level was a .17, which is more than twice the Arizona legal limit and could qualify her for an "extreme" DUI charge.

She was suspended without pay for two games after the incident. But the legal issues are still to come. She still faces three charges in the incident and is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 31.

Through the legal wrangling and her own emotional tumult over what happened, she put together the best season of her career, averaging 20.4 points and shooting a career-best 46.1 percent from the field. She led the league in scoring, 3-pointers made and was in the WNBA top 10 in nine other statistical categories.

And her team is the favorite to win its second WNBA title in three years.

Taurasi said that among the lessons she's learned through what she called a "an up and down" season, is that she has a great support system.

"I got to see the people who had my back," Taurasi said. "My teammates definitely had my back."

Diana Taurasi Honored as WNBA's MVP originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 21:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WNBA Finals Provide a Perfect Ending

Michelle Smith — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:31:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

Apologies to the legend, Lisa Leslie, who ended her remarkable, groundbreaking career Saturday night with 22 points, adulation from the opposing fans, and tears and tributes.

But this is how it should be.

The WNBA Finals open Tuesday and they will feature the two most do-everything, all-everything players in the league this year, taking their respective teams into battle for the title.

It's perfect in almost every way.

The Mercury vs. the Fever.

Diana Taurasi vs. Tamika Catchings.

The league's best offensive team against its stingiest defensive team.

The top scorer guarded by the defensive player of the year.

The two teams with the best records during the regular season.

It's the only matchup that scratches every itch after a long, hot summer of basketball.

The best-of-five series opens in Phoenix on Tuesday night, the Mercury playing for their second title and Indiana making its first-ever appearance in the Finals, both teams fulfilling destinies they created with outstanding regular-season efforts.

Phoenix starts with two games at home and its star player shining bright. Taurasi is the front-runner for the Most Valuable Player award, turning out big game after big game, despite the distraction of the her July DUI arrest.

After averaging a league-leading 20.4 points a game during the regular season, Taurasi has elevated her game in the postseason, averaging 23.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.7 assists in six playoff games. She's shooting 52 percent from the floor.

Catchings is Indiana's heart and soul, the leader of a team that is wondering whether it will even be around next year. There's been talk all season that the Fever, who celebrated their 10th anniversary, might not be long for the league because of perpetual financial losses.

So there was no comfort in the recent comments from team co-owner Herb Simon, who confirmed to the Indianapolis Star that the team is losing money each season and that he wants to see a big boost in ticket sales and sponsorship. Or else what? That is the operative question here.

But Catchings just keeps playing, leading her team to wins and taking home personal awards. She is already the WNBA's Defensive Player of the Year, winning that award for the third time.

She also could be the MVP and is bettering her case with a postseason effort in which she's averaged 18.1 points and 11.2 rebounds.

If we assume that Taurasi and Catchings are going to be their usual spectacular selves, then this series might come down to the No. 2 and No. 3 players on each team's star meter. That means it is Cappie Pondexter vs. Katie Douglas or Penny Taylor vs. Tammy Sutton-Brown.

Or offense vs. defense.

The Mercury have offense, the most potent scoring team in the WNBA (they've averaged 93.5 points a game in six playoffs games). They run and gun and don't so much worry about stops or rebounds provided they can keep putting shots up.

The Fever have defense -- they haven't yet given up 80 points in the playoffs -- and guts, rallying back from their Game 1 loss in the conference finals to Detroit to win two close in a row at home and punch a ticket to the Finals for the first time in franchise history.

But Indiana wants it all. Catchings and guard Tully Bevilaqua were quick to say that their job was not yet done on Saturday night. Getting there is not good enough.

Phoenix has the home-court advantage, but will need to take care of business because Indiana had the best home record in the WNBA this year at 14-3.

Phoenix, on the other hand, had the best road record (11-6) and was only one of three teams to have won in Indiana.

Indiana is excited for their Fever. More than 18,000 went to Conseco Fieldhouse Saturday night for the deciding game against Detroit. Indiana Pacers president Larry Bird bought all the tickets in the balcony and gave the tickets away to boost the crowd and the noise.

The Fever have proven worthy of the cheers to this point. Now they need to prove whether they are worthy of a title.

WNBA Finals Provide a Perfect Ending originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:31:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Retirement Will Wait at Least 1 More Game for Lisa Leslie

Brett Pollakoff — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 03:14:00 EST

Filed under: WNBA

PHOENIX -- Lisa Leslie is undeniably women's basketball's biggest star, and she has stated that this, her twelfth year in the WNBA, will be her last. She and the Sparks faced elimination in Game 2 of the league's Western Conference Finals against the hometown Mercury on Friday, but Leslie was clearly not ready to call it a career just yet.

Behind 10 first-quarter points from Leslie, the Sparks jumped out to an early double-digit lead, and never looked back while cruising to an 87-76 victory, which evened the best-of-three series at one game apiece.

While the Mercury did make a couple of runs to try to get back into it, the game was really decided in its opening period. L.A. led 31-17 at the end of the first quarter, and had 10 more field goal attempts than Phoenix, while dominating the boards for a 13-2 rebounding advantage.

The bottom line was simply that the Sparks wanted this one more, and played with a desperation from the opening tip that the Mercury were never able to match.

"It's all about will. It's the will to win, and for us, we're not ready to go home," Leslie said.

Diana Taurasi, who led the Mercury with 25 points, echoed that sentiment.

"They came out like the team that had to win the game," Taurasi said. "And they did that throughout the 40 minutes. We played like the team that was up 1-0."

The Sparks pushed the lead to as many as 20 points in the second quarter, before the Mercury's best chance to try to make a comeback presented itself midway through the third.

In a span of a little more than two and a half minutes, Lisa Leslie picked up her third, fourth, and fifth personal fouls, forcing her to the bench for the remainder of the period. Phoenix quickly took advantage, and cut L.A.'s 16-point lead down to nine over the next three minutes. But Betty Lennox, who came off the bench to contribute a solid 17 points for the Sparks, ended the run with a three-pointer, and did the same thing the next time her team's lead dipped below double figures, when there was just under four minutes left in the game.

Candace Parker led the Sparks with 24 points and a ridiculous 18 rebounds, and she was, overall, the team's best player. But Leslie was the one who led the charge from the start, and admittedly, the possibility that this could have been her last game was somewhat of a motivating factor.

"In a way it's very motivating to me: how do I want my last game to look," Leslie said. "And for me, that's driving me and making me play harder, and not take off possessions, to keep going after loose rebounds, to make sure I'm doing the right schemes. So I would say yes, it's helping me to focus on what it is that I need to do."

This wasn't Leslie's last game, but the next one might be. These two teams will play again on Saturday, and the winner of that one will advance to the WNBA Finals, while the loser will call it a season -- or, in Leslie's case, call it a career. But surviving for one more game was never the ultimate goal, and you get the feeling that Leslie may have a few more stellar performances in store before she's ready to retire.

"We're still not comfortable, because we're not satisfied," Leslie said. "And for me, obviously, I don't want to end my career here in Phoenix."

Retirement Will Wait at Least 1 More Game for Lisa Leslie originally appeared on NBA FanHouse on Sat, 26 Sep 2009 03:14:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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