Looking Ahead at WNBA’s 20th Year: new president Lisa Borders, Diana Taurasi returns, and it’s the last season for 10-time WNBA all-star Tamika Catchings

Last week was a historic week for the world of sports. The Golden State Warriors set the best record in NBA history, Kobe Bryant dropped 60 points in his final career game and the 20th WNBA Draft took place at the Mohegan Sun Arena for the third consecutive year. Thirty-six of the nation’s best women collegiate athletes were selected into the WNBA on Thursday night. For the first time in the history of the WNBA Draft, the top three selections all came from the same school. The Huskies from the University of Connecticut took the top three spots and dominated the first round of the draft just like they dominated the NCCA Championship earlier this year.

As expected, Breanna Stewart was selected first overall by the Seattle Storm, this is the second year that the Storm has had the number one pick. Expectations are set high for the 6’4 forward, she is a 4-time NCAA champion, 3-time player of the year and she is the only player to be named the NCAA Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player four years in a row. The Storm has not won a championship since 2010, hopefully, Stewart can keep her championship streak going at the professional level. The No.2 pick went to the San Antonio Stars, who selected Texas native, Moriah Jefferson. The Huskie also has 4 championship titles under her belt and was named the American Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Jefferson set a school record with a total of 659 career assist not to mention she is a 46% 3-point-shooter. Her versatility on the court is just what the Stars need this season.

It was a big night for the Connecticut Sun, who went home with two consecutive first round picks. Coming in at No.3 was Morgan Tuck from UConn. Aside from becoming a champion for the fourth time in her career, Tuck finished her final year with an assist-turnover ratio of 2.1/1, which was the second-best in the league. The No.4 selection, also for the Connecticut Sun, was Rachel Banham from the University of Minnesota. She is most remembered for her 60-point game earlier in the season, a performance that was recognized and duplicated by NBA star Kobe Bryant. Banham was named the 2016 BIG 10 player of the year and has set the all-time scoring record with 3,093 career points. The Dallas Wings, formerly known as the Tulsa Shock had the No.5 pick and they selected Aerial Powers from Michigan State. Powers is a 3-time first team All-American and set a school record with 47 career double-doubles.

The Los Angeles Sparks selected Jonquel Jones of George Washington as the No.6 overall draft pick, Jones is the only player to average a double-double for 3 consecutive seasons. At No.7, the Washington Mystics selected Kahleah Cooper of Rutgers University. Cooper sits at No.3 on Rutgers all-time scoring list behind, Cappie Pondexter and Sue Wicks. Courtney Williams of the University of Southern Florida was selected 8th overall by the Phoneix Mercury. The Indiana Fever selected Tiffany Mitchell as the 9th overall pick. Mitchell played for the University of Southern California and led her team with 85 assists this season. The 10th overall selection went to the Chicago Sky who picked Imani Boyette. Boyette played for Texas State and was named the BIG 12 Co-Defensive Player of the Year. Boyette is the daughter of WNBA legend Pamela McGee, they are the first mother-daughter duo to have played for the league. The Atlanta Dream selected Bria Holmes of West Virginia 11th overall. The New York Liberty wrapped up the first round selecting Adut Bulgak 12th overall. Bulgak is a 6’4 center out of Florida State and was an Honorable Mention All-American in 2015.

Fans have a lot to look forward to this season as Diana Taurasi will make her return to the Phoenix Mercury, newly acquired WNBA president Lisa Borders will participate in her first active season and most importantly this will be the last season for 10-time WNBA all-star Tamika Catchings. The WNBA’s historic 20th anniversary season will kick off on May 14th.

Team Liberty follows Tina Charles’ lead to Gain Victory Over the Washington Mystics

The New York Liberty will head back to Madison Square Garden after defeating the Washington Mystics 86-68 in game two of the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Liberty was in jeopardy of elimination after their double overtime upset against Washington, last Friday night. On Sunday, New York defeated the Mystics for the second time this season and the second time at the Verizon center. The Liberty has the best record in the WNBA for road wins, and its 18-point win over the Mystics proved exactly that.

New York Liberty’s Game 1 Double-Overtime Upset

The Liberty finished its regular season with the best record in the league (23-11). Having the best record helped the team receive home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. However, just three points prevented the team from winning its playoff debut at the World’s Most Famous Arena. New York took control during the first quarter of the game, leading the Mystics by as much as 10 points.

However, Washington came back with some answers for the Liberty in the second quarter, which created a narrow lead between the two teams. The teams tied 14 times throughout the game. The most crucial tie of the game came after the Mystic’s secret weapon, Ivory Latta, nailed a three-point shot with just 27 seconds remaining in normal regulation time.

Washington Mystics point guard Ivory Latta pushes past New York Liberty player to score three points.

Latta’s trey brought the score to 69-69. Liberty center, Tina Charles, completed a jump shot in the final 3 seconds almost brought her team to victory, but the shot was ruled as “no good” due to a shot clock violation. The Liberty’s small errors, 14 turnovers and 10 missed free throws, as well as, a handful of bad calls played a huge role in the team’s 86-83 Game One upset against Washington.

Game2: New York Liberty showed up and showed out at the Verizon Center

New York Liberty center Tina Charles led her team with 22 points in its Game 2 victory over the Washington Mystics. Seventeen of those points were made in the 3rd quarter alone. As a whole, the Liberty stepped up its game time performance. New York took its largest lead of 26 points late in the second half of the game, completely narrowing Washington’s chances at a comeback. The team had 12 steals, 33 rebounds and averaged 86.7% in free throws.

Additionally, 32 of the team’s 86 points came from the bench which proved that this victory was a complete team effort. Although the Liberty has a 1-4 regular season record against the Mystics, the New York team proved that it has what it takes to outplay and out-strategize Washington. If the Liberty wants to advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2002, it has to take defensive control over the Mystics and play a solid offensive game.

The decisive Game 3 of the semifinals will take place tonight at Madison Square Garden. Tip-off is scheduled at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The winner of tonight’s game will take on the Indiana Fever in the Eastern Conference Finals, where they will battle it out to see who is the best team in the east?

Tina Charles scored a season low 6 points in Liberty’s Loss to Mystics

The New York Liberty struggled to maintain its home-court winning streak, as it fell to the Washington Mystics (74-59) on Sunday at Madison Square Garden. The team shot a season low 31-percent from the field after making a season-high of 71 attempted field goals. Essence Carson and Sugar Rodgers were the leading scorers for the Liberty with 12 points apiece. After leading the team for the past 3 games, Tina Charles scored a season-low 6 points.

New York Liberty guard Ta'Shauna "Sugar" Rodgers

Both teams experienced some trouble getting points on the scoreboard in the first quarter. It took three defensive rebounds, and 1 steal by guard Ivory Latta, for the Mystics to score its first 2 points of the game. After a strong defensive battle on the court, the teams barely made it into the double digits with a 12-12 tie at the end of the first quarter. The Liberty’s offensive decisions eventually pulled through in the beginning of the second quarter, allowing them to outscore the Mystics 9-3. However, the Mystics picked up quickly with just 2:21 remaining in the first half with a 13-0 run.

Washington managed to bring its lead up to as many as 15 points in the third quarter of the game. Although the Liberty were able to get their lead down to the single digits in the fourth, the Mystics made it nearly impossible for the Liberty to take the lead for another time in the remainder of the game.

Ivory Latta was the top scorer of the game with a total of 20 points; she also scored 3 out of 10 3-pointers for her team. Washington shot 44.3 percent and made 27 field goals which is a season high for a Liberty opponent. This was the second time that the Liberty had fallen to the Mystics this season. In the teams’ first meeting, the Liberty trailed by just 5 points. Head Coach, Bill Laimbeer believed this game exposed how much the team relies on their leading scorer, Tina Charles.

“We count so much on Tina (Charles) to score and she had a really bad game offensively... We have to find other ways to score. We’ve been getting by until tonight.”

Despite this loss bringing the Liberty down to the third spot in the Eastern Conference standings, with a 2-2 record, Guard Essence Carson keeps a positive outlook for the rest of the season.

New York Liberty guard/forward Essence Carson

“It’s a tough loss, but we will rebound from it and look to come out better. It is only the beginning.”

The Liberty will continue the remainder of its season without rookie forward, Rebecca Allen. She is out due to a cartilage injury to her right knee and will return to Australia where she will undergo surgery. The Liberty will try to grab another home court win on Friday, June 19th at Madison Square Garden. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m.

Ta'Shauna "Sugar" Rodgers