The Los Angeles Sparks have acquired guard Chelsea Gray (5'11''-G-92, college: Duke), the 15th and 23rd picks in the 2016 WNBA Draft and the first round pick in the 2017 draft from the Connecticut Sun in exchange for the draft rights to guard Jonquell Jones (6'6''-F-94) and the 17th pick in the 2016 WNBA Draft, executive vice president and general manager Penny Toler announced today. "Gray is an experienced point guard and a natural born leader with exceptional passing skills, who can also knock down the three-point shot," said Toler. In 34 games with Connecticut, Gray averaged 6.9 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists and shot 42.4% from the field and 81.6 percent from the free-throw line last season. Among all rookies, she ranked second in assists per game (2.7 apg), second in three-point shooting percentage (.348) and fifth in scoring average (6.9 ppg). She holds career highs of 16 points (twice), seven assists and three steals (twice). "We have wanted Chelsea as part of our team for months," said head coach Brian Agler . "She is a point guard with size and is a great competitor who makes everyone around her better. She shoots well from the three-point line and we are excited to have Chelsea join the Sparks." Drafted with the 11th overall pick in the 2014 WNBA Draft by Connecticut, Gray sat out the 2014 WNBA season recuperating from a right knee injury suffered during her senior year at Duke. Jones, a 6-6 forward out of George Washington, was selected by Los Angeles sixth overall in the 2016 WNBA Draft. She is the only player in Atlantic 10 history to average a double-double in three consecutive seasons. Jones finished her career ranked third on the all-time career rebounds list (961), first in single-season rebounds (375), first in single-game rebounds (26) fourth in scoring (15.4 ppg) and fifth in blocked shots (177). In 76 career games, she is just the third Colonial with 1,000 career points, 800 rebounds and 100 blocks. Courtesy of: oursportscentral.com
Parker's layup helps Sparks sweep Mercury - 6 days ago
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Candace Parker (6'4''-C/F-86, college: Tennessee) hobbled into the postgame press conference with ice bags over both knees and slung over her left shoulder. But soreness was a small price to pay for a return trip to the WNBA Finals. Parker drove for a layup with 2.9 seconds to play, giving the Los Angeles Sparks an 89-87 win and three-game sweep of the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA semifinals Sunday. Parker, a two-time league Most Valuable Player, finished with 21 points and 11 assists. The... [read more]
Candace Parker (6'4''-C/F-86, college: Tennessee) hobbled into the postgame press conference with ice bags over both knees and slung over her left shoulder. But soreness was a small price to pay for a return trip to the WNBA Finals. Parker drove for a layup with 2.9 seconds to play, giving the Los Angeles Sparks an 89-87 win and three-game sweep of the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA semifinals Sunday. Parker, a two-time league Most Valuable Player, finished with 21 points and 11 assists. The Mercury's Brittney Griner (6'8''-C-90, college: Baylor) missed a shot as time expired and the Sparks celebrated with shouts and embraces in front of their bench. "In Sparks fashion, we made things interesting down the stretch," Parker said. "They jumped, and I just saw the lane and took it to the basket." Odyssey Sims (5'9''-G-92, college: Baylor) scored 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting, tying a playoff career high. Chelsea Gray (5'11''-G-92, college: Duke) added 14 points for the defending champion Sparks, who advanced to their second straight WNBA Finals and fifth overall. They will face Minnesota in a rematch of last year's championship, after the Lynx completed a sweep of Washington earlier Sunday. "We know that there's a lot of good teams in this league, so to be one of the final two standing, we feel like we're worthy of that, but we also feel fortunate to have the opportunity to go play," Sparks coach Brian Agler said. Diana Taurasi (6'0''-SG-82, college: Connecticut) had tied the game at 87 with a 3-pointer from the wing with 10.8 seconds left. After a timeout, Parker scored the go-ahead basket. Taurasi's 22 points led the Mercury while Griner added 18. Griner made just 7 of 23 shots for the game. "Tough day for me," she said. "We kept getting good looks, I just wasn't finishing them." Leilani Mitchell (5'5''-PG-85, college: Utah)'s steal and layup with 1:21 left brought the crowd to its feet and cut the Sparks' lead to 85-82. Then Camille Little, who scored 18 points, stole an inbounds pass and drove for a layup to make the score 85-84 with 18.6 seconds to go. Sims sank a pair of free throws with 14.1 seconds left before Taurasi's shot tied it. The Sparks won all six meetings regular season and postseason, with the Mercury. "Look, they're defending champs for a reason," Taurasi said. "They make you pay anytime you make a mistake. That's the quality of players they have on that team right now." The Sparks trailed by as many as 11 points in the first quarter after Little's 3 with 3:43 left, part of her 12 points in the opening 10 minutes. The Mercury's 30-21 lead in the second quarter disappeared with a pair of Parker steals, two free throws and a nifty assist to Sims for a layup, and Los Angeles took its largest lead of the half, 43-35, on Alana Beard's jumper 36.3 seconds before halftime. "I just take what the defense gives us," Sims said. "Every game we executed a little bit more." Courtesy of: thenewstribune.com
Moore, Fowles help Lynx sweep Mystics, return to WNBA Finals - 6 days ago
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The Minnesota Lynx are back in the WNBA Finals after completing a semifinal sweep of the Washington Mystics on Sunday. That doesn't mean it was easy. Maya Moore (6'0''-SG-89, college: Connecticut) scored 21 points, Sylvia Fowles (6'6''-C-85, college: LSU) added 17 points and 14 rebounds, and the Lynx sealed their place in a third straight finals after pulling away to an 81-70 win in Game 3. Seimone Augustus (6'0''-SF-84, college: LSU) added 18 points to help make sure Minnesota will have... [read more]
The Minnesota Lynx are back in the WNBA Finals after completing a semifinal sweep of the Washington Mystics on Sunday. That doesn't mean it was easy. Maya Moore (6'0''-SG-89, college: Connecticut) scored 21 points, Sylvia Fowles (6'6''-C-85, college: LSU) added 17 points and 14 rebounds, and the Lynx sealed their place in a third straight finals after pulling away to an 81-70 win in Game 3. Seimone Augustus (6'0''-SF-84, college: LSU) added 18 points to help make sure Minnesota will have the chance to win a fourth WNBA title in seven years. "They challenged us in many ways that whoever comes out of the other series, Phoenix or LA, will challenge us in the same way," Augustus said. The Lynx will play Los Angeles in a rematch of the WNBA Finals. The Sparks won last season's championship round in five games. Despite winning all three semifinal games by double digits, the Lynx felt fortunate to escape Washington just as the Mystics seemed to be gaining their footing. "This is a team that didn't have most of their group together for a big stretch of the season," Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said of Washington. "What concerned me was the longer they played, the better they were getting. And so we thought it was really important not to give them that life." Elena Delle Donne (6'5''-G/F-89, college: Delaware) scored 15 points to lead the Mystics, who exit the playoffs after reaching the semifinals for the first time since 2002. Tierra Ruffin-Pratt (5'10''-G-91, college: N.Carolina) added 14 points and Kristi Toliver (5'7''-PG-87, college: Maryland) had 13 for Washington, which forced the Lynx into a series-high 13 turnovers. But the Mystics scored only 31 second-half points in their sixth loss in as many games against Minnesota in 2017, including regular season and playoffs. "When you're matched up against a team like Minnesota, that's the kind of team that sets the bar," Toliver said. "And we got to play against the bar." After falling behind by seven late in the second quarter, the Lynx responded with a 17-0 run that stretched across halftime to build a 10-point lead. Augustus scored Minnesota's first seven points of the second half, including a transition 3-pointer off Moore's kickout. Moore added a technical free throw charged to the Mystics bench to make it 49-39 with 6:41 left in the third quarter. Washington closed back to within two. That's when Fowles scored twice in one possession, aided by her own offensive rebound and another from Rebekkah Brunson. That made it 63-57, and the lead grew again from there. "We just look at, when is the moment we can break a team," Fowles said. "We just keep going and we try to find those breaking points where we can get in there and get the job done." Courtesy of: usatoday.com
Fowles, Moore lift Lynx over Mystics, 93-83 - 9 days ago
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In the precious few minutes newly crowned MVP Sylvia Fowles (6'6''-C-85, college: LSU) sat on the bench during Game 2 of the WNBA semifinals, she allowed herself to soak up the raucous atmosphere of the University of Minnesota's Williams Arena and marvel at just how loud 9,000 fans can get. "You know why it's loud, Syl?" said teammate Lindsay Whalen (5'9''-PG-82, college: Minnesota), a former Golden Gophers All-American. "Because it's 'The Barn.'" Fowles scored 25 points to lead the Lynx... [read more]
In the precious few minutes newly crowned MVP Sylvia Fowles (6'6''-C-85, college: LSU) sat on the bench during Game 2 of the WNBA semifinals, she allowed herself to soak up the raucous atmosphere of the University of Minnesota's Williams Arena and marvel at just how loud 9,000 fans can get. "You know why it's loud, Syl?" said teammate Lindsay Whalen (5'9''-PG-82, college: Minnesota), a former Golden Gophers All-American. "Because it's 'The Barn.'" Fowles scored 25 points to lead the Lynx to a 93-83 victory over the Washington Mystics on Thursday night, putting Minnesota up 2-0 in the best-of-five series. Fowles made 12 of 16 shots and the Lynx shot 51 percent from the floor to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series. Maya Moore (6'0''-SG-89, college: Connecticut) had 22 points and five assists, and Rebekkah Brunson (6'3''-F/C-81, college: Georgetown, agency: LBM Management) added 11 points and 10 rebounds in a back-and-forth game at the old college arena affectionately nicknamed "The Barn," where the Lynx are playing while Target Center undergoes renovations. "When you sit on the bench, you definitely hear all the noise bouncing off the walls and the ceiling," she said. The fans had reason to cheer in Game 2. Elena Delle Donne (6'5''-G/F-89, college: Delaware) and Kristi Toliver (5'7''-PG-87, college: Maryland) each scored 25 points for the Mystics. Washington led by two with five minutes to go, but were outscored 20-8 the rest of the way by a Lynx team that has had the same core during their five trips to the WNBA Finals over the last six years. "You can tell the difference between Minnesota and us," Toliver said. "They're a well-oiled machine." Fowles was given the MVP trophy about two hours before tipoff, accepting it in a tearful press conference as she reflected on 10 years in the league. While some of her teammates had trouble finding the mark in the first half, Fowles powered her way to the basket over and over again to keep the Lynx in the game. She was never more impressive than on two straight possessions in the fourth after the Lynx fell behind 72-71. Fowles rose up to snatch two offensive rebounds in traffic, then scored through contact to put Minnesota back in front. Her second one jumpstarted a 9-0 run that put the Lynx up 82-75, and they never looked back. "That's why she's the MVP," Delle Donne said. Courtesy of: usatoday.com
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