Defending Champ Minnesota Tips Off WNBA�s 18th Season as League Releases 2014 Game and Telecast Schedules

NEW YORK, Feb. 6, 2014 � The defending WNBA champion Minnesota Lynx tips off the league�s 18th season as part of WNBA Tip-Off 2014 presented by Boost Mobile on Friday, May 16 when 2013 WNBA Finals MVP Maya Moore leads the Lynx into the nation�s capital to face the Washington Mystics at 7 p.m. ET.

WNBA Tip-Off 2014 presented by Boost Mobile will feature 22 games from May 16, through Memorial Day (May 26), culminating with the launch of ESPN2�s season-long coverage of the WNBA. ESPN2 will debut its schedule of WNBA games with a matchup of three of the top four vote-getters in last year�s MVP race -- Minnesota�s Moore, who finished second, and the Chicago Sky�s Elena Delle Donne and Sylvia Fowles, who finished third and fourth, respectively. The Sky will host the Lynx at Allstate Arena at 3:30 p.m. ET.

The national television schedule includes Boost Mobile WNBA All-Star 2014, with ESPN showcasing the best women�s basketball players in the world on Saturday, July 19. Tip off at US Airways Center in Phoenix, is set for 3:30 p.m. ET.

ESPN2, ESPN, ABC, and NBA TV will televise over 80 regular season and postseason contests, showcasing the league�s most talented players and highlighting the top rivalries.

ESPN2 will air 19 games throughout the regular season and cap it off with extensive coverage of the WNBA Playoffs and Finals presented by Boost Mobile. All games will be available in high definition, and telecasts on ESPN2 and ESPN will also be available on WatchESPN. In addition, WNBA LiveAccess provides online and mobile viewing of live and archived WNBA games all season long.

In March, 2013, the WNBA and ESPN announced a six-year extension to their current eight-year deal, extending through 2022 the agreement that allows ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 to televise games. The deal extends the league�s relationship with ESPN, which commenced in 1997, to 26 years.

NBA TV will broadcast more than 40 games throughout the regular season and provide additional post-season coverage. The NBA TV schedule will be announced at a later date.

Other must-watch television match-ups during the 2014 WNBA regular season include:

-- Five ESPN2 telecasts featuring former league MVPs going head-to-head -- June 3, when Seattle (Lauren Jackson, 2007, 2010) visits Phoenix (Diana Taurasi, 2009); July 6, when Taurasi and Phoenix visit Los Angeles (Candace Parker, 2013); July 15, when Parker and the Sparks visit the Indiana Fever (Tamika Catchings, 2011); July 22, when the Taruasi�led Mercury takes on Jackson and the Storm in Seattle; and July 29, when Parker leads Los Angeles into Phoenix to meet Taurasi and the Mercury.
-- The Lynx, Sky, Sparks, and Mercury will each appear on six ESPN2 telecasts. Minnesota is led by past WNBA Finals MVPs Moore and Seimone Augustus, while Chicago�s roster features reigning Rookie of the Year Delle Donne, and Defensive Player of the Year Sylvia Fowles. In addition to Parker, the Sparks feature 2012 WNBA Rookie of the Year Nneka Ogwumike and 2012 WNBA Most Improved Player Kristi Toliver, while Taurasi teams up in Phoenix with the WNBA�s No. 1 overall draft pick a year ago, Brittney Griner.
-- Western Conference rivals Minnesota and Phoenix, which met for the right to advance to the WNBA Finals in both 2011 and 2013, tip off on June 15, at Target Center (ESPN2, 1 p.m. ET).
-- The Atlanta Dream and Indiana Fever, which battled in the Eastern Conference Finals in two of the past three seasons, continue their rivalry when they meet in Atlanta on July 1 (ESPN2, 8 p.m. ET).
-- Season-long coverage on ESPN2 will include a total of seven doubleheaders, with six of those airing on Tuesday evenings.

The 2014 WNBA regular season runs from Friday, May 16, to Sunday, Aug. 17. A complete listing of the game-by-game schedule is available at http://www.wnba.com/schedules/index.html .The ESPN2/ESPN game telecast schedule follows:

* Schedule subject to change