Archives: Today in the WNBA | The WNBA Weekly Recap

PHOTO OF THE WEEK Sue Bird converts on a fast-break driving layup with 6.4 seconds remaining Sunday to propel the Storm to a thrilling triumph over the Comets. Aaron Last/Storm Photos

Memorable Game with Memorable Performances Instant Classic: Fever Outlast Sparks in Double OT: It featured everything you want in a basketball game; record-setting performances, heart-racing drama, fast-paced action and high-level suspense. It was a contest we will remember for a long time. Katie Douglas recorded 25 points – tying a franchise record with her fourth-straight 20-point game – as the Fever outlasted the Sparks in double overtime on Thursday. Tan White, similarly, also demonstrated excellence by racking up 11 of her 20 points in the second OT, while L.A.’s rookie sensation, Candace Parker, nearly produced an Oscar Award-winning ending with six points in the last minute. The 2008 No. 1 pick, nonetheless, became the first player in WNBA history to register at least five in all five main categories (16 points, 16 rebounds, six blocks, five assists and five steals). Lisa Leslie added 19 points and nine boards for L.A., which bounced back from a 19-point deficit. ALSO MAKING HEADLINES ... The Big Surprise in the Early Going: They were tied for the worst record in the WNBA last season. They learned that they would be without their 2007 No. 1 overall draft pick for an indefinite amount of time. They were set on competing with a cast of young players, including four rookies. But could anyone have expected them to be a perfect 4-0 with a pair of triumphs against the two teams in The Finals last year? The Minnesota Lynx, who have already defeated the Shock and Mercury, are atop the West despite the absence of the injured Lindsey Harding (knee). Nevertheless, Seimone Augustus, one of the WNBA’s most dynamic scorers and an early contender for MVP honors, has been tearing it up, while first-year projects Candice Wiggins and Charde Houston have been remarkable. The three superstars combined for 57 points in Minnesota’s win over Phoenix on Saturday. Augustus QUOTE OF THE WEEK "This was a test of wills between them and us. We played awful in the first half, but we were still in the game, so we knew we had a good chance to win.'' -- Detroit coach Bill Laimbeer, after his team crawled back from an early deficit and cruised past rival Indiana on Saturday. Laimbeer

WHO WAS HOT Swin Cash, Storm Two Games: 10-19 FG, 13-20 FT Seimone Augustus, Lynx Three Games: 24-44 FG, 3-6 3-pt FG, 15-16 FT Candice Dupree, Sky Two Games: 12-24 FG, 2-2 FT Tan White, Fever Three Games: 19-49 FG, 8-10 FT

Cash

WHO WAS NOT Armintie Price, Sky Two Games: 3-17 FG, 2-4 FT Temeka Johnson, Sparks Two Games: 1-11 FG, 0-0 FT Becky Hammon, Silver Stars One Game: 0-6 FG, 0-5 3-pt FG Kelly Mazzante, Mercury One Game: 0-3 FG, 0-3 3-pt FG

Price

UPCOMING NATIONAL TV GAMES Tues. Sparks-Sky, 8 ET (NBA TV) Tues. Mystics-Mercury, 10:30 ET (ESPN2) Wed. Storm-Shock, 7:30 ET (NBA TV) Fri. Comets-Liberty, 7:30 ET (NBA TV) Sat. Comets-Fever, 7 ET (NBA TV) Sun. Mystics-Sun, 3 ET (NBA TV)

Dupree

Douglas

FAMILIAR FACE RETURNS TO FAMILIAR PLACE It will be remembered as an all-time historic trade. On Feb. 19, the Sun traded 2006 All-Star Game MVP Katie Douglas to the Fever for Tamika Whitmore and Indiana’s 2008 first round draft pick (Ketia Swanier). In her first return to Connecticut since the blockbuster deal on Tuesday, Douglas showed her former team what they are missing. The former Big Ten Conference Player of the Year registered 23 points, six rebounds and five assists to lead the Fever to a blowout victory over the Sun. KT’s extraordinary start to the 2008 campaign has catapulted her to the top of Adam Hirshfield’s latest Race to the MVP player rankings.

MIX OF YOUTH AND EXPERIENCE ON OLYMPIC SQUAD Anne Donovan must be drooling over all the options she will have when designing schemes for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. She could draw up pick-and-rolls for premier outside shooters, sketch out back-to-the-basket post plays for first-rate interior players, or devise fast-break, speed-the-tempo methods for young sensations. The two-time Olympic gold medalist will surely be ready after USA Basketball announced nine members of the eventual 12-player 2008 U.S. Women’s Olympic Team on Saturday. Participants include Lisa Leslie, Candace Parker, Diana Taurasi, Seimone Augustus, Sue Bird, Tina Thompson, Sylvia Fowles, Katie Smith and Cappie Pondexter. The final three members will be named by July 1.

Leslie