If you get NBATV:

Subject to change, as always.

Friday July 24th
12:00pm -- "WNBA: Birth of a League"
1:00 -- "The Run: Detroit Shock"
1:30 -- "WNBA Action"
2:00 -- "Houston Comets 1st Championship"
3:00 -- "Houston Comets 2nd Championship"
4:00 -- "Houston Comets 3rd Championship"
5:00 -- "Houston Comets 4th Championship"
6:00 -- 1999 WNBA All-Star Game
8:00 -- 2000 WNBA All-Star Game
10:00 -- 2005 WNBA All-Star Game

Saturday July 25th
12:00am -- "Raise the Roof: Cynthia Cooper"
12:30am -- "The Run: Detroit Shock"
1:00-3:00 -- "WNBA Action"
3:00 -- Game 2 of the 1998 WNBA Finals (PHO vs. HOU)
5:00 -- Game 2 of the 1999 WNBA Finals (HOU vs. NYL)
7:00 -- 1999 WNBA All-Star Game
9:00 -- 2000 WNBA All-Star Game
11:00 -- 2005 WNBA All-Star Game
1:00-3:30pm -- "WNBA Action"

h/t nick

So, filling out a really, really long survey that spent a lot of time talking about all the NBA games I don't watch got me the honor of previewing some WNBA playoff commercials.

#1) Um. Erin doesn't play for the Liberty any more. Umm, Detroit featured? Umm, Connecticut featured? At least you got Indy right.... Really lacking in action or energy.

#2) A step-by-step recreation of "The Shot." Hello, it's sooooo 1999 -- where's the "Where's the next great shot coming from" montage of Cappie, LJ, Charde, Becky, etc. etc?

#3) The still picture montage. Better than the "Expect Grape" adverts, but where the hell is the life action? The explosion of it at the end?

#4) "Expect Great: Parker. (Shouldn't that be retitled: "Expecting. Great.") Gack, I hate those commercials. No energy. No drive. No impact. You simply need better voice overs and better clips.

#5) Still with the still shots.... do you expect people to believe the voice over just 'cause?

#6) Gawd, the sappy, insincere "Have you seen her?" voice over makes me want to slap someone. And didn't anyone tell'em that Houston folded?

#7) Better. At least we had some names AND HIGHLIGHTS!!! Sheesh. What are they scared of.

Hope they read my "please be as detailed as you can" comments.

Speaking of post-Diana DUI:

Phoenix Mercury star Diana Taurasi faces three drunk-driving related charges, including extreme DUI, for a July 2 incident in which she was pulled over on Camelback Road.

Results of a blood draw showed Taurasi was driving her 2006 Land Rover with a blood-alcohol level of 0.17 percent, or more than twice the Arizona legal limit of 0.08 percent, according to a Phoenix police report released today.

So here's some useless scheduling speculation:

As per the article she shows up in court July 22. She's convicted.

Next, she's immediately suspended by the league.

She misses AT LEAST three games: All Star, New York, Connecticut.

Selfishly, I'll be pissed because her actions have screwed me out of having the pleasure of seeing her play in New York (as well as the 20 people I'm bringing).

It also screws the league out of the boost they might get from the casual fan who tunes into the ASG.

It also screws all the UConn fans who would love to cheer her return.

Which ought to embarrass the hell out of Taurasi.

Which would serve her dumb ass right.

The woman was drunk off her ass and she got into a car. There. Is. No. Excuse.

Of course, she could delay it all by having the court date pushed back. I hope the Donna has the guts to say "Don't."

Get your All-Star Starters here!

Interesting that the Phoenix Lifelock were locked out - either a bad effort on the Merc's part in getting the vote out (do not talk to me about how miserable the effort was in New York -- not counting the fabulous Beyonce parody. That was an individual's creativity, not the concious effort of a thoughtful management organization) or maybe some Diana DUI backlash?

Says Alex: Sos I'm in Min-i-sew-tah, ya fer sure I am.

Questions with Bob Sansevere: WNBA super fan's got game in every city

Phoenix special education teacher Alex Chambers is in the midst of a journey that will take him to all 13 WNBA cities for games. He plans to be in Minneapolis on Wednesday to catch the Lynx game against the Atlanta Dream. That will be his eighth stop. Chambers, 35, started his month-long trip June 28 and will end it later this month at the WNBA All-Star Game in Connecticut. I talked to Chambers on Monday about his jaunt around the country.

BS: I can understand going to Major League Baseball ballparks. Or touring NBA or NHL arenas. But the WNBA? Are you that big a fan or are you just quirky or maybe just looking to do something different?

So, we know all the players Pat has coached/taught. Who taught Pat?

Nadine Gearin, the former head coach from The University of Tennessee at Martin who guided the playing career of Pat Head Summitt, died yesterday afternoon at the VanAyer Nursing Home in Martin after a long illness. She was 73.

Gearin was the first head coach of women's basketball team UT-Martin and guided Lady Pacers basketball team from 1969-78. One of Gearin's outstanding players was Head Summitt (1971-74) who went on to become the all-time winningest basketball coach in NCAA history while leading the University of Tennessee in Knoxville to a 1,005-193 record in 35 seasons.

"Nadine Gearin was so much more than a coach to me," said Summitt. "She was a great friend who taught me so many things including how important it was to keep life-long ties to your teammates. I learned by her example and that is one of the reasons why Lady Vol basketball is such a great family today."

From Newscoma:

To know Coach Gearin, you have to understand that she was a tough coach who led the Lady Pacers (now the Women’s Skyhawks) during a time before Title IX. It was different world back in the 70 and the late 60s.

You see, Nadine broke barriers. And the pebble that she threw in the water created an eventual tsunami with a woman who would become the coach in college history with more wins than you could shake a stick at.

And Nadine fueled that fire within Summitt nearly 40 years ago.

Jayda talks to Jenny Boucek about her dismissal from the Monarchs.

In Sacramento, the Bee's Ailene Voisin has a different look at the situation.

Full Court Press is no longer part of the Scout network, but they are still around. Recently added items include an interview with Betty Lennox and an update on Abby Waner.

So tell me, Mechelle, how do you really feel?

Monarchs firing Boucek is a senseless decision

Every once in a while, there are personnel moves in sports that are so unfair, so wrong-headed and so contrary to progress that I have a hard time sitting down long enough to type in my thoughts about them.

Because what I feel more like doing is rampaging around and screaming. Witnessing sheer stupidity has that effect on me.

But since that is definitely not a good way to communicate publicly, I’m forcing myself to sit down so I can write that Sacramento’s firing of Jenny Boucek as head coach is as dumb a decision as anything I’ve seen in following the WNBA since its 1997 inception. (And that covers a lot of idiotic ground, especially when you consider some of the Mystics’ coaching moves, the Lynx’s trade of Katie Smith, and the Henry Bibby “era” for the Sparks.)

It looks like Jenny is out.

Seems to me that, in my very uninformed opinion, some other WNBA team is going to be very lucky. (Kathy? Do you need coach B's number?)

And GM Whiz is going to have a very interesting time coaching the team he's put together. I believe Phoenix has got next.

ON EDIT: Hey, wait! The Lib are short an assistant....

Too late, but the USA World University Gold game game was rebroadcast with Charli mic'd up.

I'd love to have watched to see the whole thing -- what a great education for the fan to hear a coach's thoughts as the game is going on (and kinda funny too).

ON EDIT: It's 8:35 PM EST and the game is running again.

The Donna listens to the Helen. At least when it comes to getting the Timeless Torches to the ASG.

Mechelle does her own recap: Deuces are wild on Saturday

Three of four WNBA games were decided by a single, solitary basket Saturday … and in the only contest that wasn’t close, Candace Parker had two points.

So two was the magic number on a crazy night where if you’re a Monarchs’ fan, you’re saying, “OK, what else can happen to us?” … if you’re a Sparks fan, you’re saying, “So when does the ‘running away with the West’ stuff start? … if you’re a Sun fan, you’re saying, “Crap, we lose to freaking Detroit again and this time I didn’t even get to heckle Laimbeer.” … and if you’re a Dream fan, you’re saying, “Another lousy last 2 minutes. Gee, where have I seen this before?"

1) Says Q: Mercury Beat Monarchs in a Thriller: Who Says WNBA Basketball Isn't Exciting?

Whoa -- what an amazing game between the Mercury and Monarchs! One of the best played overall of a very well played week in the WNBA.

You have to feel for the Monarchs -- they really outplayed the Mercury for the majority of the game and completely neutralized the type of Mercury blitz that the Sparks and Sky had to endure...(WHB note: But does yet another Sacto loss spell the end for Jenny B?)

2) Well, I'd say it was a different kind of exciting at the Garden last night, but let's not split hairs, 'kay? :-) Suffice it to say that I'm rather fond of the Dream at the moment, that JMac hates the #7 and would like to burn all but the last two minutes of this game tape, and that going 18-18 on freethrows is a GOOD thing. That, and a furious comeback, some seriously important defensive stops, and the tantalizing possiblity that the Scarlet Knight contingent might start participating in the season.

3) Down at the Phone Booth, 12,217 (yeah winning! yeah Candace Parker hype!) watched Alana Beard score 26 points (and CP score 2), and the Mystics end the game on a 12-0 run to get the 75-63 victory over the Sparks.

LA owner Kathy G checks in: The girl with a curl in the middle of her forehead

The Sparks started the game against the Washington Mystics like we started against New York. We make things so much harder for ourselves by letting the first six to eight minutes get away from us. At one point in the first quarter our entire team was being beaten by Alana Beard by herself—she had all 13 of the Mystics' points to our 2. It had the makings of a blowout. I was emboldened by the experience in New York though, where we had finally woken up and played hard and pulled out a win, so I did not totally give in to despair.

4) In Connecticut, Detroit beat the Sun in technicals (4-0) and in OT, 79-77. The game featured 17 lead changes, 16 ties, no Deanna Nolan and 25 points from Katie "don't call me long in the tooth" Smith.

Dawn twits:

Dawn Staley has no sense of direction in her new hometown of Columbia, still gets carded at the movie theater and is a common frequenter of Za's Brick Oven Pizza (veggie with barbeque sauce is her favorite).

But you don't have to follow the South Carolina women's basketball coach around town to know this - just become a follower of her on Twitter.

Want some free Liberty tickets? Generate some web buzz and increase your chance of seeing the Mystics v NY on the house.

Gambling and sports in the US go hand-in-hand (Even if the NCAA gets a tad tied up in knots about it).

But, if you get yahoo/google alerts and such you'll notice you're getting more "betting on the W" information. The Day's Mike DiMauro writes: Over-Under A Point Of Interest Here

Increased gambling on the WNBA is another step in what's been a better summer than the league could have imagined. Two franchises, Phoenix and Los Angeles (both of which are near Las Vegas), signed lucrative sponsorship deals manifested in advertising on team uniforms.

It's hard to understate the significance of that, especially in an economy that has businesses spending less and furloughing more.

”Nobody would have signed these deals if they thought the league was dying,” Sun coach Mike Thibault said on Friday before he had to watch his team play Saturday. “The WNBA is going to be here. How many teams and where they are, we don't know. But it's like the NBA. How many different cities has the NBA been in?”

Because when you're researching something sometimes you just are reminded of some amazing WNBA moments. From the WNBA.com history page:

Triple-doubles during the regular season
Sheryl Swoopes Houston Comets v. Det 7/27/99
14 points, 15 rebounds, 10 assists

Margo Dydek Utah Starzz v, Orlando 6/7/01
12 points, 11 rebounds, 10 blocks

Lisa Leslie Los Angeles Sparks v Detroit 9/10/04
29 points, 15 rebounds, 10 blocks

Deanna Nolan Detroit Shock v Connecticut 5/21/05
11 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists

Triple-doubles during the playoffs
Sheryl Swoopes Houston Comets v Seattle 9/4/05
14 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists

ESPN news:

ESPN will debut the latest "This is SportsCenter" on-air promotional spot -- "Dunk" -- on Monday, July 13. The newest effort in the award-winning campaign features Los Angeles Sparks' Candace Parker and several SportsCenter anchors including Hannah Storm, Brian Kenny, Jay Harris, Stuart Scott and Scott Van Pelt, as well as the Pittsburg Penguins mascot, Iceburgh.

Thanks to a heads up from Melissa over at Off-Court:

MEDIA ADVISORY:

Fox College Sports To Online Broadcast 2009 Women's World University Games Gold Medal Game At 7 P.M. EDT

Belgrade, SERBIA (July 11, 2009) - Fox College Sports will air the 2009 Women's World University Games Gold Medal Game online at the following link. The broadcast will air at 7:00 p.m. EDT and loop three times.

www.sportzu.tv

NOTE: If you want to avoid a spoiler, do NOT scroll down the blog.

Links from Marie's Sports-Media-Society blog:

Women's game: Not 'as good' as it was?
A story in the South Bend Tribune today reports that ND women's basketball coach Muffet McGraw, speaking at the annual NACDA meeting, lamented the state of women's college basketball -- ethically speaking -- today. "It's not quite as good as it used to be. I think the pressure to win is affecting people," she said, and later added, "People aren't exactly following the rules" but those who know about it aren't "willing to step forward."
It seems that a logical follow-up question for her is "What specific rules violations to you know about?" She added that there haven't been any "major infractions" in the women's college game of late, but she is convinced an ethics committee is needed.

Considering the very obvious issues of homophobia and "negative recruiting" over the years I, too, and wondering what coach is referring to.

The question of "ethics" has been raised and is being discussed within women's college basketball and in the ranks of the WBCA. Consider what some coaches said a couple of years back:

When it comes to regulation, Coale has little interest in getting bogged down in all of it. “‘Is this the number of days we should have on the road? Do we want to legislate text messaging?’ All these ‘little’ things that I know are big things. At the end of the day,” says Coale, “you cannot legislate morality. We better be teaching people to be ethical individuals and to do things with the right mission and the right purpose.”

Russ Davis of Vanguard University (NAIA) accepts the challenge. “In our leadership we need to make sure we have more discipline with ourselves, our teams, the people we recruit and the people who we deal with,” he said. If you are in a position to use your influence to encourage more ethical behavior, do so. For example, Davis coaches a high profile club team. He will not play in a tournament if it includes teams or coaches that he thinks aren’t working with integrity. Additionally, “there are tournaments out there just gouging the coaches,” he explained. “They’re [charging] $600 for coaching packets and the big time schools can afford it. But the lower and mid-majors? They don’t have the budget for that.” Recognizing that his team’s absence can impact a tournament’s bottom line, he simply avoids those events.

Stringer, too, has seen the beginning of the “slippery slope.” “When we get to the point that we will do whatever we need to do to win,” reflected Stringer, “then we teach our kids to do whatever we do to win. And those little kids become young adults, and those young adults then are in authority positions and continue to perpetuate the same kinds of things. Whether you are Muslim or Catholic you understand ‘Thou shalt not steal,’ ‘Thou shalt not do some fishy things.’

Stringer sees a need for some basic laws, the “‘10 Commandments’ of our profession,” she says, “Anyone who steps over it – in any ways shape or form – is to be banned. Until we have a code – not an NCAA code – I’m just talking about a code of ethics. Unless those of us who have been there…provided we can open our mouths and say anything. I can’t be around here stealing and cheating all my life and then step up and say something to one of my younger colleagues who might be doing some things. But I do think that we need to stop before we go a couple more steps. We need to break it down and make sure it’s a great, great profession.”

You know, this and this still gets me giggling.

Kris over at the Houston Roundball Review interviews LaTech coach Teresa Weatherspoon.

First, the US team said, "Zdravstvu!"

Then they said, "Dosvidanniye"

And then they asked (translated from Russian) "Gold medal, please."

A monster 28-point, 18-rebound performance from Tina Charles (Connecticut / Jamaica, N.Y.) helped propel the 2009 USA Women's World University Games Team (7-0) past a determined Russia (6-1) 83-64 and on to an undefeated gold medal at the 2009 World University Games on Saturday afternoon in Belgrade, Serbia.

"I'm really proud of this team," said USA and Arizona State University head coach Charli Turner Thorne. "They stayed tough, kept working hard. These are some of the best college players in the country, and they showed it tonight. That Russian team has been playing together for years. I coached against them two years ago (at the 2007 FIBA U21 World Championship). For these young ladies to come together in a couple of weeks, be so responsive to what we asked them to do as coaches, to give everything they have for their country, that was awesome."

Additional quotes.

On Ebay:

UCONN Women's Basketball Signed Final Four Set Sign

ESPN NCAA Women's Final Four Set Sign signed by UCONN Women's Basketball Head Coach Geno Auriemma and players Maya Moore, Renee Montgomery, and Tina Charles. All signed on the set following their win in the 2009 championship game. Heavy wooden case is about 30"x30". Net proceeds for this auction item will benefit The V Foundation for Cancer Research.

The Donna's name is being tossed around as the LPGA looks for a new boss.

Jason Jones over at the Sacbee catches up with Alex-13 Teams: Monarchs' -- and WNBA's -- biggest fan may be this man

"I hope I'm reflecting well on the league," Chambers said before a Monarchs game earlier this week. "I hope that other people that read my story see the WNBA not only has female fans, but male fans and serious fans. Every other sports league has had fans to do something like this, so I figured it was time the WNBA had somebody."

I love, love, LOVE what Alex is doing. I also know that, before the internets and its tubes got all twitter-ized and cable-ized and facebook-ized and such, other fans have made grand (and mini) tours of the league and arenas. And shared them with other fans.

The W simply didn't notice'em. So, I appreciate that Alex is taking advantage of modern media "tools" and that the .com is taking notice. (And, hopefully, learning a thing or two.)

The Fever are singing, "Number nine, number nine, number nine...."

From Jayda: More on Sue Bird's shoes worn to raise cancer awareness

Storm PG Sue Bird acknowledged the color of her new Nikes. Especially what a national viewing audience might feel, watching her dart around a basketball court Thursday in yellow kicks in HD-TV on ESPN2.

"Obviously it's loud," Bird said. "Fortunately it matches our uniforms, so I didn't look too terrible."

But the sneakers could have been a psychedelic swirl of 70 colors and Bird would have still worn them with pride. That's because it's part of an effort to raise global cancer awareness with famed cyclist Lance Armstrong.

Also, because cancer reached its ugly prongs into Bird's inner circle. Last fall, soccer Olympian Michelle French of Kent was diagnosed with "Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma and Schelorsis of the Mediastinum", a Non-Hodgkins lymphoma.

Did we know LSU coach Bob Starkey has a blog? Check out his various Hoop Thoughts.

Communication is a big part of coaching. As I've been taught by Coach Don Meyer, "It's not what you say, it's what they hear." A big part of communication is terminology. For instance, it's critically important that you staff uses the same terminology to improve the retention of your team and to avoid confusion. It's not back screen and back pick -- pick one and we all use it. Not block out and box out -- find one and stay with it. Above that, look to string phrases together that stick with kids (and your staff). Coach Meyer is the guru at this and I will share some of his in a later post. Coach Dale Brown had the HIT philosophy at LSU. Let's HIT 'em. Play HARD, play INTELLIGENT, and play TOGETHER. I think as coaches, for absolute maximum benefit, you should constantly spend time working on terminology and words phases. In fact, a better vision of how important this is comes again from Coach Meyer who refers to them as "word pictures," because when used properly, they actually paint a picture that sticks in your players mind. Some time ago, an article appeared in the USA Today written by Jarrett Bell that speaks to this point and how Pittsburgh Steeler's head coach Mike Tomlin used them to shape the culture of his football team:


That's shop talk, courtesy of Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, who has stretched much mileage from a few choice words on his rapid ascent up the coaching ladder.

"I've probably heard that one at least 150 times — this year," Steelers defensive end Brett Keisel says. "It's kind of monotonous, but we get the point."

From the Washington Times: A season interrupted -- Injury complicates Coleman's transition to pros

From Eric Woodyard and Mlive.com: Swag: Deanna Nolan deserves the ESPY for best WNBA player, and it has nothing to do with swag

Auburn's W update.

Oh, and from the Auburn Plainsman: Bonner and Boddie in WNBA

From the NY Daily News:

Everyone at Boys & Girls HS has a heavy heart.

Frank Mickens, the school's beloved former principal and basketball coach, died in his sleep at his Brooklyn home Thursday morning. He was 63.

Mickens coached Boys & Girls from 1969-79, leading the Kangaroos to a PSAL championship in his last season on the bench.

Before the 1994 season, Mickens hired Ruth Lovelace in an unprecedented move, making her the first woman to coach a PSAL boys basketball team.

From the .com: WNBA Player Recommendations

Pretty much everybody has bought something from Amazon.com at this point, right? Maybe some of you have used Netflix or Pandora. Anyway, the point is, we've all been subjected to suggestions of similar products, similar movies and similar music based on the selections we've made. And as much as we hate to admit it, a lot of the time such marketing techniques work (Exception: "Godfather III" per our interest in "Godfather" and "Godfather II").

So that got us thinking. There is a select group of players in the WNBA that garners a bulk of the attention, yet there are plenty of other stars that are talented and entertaining that don't receive the recognition they deserve. With that, we decided to come up with my recommendations of lesser-known WNBA players based off those that are considered the league's biggest names.

You know, W, you'd improve your fanbase's knowledge if you'd dump that sorry-azz excuse for a fantasy game and return the the old VGM. THAT game helped you pay attention to EVERY player in the league.

And don't think I've given up hoping that one day you'll figure out how to use the internets and all its tubes and have every team send out email news blasts containing all the articles written on their team.... sigh.

Dave Zingler, "WNBA: Observations & Interviews Upside-Down East, Q&A With Alana Beard."

Deanna's gimpy hammy simply add to the Shock's struggles: Detroit (2-7) at Connecticut (5-5)

From the DCist: Mystics' Sanford Balances Full Year of Sport With Charity Work

The New York Times' Mike Tierney takes note of Chamique Holdsclaw's return to the Garden.

Clinical depression kept her out of the W.N.B.A. for nearly two full seasons, and even led to an overdose of antidepressants. In a strange way, it has brought her back to the league.

With her illness in check and her game in tow, Holdsclaw ended her hiatus this year, driven to show others afflicted by depression that it is beatable.

“It’s not about me anymore,” she said. “I’ve always been a player who just played. I have to use my voice a little more now, give back to young people dealing with the problems I’ve had.”

Yikes: Tennessee forward Amber Gray will be transferred to a hospital to be near her family in Ohio after suffering unspecific complications following shoulder surgery last week.

From the AP: NCAA sanctions Missouri Western women’s hoops

The NCAA put the women’s basketball program at Missouri Western on probation for two years and threw out some 50 victories Wednesday as punishment for allowing an ineligible athlete to play for two seasons that included a conference championship for the Division II program.

Besides the ineligible athlete, whose play was deemed a major violation, the NCAA also found that a former student-athlete received extra benefits from a former coach, a secondary infraction.

Had a great time at the Liberty-Sparks game last night.

Big, big crowd that stayed hyped all game. The Timeless Torches rocked the house with their new routine and the Liberty creative crew came up with a great new campaign: "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" featuring Janel and coach Coyle. (Wait for it... wait for it.... Janel McCarville and Patty Coyle.)

Now if only the rest of the Liberty had been as creative. And no, I am not so fond of the Sparks at the moment. (Hey, did you know one of their players has a baby?)

(Though truly, as much as I love Taurasi and LJ and Cappie and Augustus and Katie Smith and Lisa at her peak - my first pick to start a team is Tina Thompson. That woman is rock solid, superb skill, no-nonsense talent. And I sure hope this isn't her final year.)

The Minnesota/Mystics game (96-94, Lynx) game is what a "Must watch the archive" game. Q takes note of Renee Montgomery's Breakout Game and the Minnesota Youth Movement

By now you’ve probably heard that she re-entered the game with 3:14 left in the 4th quarter and proceeded to score 12 consecutive points and 18 of her season-high 21 points over the course of seven minutes between the 4th quarter and overtime.

Her game has been variously described as “electrifying”, a “scoring rampage”, or my personal favorite from the Minneapolis Star Tribune: “Rookie guard Renee Montgomery, who usually provides a spark for the Lynx off the bench, was a flamethrower.”

And it was all capped by some of the best post-game comments I have ever heard – simultaneously honest, humble, and humorous – including a clarification for those who might consider Montgomery “on fire” (or throwing flames) last night: "I didn't really catch fire, I just shot layups. It wasn't like I was on fire from (three-point range)."

However, the ability to get to the rim eight times in seven minutes at the end of a close WNBA game is no small feat. And though it was apparently the same play, she wasn’t exactly scoring in the same way.

The U-19 training camp is in full swing.

12 athletes arrived in Colorado Springs on July 9, where they will train through July 17. They will then depart for Bangkok, Thailand, where the two-time defending gold-medalists will try to make it three straight golds at the U19 Worlds.

The old folks are moving into the Gold medal game (vs Russia) after a victory over Australia. Australia was up early and the back and forth the US "allowed" made Charli a little cranky.

"I think we came out, got a little run and then we let up," said USA and Arizona State University head coach Charli Turner Thorne. "As a coach I don't understand that. We always want everybody to go out and work hard every possession. You have to credit Australia. They're a tough, physical team. They play hard every possession. Our team can learn from that. We take possessions off and every time we took a possession off in the second half, they capitalized."

Sancho Lyttle is getting a lot of press. From the .com.

Up until this season, the bench is where Lyttle had been making her living in the WNBA. Of the 120 games she played in prior to 2009, she started just 36 of them. Being a reserve didn’t bother Lyttle so much. After all, she was still relatively new to the game. The 28-year-old didn’t start playing basketball until her senior year of high school after making the switch from track.

“It wasn’t really getting out of track as much as trying to learn something new,” Lyttle said. “That’s when I started to pick up basketball as a hobby to try and learn the fundamentals of it.”

Lyttle’s short-lived high school basketball career led her to Clarendon Junior College(Clarendon, Texas) for two seasons before a scholarship offer came from the University of Houston. Despite a light basketball resume, coaches there saw potential due to her athleticism and height.

That college offer came from Joe Curl - who, himself spent many years coaching at the Junior College level.

University of Houston coach Joe Curl is a big believer in the junior college players, and not just because he coached at Trinity Valley for three years. He just point to Sancho Lyttle as an example of what JUCO’s can do for international and developing players. Lytle came to the States from St. Vincent, in the British West Indies, “a great athlete who had incredible potential,” noted Curl. But, she had only played netball, never “American” basketball.

“I give her junior college coach (Wade Scott, Clarendon) all the credit in the world for her development.”

“The junior colleges are worth their weight in gold. I’ve always believed that. In Sancho’s case, to get over the hurdles she needed to be able to be successful at the D-1 level junior college was absolutely priceless. Small town. Small classes. A coach that could drill her on the fundamentals of the rim, the backboard, her footwork. And she had the heart, the brain to do whatever she was asked.”

Houston weathered a few SEC and Big 12 storms before they signed her in 2003 “and the rest,” said Curl, “is history. She came in here and took us to a #3 seed in the NCAA tourney, a #8 seed, I believe, in her senior year and was a #5 pick in the WNBA draft. I think she improved a lot while she was here, but I really felt her real basis of who she is right now as player and a person…I give a lot of credit to Wade Scott and the program he had there.”

LA is coming to NY (hope to be very fond of the team after they leave), and Barbara Barker of Newsday writes:

Every basketball player has her own pregame routine. Few, however, have one as challenging as Candace Parker's.

Before tonight's WNBA game against the Liberty at Madison Square Garden, Parker will listen to Jay-Z, stretch and take some shots with her Los Angeles Sparks teammates. Then she will return to the locker room, pull out her breast pump and get down to business.

"This is something I think I can keep doing for Lailaa," Parker said of avoiding formula for her 8-week-old daughter.

She also writes something that sounds mighty, mighty familiar:

The WNBA's reigning MVP is not the first player in the league to have a baby. In fact, on her team alone, there are five mothers. Yet, Parker is pushing the envelope in one important way: She is starting her family at the beginning of her professional career, rather than putting it off until her late 20s or 30s.

I'm still not sure why Barker, like the NYTimes' Crouse, chose to hype Parker's age and ignore all the other basketball mothers such as, to name a few: Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie, Tina Thompson, Helen Darling, Le'Coe Willingham, Kara Braxton, Vanessa Hayden, Yolanda Griffith, DeMya Walker, Jia Perkins, Marie Ferdinand-Harris, Scholanda Robinson, and Nikki Teasley (thanks for the list, Melissa).

To ridiculously split hairs, as Crouse did in a response to an email from my friend and colleague Melissa, and say that Sheryl was a whole two years older (um. but the league was BRAND NEW) or the "other players weren't expected to carry the league" (um. player after player has been expected to do that.) is dismissive and insulting to the other players who've been balancing parenting and a professional career. (note how I use don't use "motherhood," since I'm still waiting on the upcoming article about LeBron James' struggles balancing parenting and pro ball)

I don't understand the need to do that in order to honor (or hype) what Parker is trying to do this season.

From Jenni Carlson of the Oklahoman: WNBA is not sitting well with Courtney Paris FORMER SOONERS STAR STRUGGLING TO ADJUST TO LIFE IN THE PROS

She is trying to make the most of her time on the bench.

"I can’t honestly say I was familiar with a lot of the players and what they do,” she said. "In the summers, I was doing stuff, so it’s not like I paid attention as much to the WNBA.
"I’m learning more about the game I play every day.”

Or the game she doesn’t play, as the case may be.

"It’s definitely been a process, a learning process,” she said. "But at the same time, it’s a process I need to make.”

Perhaps the lesson is, if you think you're a good college player and want a career in the WNBA, perhaps you should take a moment to check out you competition and get a feel for the level of play. Note to Courtney: W players don't suck.

From OurSports:

The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), in partnership with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), today announced that it will tip off the league's inaugural WNBA Green Week on July 9. The event, which marks the first-ever partnership between NRDC and a women's professional sports league, will run through July 16. During Green Week, the entire WNBA family will team up to generate awareness and funding to protect the environment with special oncourt apparel, auctions to support environmental preservation organizations, public service announcements, and hands-on community service projects.

As part of WNBA Green Week 2009, adidas will outfit all players with 100 percent organic cotton shooting shirts featuring the WNBA Green logo. Spalding will sponsor an auction for the duration of Green Week on WNBA.com featuring Spalding basketballs, made from 40 percent recycled materials and autographed by WNBA players. All proceeds will benefit NRDC.

The US volleyball team (oh, headline editor!) is now 5-0, in great part to Kayla Pederson's balanced game.

Stanford junior Kayla Pedersen just missed a double-double with nine points and a game-high 11 rebounds as the USA Women's Basketball World University Games Team (5-0) beat Czech Republic, 115-78, on Tuesday in Belgrade, Serbia.

It was a bad sprain: Sparks' Lisa Leslie still questionable for WNBA All-Star game

Rebecca Lobo, at Women's Open, worries about WNBA future (She looks great, cute kids look cranky)

Alex DiFilippo from SignonSanDiego.com: Houston: Pick No. 30 and playing like No. 1

Charde Houston is proving she was a steal as a third-round pick in last year's WNBA draft.

The San Diego High graduate, who holds California's record with 3,837 points in her high school career, is making a huge impact for the team that took a chance and selected her 30th overall, the Minnesota Lynx.

Despite falling further than she would have expected in the draft after an up-and-down college career at Connecticut — where she received AP All-America honorable mention twice but saw her minutes cut by almost half her senior season — Houston is making the most of her sophomore campaign for the Lynx. She's performing like a first-round pick for Minnesota, which is tied for first place in the Western Conference.

Better start checking the Garden's timing system -- the line up for the Maggie Dixon Classic is out and Scarlet and Orange are involved.

You know how sometimes you don't get enough -- if any -- info on an injury? Seattle's box went the other way on Ashley Walker's DNP.

Oh, yeah -- behind Swin Cash's fine freethrow shooting, Seattle downed San Antonio in what looks to have been an ugly way to spend an afternoon (unless, of course, it was raining cats and dogs or your team won.)

From Steve Contorno from the IlliniHQ.com: For women's hoops, recruiting is a cutthroat business

Law has always been a talented recruiter. For 12 years, she helped C. Vivian Stringer build Rutgers into a national powerhouse. And in that time, the recruiting game has transformed into a cutthroat business.

The media and fan demand have turned men's basketball recruiting into an industry that remakes young student-athletes into national icons. And the changes in recruiting on the men's side, both good and bad, have slowly trickled to the less prominent women's side.

"I've seen the recruiting change so drastically, that's why we're here every day working on the 2011, 2012, 2013, because kids are committing early," Law said.

A little touch of insomnia let's us catch up on last night's games:

1) January's running three-pointer at the half (.com's Play of the Day) may have fired up the Fever, but it was Sutton-Brown's 22pts that carried Indiana to a 8th straight victory. This time, the victim was Atlanta,

2) Detroit fans got treated to a heck of a game, but that may be small comfort. Katie Smith said, "I'm not dead yet," loggin' 40 minutes and 28pts and Zellous made this Lib fan jealous (6-13, 7/8 on fts), but Erin Phillips dropped 6 in overtime to lead the Sun to a 95-92 victory. Oh, and new Sun member Sandrine Gruda made Coach T look brilliant, scoring 23 points.

3) Lots of fans, some hype (though the Breeze wants more) and, for most moms, a decent return for Candace, but she couldn't help the lack of Sparks speed and commitment to defense.

Phoenix lifted their run and run and gun offense to new heights in the second half and boom, it was a blowout. A blowout where four Sparks starters hit double figures. Phoenix simply had more scorers, and Bonner continued to make her case for mid-season ROY.

Oh, and game announcer? Diana's ability to stay focused and perform in spite of the DUI is a sign of her professionalism. NOT getting putting yourself in a position to get cited for DUI would be a sign of a professional.

Mechelle on the CP return:

Candace Parker's return to the Sparks on Sunday night in Los Angeles ended up having some unexpected drama from other sources.

There were the preparations at the Staples Center for the upcoming Michael Jackson memorial, which might get a little bit nuts. And there was Mercury leading scorer Diana Taurasi playing her first game since a DUI citation last week in Phoenix. (The legal process has just started; a possible suspension from the league will depend on the situation's resolution.)

Still, the big news of the night was indeed Parker's taking the court again, as she had been out on maternity leave. Her daughter was born May 13, and CP3 lived up to her prediction that she would be back in early July to play her second season in the WNBA.

More Charli from Serbia.

Outta Detroit - Barb Farris.
In - DeForge?

Thanks to Q, a nice companion to my Title IX rant:

“Title IX and Sports”: The Impact of a 1974 Memo to President Richard Nixon

If you are a) interested in the education of our nation’s youth, b) interested in civil rights, and c) interested in women’s sports (as I am), you probably took note of the White House’s commemoration of the 37th anniversary of Title IX on June 23rd.

However, lest we assume that 37 years of existence is equivalent to the eradication of sexism in education generally or sports in particular, Cokie Roberts and Steven V. Roberts turn our attention back to the issue of enforcement.

In a recent column entitled, “Title IX a start, but women athletes still seek level playing field” Roberts & Roberts write: (go read, you reader you!)

More Q:
How The Mercury Beat the Sparks in LA: From 0 to 22 in About 5 minutes 30 seconds

The Phoenix Mercury’s impressive 104-89 road victory over the Los Angeles Sparks last night was one of those games that simply cannot be appreciated by reading the box score or even the play by play alone.

It’s not just that the Mercury posted a season-high 36-point third quarter, that they managed to out-rebound the Sparks 40-31, or that they ran off 11 straight points to start the fourth quarter. It’s how they did it that is noteworthy.

Does Marissa Coleman Still Have a Chance to Win Rookie of the Year?

With Nikki's exit, Mechelle writes: Revisiting Teasley’s recent thoughts is rather eerie

A few weeks ago, I chatted with Atlanta guard Nikki Teasley about coming back to the WNBA after missing last season on maternity leave.

One of the things we discussed was how surprised she was that fellow North Carolina graduate Ivory Latta had been cut from the team before the season began.

”When I received that phone call, I stopped everything. I was in total shock that happened,” Teasley said of hearing the news then about Latta. “She’s done so much for the city and the organization. But at the same time, I have faith in the organization that they made the right decision and they are going to do what’s best for the team.

Update on the Moore knee.

Dan Fleser writes about the woman who gets him the news: The Vols' Debby Jennings:

Debby Jennings came to the University of Tennessee to attend law school.

She took a right turn into journalism and latched on to a pretty good story: the fledgling Lady Vols athletics program.

“The women’s athletic department was one year old, it was like a colt finding its legs,’’ said Jennings, who became the Lady Vols director of media relations in 1977. “I got in on the ground floor of the whole thing, the whole concept of women’s athletics.”

Thirty-two years later, Jennings’ department has received nearly 400 national publication awards and groomed more than 72 graduate students for a place in either the sports information profession or public relations.

Mystics roster news: Mosby back, Humphrey gone.

COOL and CONGRATS!

From the Reading Oklahoma Blog:

The Western Writers of America have also honored Full-court Quest as a winner in their nonfiction category, Best Western Nonfiction Contemporary. In April of this year, the Oklahoma Center for the Book announced Linda Peavy and Ursula Smith’s book as the Twentieth Annual Oklahoma Book Awards winner in Nonfiction.

Full-Court Quest: The Girls from Fort Shaw Indian School, Basketball Champions of the World—Linda Peavy and Ursula Smith—University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, OK

A little follow-up from Illinois' Courier News: Sporting peace: coaches teach Iraqi teen girls how to play basketball

If the Iraqi women's basketball team qualifies for the London 2012 or Chicago 2016 Olympics, two local coaches will be able to say they helped make it happen.

Elgin Academy Varsity Girls Basketball Coach Vicente Pena and Wheeling High School Girls Varsity Assistant Coach Julissa Hernandez coached a summer basketball camp last month in Knoxville, Tenn.. The camp was developed by Global Sports Partners, a sports agency that contracts with experts to provide access to sports for women and children who have been deprived of opportunities due to social and cultural traditions.

Aditi is still around and has an S.I. mailbag.

Her husband liked Aja. Or Cheyenne.

Candace Parker liked Lailaa.

So she started calling the little bump on her belly Lailaa. She talked about Lailaa kicking and Lailaa getting bigger and then one day, without thinking, her husband, Shelden Williams, looked at her stomach and said, "How's Lailaa doing?"

"I'm very stubborn," said Parker, laughing. "I'm going to do things the way I want to do them."

*Queen/David Bowie plays* Dum dee dee dum de dum dum - two chords. Repeat.

LA co-owner Kathy Goodman blogs in under: Pressure.

Just in time for thoughts on ideas for the All-Star Game comes this article from Nancy Armour of the....Canadian Press? WNBA's originals leave league in good shape

The opportunities for female athletes were so minimal back then it was no wonder Lisa Leslie had modest expectations when she first heard about the WNBA. She envisioned a summer league, with games in small gyms and players wearing reversible jerseys.

"When I saw our locker-room was the same locker-room that Magic and Kareem and James Worthy had once come out of, I was just overwhelmed with the possibilities," she said.

Critics gave the WNBA little chance when it began, predicting it would join the WBL, ABL and soccer's WUSA on the trash heap of failed women's leagues. Even the support - and the deep pockets - of the NBA wouldn't be enough to make it relevant.

Now here it is, 13 years later. Leslie is the league's all-time leading scorer and last of its founding stars and, as she prepares to say goodbye, the WNBA is not only surviving but thriving.

Now about those ideas for the ASG:

1) Remember the Comets!

Invite Van to visit. Contact Tammy, Janeth, Wanda, Fran, Yolanda, Tiffany, Cynthia and Sheryl. Grab Tina. Show video clips of Kim. Interview the greats... walk'em to center court. Say, yes, it totally, totally sucks that we lost the Comets. But, their legacy is clear -- they laid the foundation for this league, and we are committed to always remembering who they are and what they did for the WNBA.

2) Honor the retirees

Yo's injured. Lisa's missed a hunk of time. New York missed VJ due to a family tragedy. Give us all a moment or two or three to celebrate them - with their presence AND great video.

3) Share the All Star "Get out the Vote" videos.

I understand the teams have an in-league competition. Let us see! Let us vote! Build league/team/fan ownership!

4) Everybody Dance Now!
Bring up the Liberty dance troupe and make them do their opening game routine. Holy carp, that rocked the friggin' house. And Maddie (the BEST league mascot) in spandex? You'll never forget the sight. (In a good way)

Catch up with the 13 Teams, 1 Journey blog. Mr. Traveling man is in LA for Parker's return, lucky guy.