Aussies in WNBA: Allen lifting for the Liberty
The Los Angeles Sparks remain top of the table as the team to beat, only having dropped one game this season as Candace Parker and Nneka Ogwumike continue to dominate. Minnesota’s form slump seems to be well and truly gone with only 4 registered losses for the season.
New York Liberty are making a statement on top of the Eastern Conference Standings, with Tina Charles in some of the finest form of her career and Aussie Rebecca Allen providing some sparks off the bench.
Penny Taylor is still sitting on the sidelines for Phoenix with injury, and is probably taking preventative measures with the Rio Olympics fast approaching.
https://twitter.com/WNBA/status/752495296152731648
Players Of The Week
Angel McCoughtry has been named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the second time this season after helping the Atlanta Dream to win all three of its games last week. It’s no coincidence that McCoughtry is firing and the Dream are on a late surge to get into playoff contentions.
McCoughtry started her week with 18 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists in a win over the Seattle Storm, then managed to front up with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists in a victory over the Dallas Wings. Showing no signs of slowing down, McCoughtry then made 26 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 blocks as the Dream defeated Connecticut Sun.
https://twitter.com/WNBA/status/748607891784011776
Minnesota superstar Maya Moore earned Western Conference Player of the Week for the third time this season after helping the Lynx improve to a 16-4 record. The Lynx power forward started her week with 33 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals as Minnesota managed to grab a 5 point win over Chicago Sky. Moore then registered a WNBA season-high 40 points alongside 8 rebounds and 3 steals in a tough loss to Connecticut.
Much of Minnesota's success comes down to their cohesion and chemistry as a team.
https://twitter.com/WNBA/status/752924252827947008
Aussie Update
It’s been relatively quiet for our Australians over the past week with Penny Taylor still sitting on the sidelines for the Mercury as she recovers from a hip contusion.
Erin Phillips and Rebecca Allen have both flown the Australian torch over the past week, with Allen scoring 9 points with 2 rebounds in a breakout game as the Liberty defeated Chicago by 3 points. She then backed up with a career-best 11 points with 3 steals in a big win over the Atlanta Dream.
https://twitter.com/SlamCity_360/status/753317103277576192
Phillips also managed 9 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists in Minnesota’s big win over Dallas 95-53.
The Seattle Storm will honour Australia’s greatest ever female basketballer, Lauren Jackson by retiring her iconic #15 jersey to hang in the rafters are Key Arena. The 8 time WNBA All-Star led the Storm to two WNBA Championships in 2004 and 2010, and picked up 3 MVP awards herself along the way and has just returned to Seattle for the first time since 2012.
https://twitter.com/seattlestorm/status/753323681842016256
Whalen breaks records
Minnesota’s incredible point guard Lindsay Whalen became the 1st player in WNBA history to reach 5000 points, 2000 assists and 1500 rebounds in a career. The three-time WNBA champion and five-time All-Star is winding the clock back at 34 years of age to persist as the main play maker for one of the WNBA’s most talented sides.
https://twitter.com/WNBA/status/751214698096234496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw