Charlotte Sting Weekly Update

August 15, 2005 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Charlotte Sting News Release


LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

Team Leaders

Date Opp. Result Pts. Rebs. Asts.

8/9 @ DET L, 64-71 Smith-25 Sam - 7 Sam -3

Tangela Smith tied her season-high with 25 points but the Sting could not overcome the hot start by the Shock as Detroit defeated the Sting 71-64. Detroit outscored the Sting 11-2 to start the game and maintained the momentum throughout much of first half taking a 10-point lead at halftime. Detroit continued to build on their lead and pushed the margin to 20 in the second half. The Sting used a 19-3 run to pull within six with 38.1 seconds remaining but could not get any closer as Detroit connected on 5-of-6 free throws in the final 38.1 seconds. In addition to Smith's 25 points, Sheri Sam chipped in 13 for the Sting.

Date Opp. Result Pts. Rebs. Asts.

8/12 vs. NY L, 74-82 (OT) Sam-16 Smith-8 Darling -7

Five players scored in double figures for the Sting but New York came away with a 82-74 win in double overtime. The Sting went on a 26-10 run to build an 18-point lead before New York outscored Charlotte 18-5 in the closing minutes of the half to cut the lead to five (39-34) at halftime. Late in the second half, a jump shot by Shameka Christon gave the Liberty a two-point lead with 1:25 remaining. Charlotte's Sheri Sam then connected on two free throws to tie the game at 63 with 59.1 seconds remaining. Vickie Johnson missed two jumpers to send the game into overtime. Charlotte trailed by six (65-71) with 2:27 left in the first overtime before Adrienne Goodson connected on three straight shots to tie the score at 71. The Liberty then missed three consecutive shots to force a second overtime period. In the second overtime, Christon scored seven points as the Liberty outscored the Sting 11-3 in the period. The Liberty connected on 4-of-7 shots in the second overtime while Charlotte made just 1-of-6. Sam finished with 16 to lead the Sting. Tammy Sutton-Brown added 15 while Tangela Smith chipped in 14 for Charlotte.

Date Opp. Result Pts. Rebs. Asts.

8/14 @ NY L, 65-74 Sutton-Brown -19 Smith - 7 Darling - 5

Sutton-Brown -7 Sam -

The Sting started their game against New York strong building an early 9-3 lead. Charlotte would extend their lead to 11 (29-18) with 3:20 left in the first half. With the Sting holding a 10-point lead with 16:02 remaining, New York went on a 13-1 run to take a two point lead with 12:24 left in the game. Another 9-2 Liberty run gave New York a 63-56 with 3:25 remaining. New York also hit six of their eight three-pointers in the second half. The Sting could not get any closer than five as they dropped to 0-14 on the road. Tammy Sutton-Brown finished with a season-high 19 points to lead the Sting.

STING NEWS AND NOTES

GOODY CONTINUES TO HAVE IMPACT

Since joining the Sting, Adrienne Goodson has had a significant impact off the Sting bench. In five games with the team, she is averaging 8.6 points and 4.6 rebounds in 23.0 minutes. In Friday's double-overtime contest vs. New York, she posted a new season-high with 13 points.

UPCOMING STING EVENTS

Aug. 27 Fandemonium - The Sting will host Fandemonium as they face the Connecticut Sun in their season finale. The first 2,500 fans will receive WNBA basketballs and numerous giveaways will be awarded throughout the game.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Thursday, August 18 - at Connecticut 7:00 p.m. - Mohegan Sun Arena

The Sting continue their three-game road stretch in Connecticut as they face the top team in the league, the Sun. The Sun hold a 23-6 record and clinched homecourt advantage throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs with their win over the Washington Mystics on Sunday. Connecticut holds a 2-0 advantage over the Sting in the season series. In the first meeting on July 19, Katie Douglas led four Sun players in double figures as Connecticut defeated the Sting 64-55. In the second meeting on July 22, Nykesha Sales posted 21 points to lead the Sun to a 73-63 win.

Sales leads the Sun in scoring averaging 16.1 points. Connecticut is anchored in the paint by All-Star center Taj McWilliams-Franklin who posts 13.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. Katie Douglas (11.5 ppg) and Lindsay Whalen (11.2 ppg) also average double figures for the Sun.

Saturday, August 20 - at Indiana 8:00 p.m. - Conseco Fieldhouse

Charlotte concludes their road swing in Indianapolis as they meet the Fever for the final time this season. Indiana is in a fight for playoff position in the Eastern Conference. The Fever currently sit in second place in the East with a 17-12 record. Indiana holds a 3-0 lead in the season series. The Fever defeated the Sting 68-58 at Conseco Fieldhouse in the first meeting on May 22. The two teams met again at the Charlotte Coliseum on June 16 where the Fever escaped with a narrow 60-57 win. Indiana recorded their third victory over the Sting on July 23 as they handed Charlotte a 63-46 loss at the Coliseum. All-Star Tamika Catchings leads the Fever in scoring (14.4 ppg), rebounding (7.9 rpg), assists (4.3 apg) and steals (2.9 spg). Kelly Miller (10.0 ppg) also posts a double-figure scoring average for Indiana.

TAKE AWAY

On Friday, August 12 vs. New York, Sting guard Helen Darling posted a franchise-best seven steals. The previous franchise best was six, recorded by several players. As a team, the Sting are averaging 8.2 steals, the third best mark in the WNBA.

DARLING AS A STARTER

Since being inserted into the starting line-up Helen Darling has averaged 7.3 points, 5.3 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 39.0 minutes in six games. Prior to being a starter, she averaged 1.5 points, 1.3 assists, 0.6 rebounds and 10.7 minutes in 20 games.

SUTTON-BROWN POSTS SEASON-HIGH

Sting center Tammy Sutton-Brown posted a season-high 19 points at New York on Sunday, August 14. Sutton-Brown has posted double-figures in four of the last five games and is averaging 12.6 points over that span. She also ranks fifth in the league in field goal percentage shooting 51.3% (97-189).

PLAYING OVERTIME

The Sting played their second double overtime game of the season on Friday, August 12 against New York. It marked the first time in Sting history the team has played two double overtime games in the same season. The Sting are 2-2 all-time in games decided in two overtimes.

PUTTING UP POINTS

Through the first six games in August, the Sting have averaged 67.7 points per game. Charlotte averaged 59.4 points in 23 games during May, June and July.

FIVE TO GO

The Sting have just five games remaining in the 2005 WNBA regular season. All five are against Eastern Conference opponents with two contests taking place at home and three on the road. The Sting need to win four of their last five to avoid finishing with the worst record in franchise history. The worst record in franchise history to date was in 2000 when the Sting finished 8-24.

STING ON TV

WJZY UPN-46 will broadcast the Sting's season finale against the Connecticut Sun on Saturday, August 27 at 6 p.m.

OVER THE AIRWAVES

All 34 regular season games can be heard live on WNMX 106.1 FM. Veteran announcer Sam Smith calls all the action for the third consecutive season.

STING TICKETS

Fans can purchase tickets at the Charlotte Coliseum ticket office, any Ticketmaster location, by calling 1-877-WNBA-TIX or by logging onto www.charlottesting.com. All seats are located in the lower bowl and start as low as $10.

BOBCATS ANNOUNCE 2005-06 SCHEDULE

The Bobcats will begin their second NBA season on Wednesday, November 2, at Chicago and will play their first game in the New Charlotte Arena on Saturday, November 5, against Boston. For the complete 2005-06 regular season schedule log on to www.BobcatsBasketball.com.



Women's National Basketball Association Stories from August 15, 2005


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