Minnesota Lynx Seimone Augustus named WNBA Player of the Week
June 5, 2006 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) News Release
NEW YORK, JUNE 5, 2006 - Seimone Augustus of the Minnesota Lynx was named WNBA Player of the Week for games played Monday, May 29 through Sunday, June 4. The first overall pick of the 2006 WNBA Draft, she earned the weekly honor faster than all but one player in WNBA history. Indiana Fever forward Tamika Catchings won the award in her very first week of WNBA action on June 2, 2002. The last rookie to earn the award was Alana Beard of the Washington Mystics who claimed the honor on Sept. 13, 2004.
Through three games last week, Augustus led the Lynx in scoring, tallying an average of 25.7 points while shooting 6-of-10 from three point range and 9-of-10 from the free throw line. She is riding a four-game streak with 20 or more points and has collected 20 or more in five of six starts to date.
Augustus poured in a season-high 31 points in a 92-87 win over the Indiana Fever on June 2, becoming only the sixth rookie in league history to score over 30 points, joining Sue Bird, Tamika Catchings, Jackie Stiles, Betty Lennox and Cappie Pondexter. The Indiana game capped a season-opening run during which she tallied 116 points, the most prolific five-game start to a career in WNBA history (Ruthie Bolton-Holifield - 106, Nikki McCray - 106, Tamika Catchings - 105, Yolanda Griffith - 99).
On May 31, Augustus led the Lynx past the Los Angeles Sparks with 26 points in a game that saw Minnesota score a league-record 114 points. The Lynx also tied the WNBA record with 15 three-point field goals and equaled the league's second best mark for largest margin of victory (43 points) and most points in the second half (63). Behind Augustus' shooting (10-of-16 shots, including 4-of-5 three-pointers), Minnesota also set a handful of team records, including most points in a half, scoring 63 after intermission.
Augustus leads the league in scoring with 22.7 points per game and ranks in the top 10 in both three-point accuracy (47.4 percent) and free throw accuracy (92.0 percent).
Other candidates for WNBA Player of the Week were Charlotte Sting's Kelly Mazzante, Connecticut Sun's Margo Dydek, Detroit Shock's Swin Cash, Indiana Fever's Tamika Whitmore, Sacramento's Nicole Powell, Seattle's Lauren Jackson and Washington's DeLisha Milton-Jones.
WNBA Milestones Within Reach This Week
Three players are within reach of scoring their 3,000th career point in the WNBA. Seattle Storm teammates Lauren Jackson and Wendy Palmer both could reach that milestone Wednesday when the Storm hosts the expansion Chicago Sky. Jackson needs 12 points and Palmer 16 to reach 3,000. The L.A. Sparks' Mwadi Mabika is 30 points shy of 3,000. Jackson, Palmer and Mabika currently rank 11th, 12th and 13, respectively on the league's all-time scoring list.
Jackson also is on pace to be both the youngest and fastest to the 3,000-point mark.
Jackson leads the Storm and ranks second in the league in scoring with an average of 22.5 points. Palmer is a fifth in scoring among the Storm with 9.4 points per game and Mabika is sixth on the Sparks with 5.8.
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Women's National Basketball Association Stories from June 5, 2006
- Meet the Monarchs Event this Sunday - Sacramento Monarchs
- Minnesota Lynx Rookie Guard Seimone Augustus Named WNBA Player of the Week - Minnesota Lynx
- Storm Weekly Forecast - Seattle Storm
- Sting Weekly Update - Charlotte Sting
- Sacramento Monarchs Weekly Update - Sacramento Monarchs
- Minnesota Lynx Seimone Augustus named WNBA Player of the Week - WNBA
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