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WNBA New York Liberty

New York Liberty game notes

June 6, 2006 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
New York Liberty News Release


LAST TWO GAMES

Liberty 89, Sparks 79 - OT (Madison Square Garden): During the Liberty's home opener, New York outscored Los Angeles in both the first and second quarter...The teams headed to the locker rooms with the Liberty leading, 34-30...In the second half, the Sparks led each quarter in scoring...With 0:04 remaining in the fourth quarter, Catherine Kraayeveld hit a three-point shot, on an assist from Becky Hammon, tying the game 68-68...A steal by Christelle N'Garsanet, with the clock at 0:02 ensured the Sparks could not score and forced the game into overtime... In the five minutes of overtime, New York shot 12-13 from the free throw line and outscored the Sparks 21-11, winning their first game of the season...Hammon led the Liberty in scoring with 24 points...Lisa Leslie led the Sparks with 26 points.

Shock 64, Liberty 63 (Detroit, MI): The Liberty came up just short of its first victory of the season in Thursday night's loss to the Shock at The Palace... New York came out determined in the opening minutes pushing to a seven point lead (15-8) behind sharp shooting from Ashley Battle who connected on two consecutive bombs from beyond the arc...New York went on to dominate the second quarter, shooting an impressive .500 from the field...Rookie Sherill Baker provided a spark off the bench scoring ten points and helping the Liberty head into the half with a four point advantage, 31-27...Detroit returned after the half experiencing their first lead of the game since the 8:01 mark in the first quarter (33-31)...The Shock went on a 7-0 run late in the final frame that pushed them to a one point lead, 57-56...New York continued to battle through the final seconds with Battle connecting on a clutch 3-pointer with 12.5 remaining (61-61) and then converting two key free-throws that gave New York its final lead...Deanna Nolan connected on a running lay-up as the clock ticked down to capture the Detroit victory, 64-63...The two teams experienced 12 lead changes and nine ties in their hard fought battle with the Liberty finishing with three players in double-digits (Battle 18, Baker 18, Farris 13), Detroit was led by Swin Cash who finished with a game-high 20 points.

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New York vs. Connecticut

The Liberty will host the Connecticut Sun for their second match-up of the 2006 season ... In the previous game, Connecticut took the game with a 91-74 win over the Liberty...Game time is set for 11:00 a.m. at The Garden ... The game will be broadcast live on MSG Network ... New York currently holds a 1-4 record on the season ... Connecticut is currently 4-1.

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TEAM NOTES

T-SPOON NEEDS YOUR HELP!: You remember her passion, her dedication and of course that famous half-court shot. Not to mention that she was a five time All-Star, the Defensive Player of the Year on two occasions, and is the Liberty's all-time leader in assists, 2nd overall in WNBA history. New York fans knows that Teresa Weatherspoon was the heart and soul of the Liberty for seven seasons... She gave her all to the club and the fans, and now it's our turn to give back to her!

T-Spoon is one of 30 nominees that will fill 10 spots on the WNBA's All-Decade Team, a team that will represent the best the league has seen from its first nine seasons. So you want to know how you can help? Log on to http://msgnyc.com/index.cfm?n35043s2343c12475238t2216e38111957o7505 this week and vote for our girl! Let's have T-Spoon finish strong in the voting and show the league she deserves to be on the team.

The 10 selected players will be honored on July 12th at the WNBA All-Star Game at Madison Square Garden. Let's make it a night to remember by honoring Weatherspoon on her home court in front of her hometown fans!

Also on the ballot are Rebecca Lobo, another Liberty original, and Becky Hammon, the team's leading scorer for the past three seasons.

So be sure to log on and vote, vote, vote!

HOME SWEET HOME: After Saturday's win against Los Angeles, the Liberty has now won its home opener every season except 2005 ...In celebrating 10 years for both the WNBA and the Liberty, New York relived their very first home opener, winning in overtime against Los Angeles, on Saturday, as the team did against Phoenix in 1997.

WE'RE GOING STREAKING: New York has been on a roll against Los Angeles as of late ... Saturday's 89-79 win over the Sparks at The Garden was the second straight home victory for New York against LA ... It was also the third consecutive overall Liberty win against the Sparks, as New York swept the teams' season series in 2005 ... Last season's 74-69 Liberty win at MSG broke a home losing streak against the Sparks - it was the first for New York since July 18, 2002 ... There were plenty of fans on hand for Saturday's win too ... 14,070 screaming Liberty fans packed The Garden to see New York pick up its first win of 2006 ... That is the largest Liberty MSG crowd since 15,698 watched New York defeat Washington, 75-70, on September 19, 2004.

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