Matt's Connecticut Sun Blog

Update: Sun rout Shock in home finale

2010-08-17T21:35:00.001-04:00

Renee Montgomery scored 22 points, Asjha Jones added 18 and the Connecticut Sun, already eliminated from playoff contention, went out on a high note at home Tuesday with a 90-62 victory over the Tulsa Shock in this season's Mohegan Sun Arena finale.

Tina Charles (10 points, 10 rebounds) added to her WNBA record total with her 21st double-double, and Sandrine Gruda chipped in 13 points for the Sun (16-16), who matched their season win total from a year ago.

The Sun have two more regular-season games remaining, Friday at Chicago and Sunday at New York.

Update: Sun lead Tulsa at break

2010-08-17T20:27:00.002-04:00

Renee Montgomery has 11 points, Asjha Jones has nine and the Sun lead the last-place Tulsa Shock, 41-34, at halftime here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

The Sun led by as many as 16 before the Shock cut it to four points with under a minute to play in the second quarter. But a Jones three-point play stopped the bleeding just before the half. The Sun are shooting 47.2 percent from the floor while Tulsa is shooting 31.6 percent.

A wasted week? Hardly

2010-08-17T10:02:00.004-04:00

As a head coach, this is a new experience for Mike Thibault.

The Connecticut Sun, eliminated from playoff contention with Sunday's 79-66 loss to the Indiana Fever, begin the first of three games tonight that many would consider meaningless. In Thibault's eight-year tenure, Connecticut's only been in this position once before -- last year -- but it only had to endure one game that didn't have any relevance toward a playoff spot.

But three games? Never before, including during his years as Omaha's head coach in the CBA, has Thibault found himself in this position.

But he has been through it in the past, as an assistant coach with the Chicago Bulls in the early 1980s.

"Our first two years in Chicago, when we rebuilt the team" we were in this situation, Thibault said Monday night. "We went thorugh this process. The first year was just OK and the second year was better. We had a long way to go and we got better and we just worked through it. We knew both of those years we weren’t goign to be in the playoffs a little while before the playoffs, especially the first year.

"The third year we added (Michael) Jordan and got better and made the playoffs late in the season. In my fourth year, Jordan missed 60 perent of the season or more with an injury (broken bone in his foot) and we still got in. We lost to Boston in the playoffs when Jordan had a big game (a playoff-record 63 points in Game 2 of the series).

"We knew it was going to be a process to get better. I’ve watched other teams go through it on our league and you hope it’s not ever you. But the reality is if you want to build an organization up the right way, patience is the hardest virtue. For everybody."

Thibault said the preparation didn't change for tonight's game with Tulsa (7:30 p.m., CSN). The team still had practice, still did the regular amount of opponent prep.

"That’s their job," Thibault said of the players. "Most of them are going to be here next year. ... We’re going to use this week to keep getting better. There’s going to be carry over from this year to next, hopefully in a positive way."

And there were encouraging signs, too, he said.

"Two players remarked that even though we lost (Sunday), there was kind of a turning point in figuring a few things out," Thibault said. "It was just a sense that they had about the team. It was just an unsolicited opinion. They felt we got beat down the stretch on experience by a great player (Indiana's Tamika Catchings, who scored 26 points). We have a ways to go to reach that level but we’re heading in the right direction."

Hightower will 'probably' miss rest of season

2010-08-16T20:11:00.000-04:00

Rookie guard Allison Hightower, who’s missed the last two games with an unspecified illness, is “probably” going to miss the rest of the season, Sun coach Mike Thibault said Monday.

Hightower approached team trainer Jeremy Norman before the weekend about not feeling well. She was on the bench but did not dress for each of the last two games.

“I really cant say right now” what it is, Thibault said. “There are some tests being run. We really don’t know, and I’m not at liberty to talk about it” due to the HIPAA Privacy Rule.

“She just hasn’t felt well,” he added.

Update: Fever end Sun's playoff hopes; Charles set two records

2010-08-15T19:12:00.000-04:00

Tina Charles set new WNBA records for rebounds and double-doubles in the season, but the Connecticut Sun couldn't avoid elimination from playoff contention, falling, 79-66, to the Indiana Fever on Sunday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Charles finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds, her 20th double-double of the season, breaking a tie with Utah's Natalie Williams. She now has 368 rebounds, which eclipsed Cheryl Ford's mark from 2006 of 363.

The Sun's (15-16) loss combined with the Washington Mystics' 80-71 victory over Seattle mathematically eliminated the Sun from reaching the playoffs.

Update: Sun trail at half; Mystics win

2010-08-15T18:08:00.003-04:00

Renee Montgomery has eight points and six assists, and the Sun were able to trim a 12-point deficit to five by halftime, 42-37, against the Indiana Fever.

Tamika Catchings has 13 points for Indiana.

Meanwhile, the Washington Mystics beat the Seattle Storm, 80-71, to improve to 19-12. The Sun need to win today to avoid elimination from playoff contention. Indiana, New York and Atlanta have already clinched spots in the East. Connecticut currently trails the Mystics by 3 1/2 games.

Keep an eye on the District

2010-08-15T16:25:00.002-04:00

Greetings from Mohegan Sun Arena. The tip for the Sun-Fever is abot 30 minutes away, but follow the Washington Mystics-Seattle Storm game here.

A Mystics win and Sun loss eliminates the Sun from playoff contention. Lauren Jackson, who sat with back spasms Friday at Connecticut, started and played eight minutes of the first quarter in Washington.

Update: Sun thump Storm but gain no ground

2010-08-13T21:16:00.001-04:00

Asjha Jones scored 19 points, Tina Charles had 14 with five rebounds and the Connecticut Sun throttled the shorthanded Seattle Storm, 88-68, on Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

The Sun (15-15) didn't gain any significant ground toward a playoff spot, however. Fourth-plce Washington, up three games on Connecticut for the East's final postseason berth, rallied past Minnesota, 61-58, to hold their lead in the standings, now with four games to play.

Seattle (25-5) played without MVP candidate Lauren Jackson, who sat with back spasms. With the Western conference's top seed already locked up, Storm coach Brian Agler also chose to play his starters sparingly.

Tan White added 15 points for the Sun, who host Indiana on Sunday.

Dont mind me ...

2010-08-13T21:05:00.003-04:00

Funny moment during a timeout in the game.

The Sun staff was in section 14 here at Mohegan Sun Arena to award a prize pack to a fan. But with the spotlight hovering over the section, fans may have noticed a girl pulling a green hood over her head as she ducked behind the seat.

It was none other than Caroline Doty, the UConn junior who dominated headlines around the state yesterday and this morning after the school announced she'd miss the upcoming season with a torn ACL.

Of all places in the arena, right?

Doty was sitting with fellow Huskies Tiffany Hayes and Heather Buck, as well as Sun draft pick Danielle McCray.

Scoreboard watching

2010-08-13T20:25:00.002-04:00

Follow the Washington-Minnesota game here.

Minnesota was up, 40-29, at halftime, but Washington cut it tow, 52-50, by the end of the third quarter.

Update: Washington rallied past Minnesota for a 61-58 victory. Given the Sun hold on to their 30-point lead (75-45 with 8:36 left) here against Seattle, they'll finish tonight still trailing the Mystics by three games with four to play.

Update: Sun up big on Storm at half

2010-08-13T20:20:00.005-04:00

Asjha Jones has 15 points, Tina Charles has 10 with four rebounds, and the Sun built a 52-33 halftime lead over shorthanded Seattle here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

The Storm are without MVP candidate Lauren Jackson, who's sitting because of back spasms. None of Seattle's starters playing more than nine minutes.

The Sun, meanwhile, have taken advantage. They shot 60 percent in the first half, outrebounded the Storm, 21-12, and went on a 10-2 over the first and second quarters.

Anete Jekabsone-Zogota checked into the game with 7:29 left in the second quarter for her first action since June 27. She has been out after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery on July 8. She hit a 3-pointer with 4:01 remaining until the half.

In other news, rookie Allison Hightower didn’t feel well before the game, a Sun spokesperson said, and didn’t dress. She is expected to be reevaluated following the game.

Sun draft pick Danielle McCray, who is sitting out this season as she rehabs from ACL surgery, is in attendance.

Former UConn teammates feel for Doty

2010-08-13T18:42:00.002-04:00

Tina Charles and Renee Montgomery knew since late July that UConn junior Caroline Doty had injured her knee.

But neither they nor Doty knew how severe the injury was until doctors confirmed the guard had torn the ACL in her left knee, the third ACL injury of her young career. UConn said Thursday she will miss the entire 2010-11 season.

On Friday, Charles and Montgomery's hearts went out to Doty, who is expected to attend tonight's Connecticut Sun-Seattle Storm game here at Mohegan Sun Arena. Neither of the Sun players had spoken to Doty in depth since UConn confirmed her injury Thursday, though she sent out a mass text to the "UConn family," Charles said, to let everyone know about the situation.

"I feel sorry for her just because of the process to get back," Montgomery said. "You see how hard someone works to get back in the beginning and everything they go through just to get back to where they were. And now having to do everything all over ... it’s just a sad situation."

Montgomery said Doty suffered the injury "just working out," and that she had suffered a 75 percent tear of the ligament. Charles said that Doty didn't initially think she had torn it because "it didn’t feel like it felt the same way it had the second time."

Doty first suffered an ACL tear while playing varsity soccer as a senior in high school. She then tore the ligament in the opposite knee 17 games into her freshman season on Jan. 17, 2009.

"That’s the thing, too, usually when somebody’s torn it once, they know what the feeling is," Montgomery said. "She did tear it 75 percent so it’s not all the way. But that’s just rough, especially because if you didn’t think it was (torn) and then you go to the doctor and they’re like, ‘Yeah, it is,’ it’s like, ‘Oh my goodness.’"

Both Charles and Montgomery, however, feel Doty has the kind of mindset to make a full recovery -- again.

"If she has the same mindset that she had the year before last, then I think she’ll be fine," Charles said. "(Her focus back then was) just get back on the court. Right at that time, she was just peaking from that, you know, freshman mindset that you don’t want to step on anybody’s toes. I think around that time that she tore it against Syracuse, it was kind of hard for her.

"She’ll be fine. She has that kind of mindset that you need just to be at UConn anyway. She has that kind of mentality, that determination to get back on the court for her teammates."

Charles added that she thinks Doty will be a "great vocal leader" for UConn this season, just as she was after her second injury.

"It’s easy to be selfish when something like that happens," Montgomery said. "You feel sorry for yourself and pout around all the time and bring everyone else down around you. But she was our No. 1 fan, cheering during the games. I think she really took a selfless approach.

Jackson to not start

2010-08-13T18:37:00.003-04:00

Lauren Jackson is not among the Seattle Storm's starters for tonight's game against Connecticut, a break for the Sun as they try to stay mathematically eligible for a playoff berth.

Jackson could be seen trying to stretch her back during pre-game exercises. The Storm have already clinched the top seed in the West, so they have nothing left to gain from a victory tonight.

Former Sun forward Le'Coe Willingham will start in Jackson's place.

The rest of the starters remain the same from previous games. Renee Montgomery, Kara Lawson, Kelsey Griffin, Asjha Jones and Tina Charles will start for the Sun. Sue Bird, Tanisha Wright, Swin Cash and Camille Little make up the rest of Seattle's first five.

The Sun trail fourth-place Washington by three games with five to play for the East's final playoff spot. Washington hosts Minnesota tonight, starting at 7 p.m.

Jekabsone-Zogota may play against Storm

2010-08-12T16:49:00.002-04:00

Anete Jekabsone-Zogota, who is recovering from July 8 arthroscopic knee surgery, participated in a full practice with the Connecticut Sun for the first time Thursday, and may see her first game action since June 27 on Friday against the Seattle Storm.

But Jekabsone-Zogota admits she is still far from 100 percent, and said it "depends on how the game goes" if she plays, adding if the score is tight, she may not come off the bench.

"Right now I need to be mentally stronger," the guard/forward said. "It’s really hard for me to understand that maybe nothing will happen and push myself more. But when I come to the court to practice, I’m really slow and thinking about my knee. When I’m at home, I’m like, ‘OK, I’m ready, let’s go,’ and I work hard.

"It is hard. When you don’t have injury, some things you don’t understand. But when it happens to you, you understand how hard it is to come back."

Asked if the Sun had to use her, in case of fouls for example, Jekabsone-Zogota said, "Then of course, I would play." But she said she needs more time practicing before she feels fully confident in her ability to contribute.

"Even you can go do the same speed," Jekabsone-Zogota said to a reporter. "In defense, I was really, really bad. I just need more practice with the team, just to use the leg."

The Sun (14-15) are three games behind fourth-place Washington for the final playoff spot in the East with five games to play. They were 9-4 before Jekabsone-Zogota, their best perimeter scorer, injured her knee at the New York Liberty and are 5-11 since.

Update: Sun keep playoff hopes alive, Charles breaks record

2010-08-08T18:59:00.001-04:00

Tina Charles finished with 17 points and 14 rebounds, breaking the WNBA's rookie single-season record for double-doubles, and the Connecticut Sun kept their playoff hopes alive Sunday with a 76-67 victory over the Washington Mystics, the team their chasing in the Eastern Conference standings.

Charles broke a tie with Candace Parker (2008) and Yolanda Griffith (1999) with her 18th double-double, and now is one shy of the overall league record of 19, held by Natalie Williams (Utah, 2000). Charles also had eight blocks, the second most in a single game in franchise history, to help the Sun snap a four-game losing streak.

Asjha Jones added 17 points for Connecticut (14-14), which plays the Mystics (16-12) on Tuesday in Washington in another crucial game. The Sun trail the Mystics by two games with six to play for the final playoff spot in the East.

Hey Ray

2010-08-08T18:17:00.003-04:00

Celtics guard and former UConn star Ray Allen is in attendance for today's Sun-Mystics game. He sat down in section 12 with two others roughly midway through the third quarter.

Allen participated in the Jim Calhoun Charity All-Star Game last night, also held her at Mohegan Sun Arena. Allen walked behind the Sun's bench and playfully tapped coach Mike Thibault's son, Eric -- an assistant to the Sun staff -- on the head as he walked by before taking his seat.

Update: Sun trail at half, 37-34

2010-08-08T17:55:00.002-04:00

Tina Charles has seven points and four rebounds in a balanced scoring effort by the Sun, but they hit just 7-of-13 free throws and trail Washington, 37-34, at the half here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Crystal Langhorne has 10 points for the Mystics, who led by as many as nine before the Sun tied it, 32-32, with 1:04 to play in the second quarter.

'Hey, Anete, they wanna know if you're playing'

2010-08-08T15:45:00.004-04:00

Greetings everyone. Just arrived at Mohegan Sun Arena and tip-off between the Sun and Mystics is about an hour away.

The Sun and coach Mike Thibault have had a busy pre-game thus far. The team posed for its annual picture and then posed for a photo with its Legends ticket-holders, those who've had season tickets each season the Sun have been in Connecticut. Thibault then held a half-hour 'chalk talk' with fans inside Mohegan Sun Arena, fielding questions largely about about why the team has struggled to a 13-14 record that has it on the outside of the playoff picture looking in.

At one point, a fan asked if Anete Jekabsone-Zogota -- who was shooting on the court throughout nearly the entire Q & A session -- would play. Jekabsone-Zogota has been out since June 27 and underwent arthroscopic knee surgery more than four weeks ago.

A smiling Thibault, who was talking into a microphone piped in through the arena speakers, turned to Jekabsone-Zogota and said, "Hey, Anete, they wanna know if you're playing." Jekabsone-Zogota smiled and shook her head, indicating neither yes or no.

"Even she doesn't know," Thibault quipped.

Jekabsone-Zogota is exepcted to dress for the second straight game, but it remains to be seen if Thibault uses her. She's not in the projected starting lineup, where she played in each of her 14 games she's appeared in.

As for today, a loss could all but end the Sun's playoff hopes. They're three games back of Washington and New York for a playoff spot, and a loss to the Mystics (with another game looming with them Tuesday) would drop the Sun four games back with six to play and no longer holding the season-series tiebreaker; they currently lead it 2-1.

Though in that situation, it's mathematically possible to rally to a postseason berth, it'd likely take a six-game winning streak to close the season -- or close to it -- and a late slide by either of the current playoff teams to make it happen.

That's not to say the Sun haven't responded in a similar situation before. Sun media relations manager Bill Tavares reminisced about the 2003 season, when the Sun needed to close out the regular-season with two straight wins before playing Indiana in a do-or-die, one-game playoff for a postseason berth. They beat Charlotte and Washington on back-to-back nights and then topped Indiana at Conseco Fieldhouse to qualify for the playoffs. Once there, they swept Charlotte in the first round before Detroit swept them out of the Eastern Conference finals.

As for what else to watch out for today: Tina Charles needs one more double-double to set the all-time WNBA rookie season record; she's currently tied with Candace Parker (2008) and Yolanda Griffith (1999) with 17. With seven games to play, she has a great chance to surpass Natalie Williams (2000) for the overall WNBA season record of 19.

Please note, however, that Washington is the only team in the WNBA this season besides Seattle to hold Charles without a double-double. Of the league's other nine teams, Charles has recorded at least one against them; Seattle 'held' her to 23 points and seven rebounds on Thursday.

In the Sun's three games with Washington this season, Charles has done the following:
* May 23: 10 points, eight rebounds
* May 30: 13 points, nine rebounds
* July 27: 15 points, nine rebounds

So she's been close. Stay tuned.

Also, the Sun are wearing pink uniforms today for its Pack the Place Pink promotion to promote breast cancer awareness.

Charles WNBA's Rookie of the Month, again

2010-08-03T15:43:00.003-04:00

Sun center Tina Charles was named the Rookie of the Month for games played in July on Tuesday, marking the third consecutive month she's earned the honor.

Charles averaged a double-double for the month, leading all rookies in points (14.2 per game) and rebounds (10.6), and ranking second overall in boards. Charles also averaged a rookie- and team-best 1.6 blocks per game. A career-high 27-point, 20-rebound and four-block performance against Atlanta was the highlight.

The Sun play at Minnesota tonight (8 p.m., CSN-NE).

Jones hits 3,000

2010-07-30T23:20:00.002-04:00

With 16 points Friday against the Atlanta Dream, Asjha Jones reached 3,000 points in her WNBA career. As a member of the Sun, she scored 2,502, putting her fifth all-time in franchise history. She is 76 points shy of Katie Douglas for fourth place. Nykesha Sales is the franchise's all-time leading scorer at 3,955.

Update; Dream cream Sun, 94-62

2010-07-30T21:25:00.002-04:00

The Atlanta Dream orchestrated a 25-0 run over the second and third quarters, and led by as many as 39 points at Mohegan Sun Arena to decimate the Sun, 94-62, their worst loss of the season.

Update (10:20 p.m.): The loss was also the worst in franchise hsitory. The 32-point setback eclipsed the Sun's 29-point loss to Indiana in May 2008. The 86 points the Sun gave up through three quarters also set a franchise mark. The Dream had tied the previous record of 81 points in a victory over the Sun on May 21 at Philips Arena.

McCoughtry scored 20 points, and Iziane Castro Marques, held scoreless less than two weeks ago here, added 17 for Atlanta (17-9).

They weren’t even the worst of Connecticut’s (13-11) problems. The Sun committed a season-high 23 turnovers, were outshot, 88-68, and never even made it a game in the second half. Atlanta scored the final 13 points of the second quarter and the first 12 of the third.

Asjha Jones led the Sun with 16 points, 12 coming in the first half.

Update: Dream up big on Sun at half

2010-07-30T20:29:00.003-04:00

Angel McCoughtry has 13 points and Atlanta finished the second half with 13 unanswered points to take a 53-36 halftime lead over the Sun here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

The Sun trailed, 26-17, after the first quarter, but got to within four points, 40-36, behind Asjha Jones (12 points). But the Dream thrived in the open floor, and McCoughtry made the most of 16 shot attempts. At one point in the second quarter, she lost her dribble and fell to the seat of her pants, where she banked in a 12-footer from the right side over Jones and Kelsey Griffin.

Kelly Miller hit a 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer.

Another key stat: Atlanta has 11 second-chance points. The Sun have zero.

Jekabsone-Zogota still working way back

2010-07-30T18:38:00.003-04:00

Anete Jekabsone-Zogota was walking down the hallway outside the Connecticut locker room Friday night, decked out in a blue Sun T-shirt and her official game shorts when DeMya Walker stopped her.

"Oooh, are those game shorts?" Walker said, excited about the prospect that Jekabsone-Zogota was suiting up to play.

Jekabsone-Zogota laughed and shook her head. No, she wasn't preparing to play tonight. In fact, it may be a little longer than she expected until she does return.

Just over three weeks removed from arthoscopic surgery on her right knee, Jekabsone-Zogota still doesn't feel healthy enough to endure full basketball activities. Coach Mike Thibault said last week that she could possibly return to practice soon, but Jekabsone-Zogota said she may "need more time," perhaps past the two-to-four-week timetable doctors initially gave her following her July 8 surgery.

"I feel good -- when I don’t have to do something on the court," Jekabsone-Zogota deadpanned. "When I start to do some defense stuff or running or more basketball stuff, it still bothers my knee. Maybe I need more time. I’m still not ready to go and play. ... I wish I could really start (playing) faster and be with the team faster on the court."

Jekabsone-Zogota has looked good during her workouts with team trainer Jeremy Norman and strength coach Jodi Hopkins during practices and before games. But while her knee feels less sore, she's still not confident in it.

This is the first time Jekabsone-Zogota has gone through rehab for a major injury. In the days following her surgery, she felt she could return within the original timetable, perhaps even faster. But Friday, she said, "I will not make any more (goals). I’ll see how my leg is feeling."

"Maybe it takes longer to (come back) because I don’t know how it is and I’m more mentally scared now," she said. "Maybe it still needs to heal more, a week, maybe longer. But I talked to Coach (Thibault) this morning and he said, ‘Take your time. When you feel ready, then you’ll be back.’

"It’s not because I’m scared, I’m not going to go practice. My knee just isn’t ready."

Jekabsone-Zogota injured her knee at New York on June 27 and later underwent surgery at Backus Hospital in Norwich. Including that loss to the Liberty in which she played just five minutes, the Sun are 4-6 without her, and have missed her ball-handling, passing and ability to spread defenses with her shooting. The Latvian guard was shooting 35.4 percent from 3 and averaging 9.3 points per game when she was injured.

Jekabsone-Zogota still has a sense of humor about her injury, though. Asked about her biggest limitation during her rehab, she laughed and said, "I can’t be so fast.

"I’m too slow now," she added.

This and that on Sun-Dream

2010-07-30T17:56:00.003-04:00

Tonight's game between the Connecticut Sun and Atlanta Dream is the fourth and final meeting between the two teams and second in less than two weeks. The Dream hold a 2-1 edge in the season series, making this a key game for the Sun who are chasing Atlanta in the standings and can't afford to not have as many as tiebreakers as possible for playoff positioning.

To Sun coach Mike Thibalt, this already is a playoff game.

"These are like playoff games," he said of the Sun's final 11 games. "The two teams know each other. It’s a little bit a test of wills, a little bit of who executes better, a little bit of who plays smarter. It’s all those things. You gotta win some of those areas. I told our players before the Washington game, it’s who can play at the high level the longest in the game. A test of wills.

"These are all playoff games, in our conference," he re-emphasized. "Can you stay out of foul trouble? Can you not turn it over in crucial situations. That’s going to determine most games."

Here's some tidbits on the teams' previous meetings thus far:

Friday, May 21: Atlanta, 97, Sun 82
Highlights: These are lowlights from the Sun's perspective. Playing without Asjha Jones and Sandrine Gruda in their second game of the season -- and first on the road -- the Sun allowed Atlanta to run wild in transition, namely Angel McCoughtry (32 points) and Iziane Castro Marques (18 points).

Thibault earned a technical in this one, and the Sun scored just nine points in the second quarter, the beginning of the end in the rout.

Wednesday, July 7: Atlanta, 108-103 (OT)
Highlights: In the Sun's final game before the All-Star break, Atlanta handed them their third straight loss again behind McCoughtry and Castro Marques (32 points apiece).

Despite the loss, the Sun took a step forward out of their midseason slump, shutting down Atlanta's transition game late but not having enough for a red-hot McCoughtry in overtime in Atlanta.

Saturday, July 17: Sun 96, Atlanta 80
Highlights: The Sun held Castro Marques scoreless and though McCoughtry got her points (27), she needed 26 shots to do it at Mohegan Sun Arena. Tina Charles did her usual thing (22 points, 14 rebounds) and Kara Lawson netted 18 points.

Sancho Lyttle was playing her second game since coming back from a concussion and poured in 12 points and 11 rebounds for Atlanta.

Sun to recognize Sales

2010-07-30T17:47:00.002-04:00

Former Sun star Nykesha Sales will be honored by the team on Aug. 15 during Connecticut's game against the Indiana Fever at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Sales, who last played with the Sun during the 2007 season, is the team's all-time leader in points scored (3,955) and games played (278), having played in 248 straight from June 10, 1999 and July 6, 2006. The seven-time All-Star was part of the Sun teams that twice reached the WNBA Finals in 2004 and 2005 and the Eastern Conference finals from 2003-2006.

Sales took a hiatus from the WNBA shortly before the 2008 season, but has not officially retired and is still competing overseas.

"We are glad to have the chance to honor Nykesha for her contribution to the Connecticut Sun," Sun GM Chris Sienko said in a press release. "It has been a long time comingm, but we are grateful that Nykesha will allow us to say thnak you for everything she did for our fracnhise. We hope fans will come out and do just that."

Update: Sun right ship, top Mystics

2010-07-27T21:35:00.001-04:00

Asjha Jones scored a season-high 23 points and Renee Montgomery added 17 to help the Connecticut Sun hold off the Washington Mystics, 88-78, on Tuesday and snap a two-game skid at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Tina Charles added 15 points and nine rebounds, and Kara Lawson scored 11 for the Sun, who after starting 8-1 at home had dropped their previous two here last week.

Crystal Langhorne netted a team-high 23 points for the Mystics (13-9). The fourth-place Sun (13-10) moved within a half-game of Washington in the Eastern Conference standings.

Update: Sun up on Mystics at half

2010-07-27T20:26:00.002-04:00

Asjha Jones has 11 points and the Sun used an 11-0 run early in the second quarter to create a 43-31 hafltime cushion over Washington here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Renee Montgomery has nine points, sinking three of her team's seven 3-pointers, and the Sun shot 45.7 percent, hitting many of the open shots they missed Saturday against Los Angeles. They also led 19-16 after the first quarter, the first time in eight games they've led after the opening frame.

Crystal Langhorne has 14 points for Washington, which leads the Sun by 1 1/2 games in the Eastern Conference standings.

Griffin playing with brace

2010-07-27T16:28:00.002-04:00

Kelsey Griffin isn't sure how it happened or what exactly she did to her shoulder. But the rookie forward, who's second among first-year players in rebounding (4.8 per game), doesn't plan on missing time because of it.

Griffin will play tonight with a brace on her left shoulder after injuring it Saturday against Los Angeles. She was forced to leave the game with roughly a minute left in the first half when her shoulder apparently popped out and back into the socket -- or at least that's what probably happened.

"I was dribbling baseline. I really don’t know exactly what happened," she said. "I just know it didn’t feel right. If it did pop out, it did pop back in. I remember turning the ball over, and then I remember it not feeling great and then feeling more sore."

This isn't the first time Griffin's injured the shoulder. She also hurt it working out while in college. She played with a brace then, too.

"I was just doing incline dumbbell bench press and I just had too much weight on it," she said. "So this is nothing new."

Since Anete Jekabsone-Zogota's knee injury, Griffin's been counted on for more, topping 20 minutes in five games after playing that much just twice in the month before Jekabsone-Zogota went down. Griffin's averaging 5.4 points, and brings toughness and an unmatched motor to the Sun's starting lineup. Case in point: She took a charge Saturday AFTER she hurt her shoulder.

Update: Sparks bury Sun with 3-point barrage

2010-07-24T19:53:00.000-04:00

The Los Angeles Sparks hit a franchise-record 15 3-pointers to hand the Connecticut Sun their second loss at home in as many games, 89-80, at Mohegan Sun Arena on Saturday.

The 3-point total also marked the most Connecticut (12-10) has ever given up and accounted for half of the Sparks' (7-16) field goals. The league record is 16 3-pointers, last accomplished by Phoenix this season.

Tan White scored 13 points, and Renee Montomgery netted 14 to lead five players in double figures for the Sun.

Lawson in starting lineup

2010-07-24T18:02:00.002-04:00

Greetings from Mohegan Sun Arena. The Sun and Sparks square off in under an hour here, but as for pre-game news, Kara Lawson, who was questionable with a knee injury, is in the Sun's starting lineup.

But be aware: Lawson felt good enough to go before Tuesday's game against New York, but left in the first half and never returned. She'll play point guard, with Renee Montgomery and Allison Hightower backing her up off the bench.

Tan White, Kelsey Griffin, Asjha Jones and Tina Charles, as usual, will also be starting for the Sun. For the Sparks, Ticha Penicheiro, Noelle Quinn, Marie Ferdinand-Harris, DeLisha Milton-Jones and Tina Thompson are starting, playing their 13th game since Candace Parker was sidelined for the season with a shoulder injury.

Lawson may sit out Saturday against Sparks

2010-07-23T22:21:00.002-04:00

An ongoing knee injury may sideline Lawson for Saturday's game against the Los Angeles Sparks (7 p.m., CSN), four days after she was forced to sit out the second half of an 82-74 overtime loss to New York.

Described by Lawson as a “wear and tear” issue, the injury kept the veteran guard from practice Friday. She said she’ll see how she feels in today’s pre-game shootaround before determining if she can play. If she’s healthy enough, she’ll start, Sun coach Mike Thibault said.

Lawson’s already played through a dislocated shoulder this season.

“You know if you can go or you can’t go,” Lawson said, adding her knee has improved every day since Tuesday’s game. “... I wish I had a concrete answer for you, but that’s the way my knee is. You can’t predict anything.”

If Lawson doesn’t play, she’ll join Anete Jekabsone-Zogota (arthroscopic knee surgery) on the inactive list for the Sun, who’ll be left with nine available players. Rookie Allison Hightower, never a point guard in her career, has played the position often in practice this week with good results, Thibault said.

“That’s the beauty of the game: You’re always thrown something that you weren’t expecting,” Lawson said. “You just have to look at the optimistic side of it ... and not, ‘Oh (shoot), we don’t have Nettie, we don’t have this.’ Look at it as an opportunity to get someone some experience."

Lawson said she'd rather be cautious with three games awaiting the Sun in less than a week.

"We have a lot of games in a short period of time so you want to be able to play, but you want to be able to play 12 more games ... not be all your eggs into (today’s) game and then you’re out for a couple games after that," she said. "It’s gotten better every day, so that’s a good sign."

Update: Charles, Sun top Dream

2010-07-17T21:01:00.000-04:00

Tina Charles recorded her 15th double-double with 22 points and 14 rebounds, and the Sun pulled away from the Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta Dream to score a 96-80 victory at Mohegan Sun Arena on Saturday.

Kara Lawson added 18 points and Asjha Jones had 15 for Connecticut (12-8), which used a 16-2 run spanning the third and fourth quarters to beat Atlanta (14-8) for the first time in three meetings this season.

Angel McCoughtry scored 27 points before fouling out for the Dream, who have lost three straight. Atlanta sorely missed the presence of Iziane Castro Marques, who didn't score amid foul trouble. Marques and McCoughtry each scored 32 points the last time against the Sun, a 108-103 Dream victory in overtime.

The Sun now trail Atlanta by just a game in the East standings.

Update: Sun trail at half

2010-07-17T19:53:00.002-04:00

Tina Charles had 11 points and eight rebounds, but missed lay-ups and ill-time turnovers have the Sun trailing Atlanta, 41-39, at the half here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Angel McCoughtry and Erika de Souza each have 10 points for the East-leading Dream, who have lost two straight and three of their last four. Atlanta is outrebounding Connecticut, 29-23, and led the Sun by as many as 10 points thanks to 30.3 percent shooting by Connecticut.

Iziane Castro Marques, who scored 32 points the last time against the Sun, has zero points and three fouls, including a flagrant foul on Tan White early in the first quarter.

Lyttle to start for Dream

2010-07-17T18:26:00.002-04:00

Hello all. The Sun-Atlanta Dream game here at Mohegan Sun Arena is a little over 30 minutes away, and the Dream have already lost something. In traveling from Indiana, where they lost to the Fever 89-70 on Friday, the team's luggage was misplaced, apparently leaving them with nothing but their uniforms.

They will, however, have All-Star forward Sancho Lyttle in the starting lineup tonight. Lyttle, who missed two games and the 'Stars at the Sun' All-Star event after sustaining a concussion, will return to the starting lineup alongside Erika de Souza, Angel McCoughtry, Iziane Castro Marques, and Shalee Lehning. She returned to game action last night, but didn't start, scoring 10 points in 20 minutes off the bench.

The Sun, meanwhile, are starting Kara Lawson, Tan White, Kelsey Griffin, Asjha Jones and Tina Charles. They featured a similar first five (Allison Hightower instead of Griffin) for their 108-103 overtime loss at Atlanta in their final game before last weekend's All-Star break.

Check back for updates at halftime.

Fowles named MVP

2010-07-10T17:52:00.001-04:00

Sylvia Fowles was named the MVP of the "Stars at the Sun" All-Star game after collecting game-highs of 23 points and eight rebounds for the U.S. national team in its 99-72 victory.

Update: Team USA rolls by WNBA All-Stars

2010-07-10T17:46:00.002-04:00

Sylvia Fowles scored 23 points, Maya Moore had 12 and the U.S. national team systemically pulled away from the WNBA All-Stars, 99-72, in the "Stars at the Sun" event at Mohegan Sun Arena.

As serious an All-Star game as the league has had, Team USA rarely came out of character, pushing the ball, crowding ballhandlers around the paint and attacking the game not like an exhibiton but preparation for bigger things ahead.

Candice Dupree and Swin Cash each scored 13 points for the U.S. Katie Douglas had 15 for the WNBA All-Stars, sharing the backcourt for most of the second half with her former Sun teammate, Lindsay Whalen.

Update: U.S. national team up at half

2010-07-10T16:37:00.003-04:00

Sylvia Fowles had 10 points, Diana Taurasi scored 9 and the U.S. national team gradually built its lead to 49-28 over the WNBA All-Stars by halftime of the "Stars at the Sun" event here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Maya Moore drew some of the heaviest applause during pre-game introductions and her entrance into the game late in the first quarter generated a noticeable buzz in the arena. But she missed both shots she took and has zero points.

Michelle Snow had eight points for the WNBA All-Stars.

Piror to the game, Sun guard Renee Montgomery won the skills competition, finishing a timed obstacle course that includes passing stations, a 3-point shot and a dribbling component in 25 seconds. Former Sun star and Indiana Fever guard Katie Douglas won the 3-point contest, registering 24 points (of a possible 30) in the first round and 23 in the finals.

All-Star starting lineups

2010-07-10T13:06:00.003-04:00

Greetings from Mohegan Sun Arena where the WNBA's "Stars at the Sun" All-Star event kicks off in roughly two and a half hours. Fans are starting to mill outside the arena and the court is awash with WNBA All-Star logos, lights and equipment for the pre-game skills competition. Check back throughout the day for updates.

For now, here are your starters for the U.S. national team and WNBA All-Star squad. (And though it was possible, no, coach Geno Auriemma didn't go with an all-UConn starting five):

Team USA: G Sue Bird, G Cappie Pondexter, F Diana Taurasi, F Tamika Catchings, C Sylvia Fowles.

WNBA: G Lindsey Harding, G Katie Douglas, F Monique Currie, F Crystal Langhorne, C Michelle Snow.

The WNBA team is being coached by Seattle coach Brian Agler. His superstar forward Lauren Jackson is with the team but she won't play after suffering a concussion last Saturday against Los Angeles.

Jackson was hit in the face by Sparks forward DeLisha Milton-Jones while attempting to grab a rebound. No foul was called, but Jackson was bleeding from her nose and had to be substituted out.

Jackson shot around Friday during open practice, the first time she's done that since last Saturday.

"It's an exhibition, she won't play," Agler said Friday. "Once you start, you're about five days out. If she can on the court today, she has no symptoms, we move forward, you're about five days (from competing in a game)."

Whalen an All-Star; other "Stars" notes

2010-07-09T12:26:00.002-04:00

Lynx guard Lindsay Whalen, who the Connecticut Sun traded to Minnesota during the offseason, will return to Mohegan Sun Arena on Saturday as a replacement player in the "Stars at the Sun" All-Star event featuring the U.S. national team.

Whalen, who spent the first six seasons of her WNBA career with the Sun, will fill the spot on the WNBA squad vacated by San Antonio's Becky Hammon, who suffered a quad injury in Thursday night’s game at Minnesota.

Whalen is averaging 10.8 points and 5.0 assists this season.

The league also announced the participants for the 3-point competition and skills challenge, scheduled to run before the All-Star Game (3:30 p.m., ESPN) on Saturday.

Competitors in the 3-point contest include: Sue Bird (Seattle Storm), Swin Cash (Seattle Storm), Katie Douglas (Indiana Fever), Monique Currie (Washington Mystics), Angel McCoughtry (Atlanta Dream), and Whalen.

Competitors in the skills challenge include: Lindsey Harding (Washington Mystics), Angel McCoughtry (Atlanta Dream), Cappie Pondexter (New York Liberty), Iziane Castro Marques (Atlanta Dream) Renee Montgomery (Connecticut Sun), and Whalen.

Charles named Rookie of the Month again

2010-07-07T16:24:00.002-04:00

Sun center Tina Charles was was named the WNBA's Rookie of the Month for June, it was announced Wednesday, marking the second time she's earned the honor this season.

Charles averaged a double-double for the month, leading the league in rebounds (14.0 per game) and pacing rookies and the Sun in points (15.5 points). Charles also averaged a rookie- and team-best 1.5 blocks. A career-high 23-rebound, 19-point performance in a win over the Phoenix Mercury highlighted her month, and in 10 games played, Charles led the Sun to a 7-3 record for the month.

The first overall pick in the 2010 WNBA Draft presented by adidas, Charles is averaging 15 points and 12 rebounds per game and has already broken the franchise mark for double-doubles in a season with 13.

Jekabsone-Zogota to undergo knee surgery

2010-07-05T18:55:00.000-04:00

Connecticut Sun guard/forward Anete Jekabsone-Zogota is scheduled to undergo arthroscopic surgery on her right knee Thursday, and could miss up to four weeks, coach Mike Thibault said Monday.

Jekabsone-Zogota injured her knee on June 27 at New York and has missed the last two games. She was originally diagnosed with a bone bruise following an MRI, but her knee hasn’t improved like the team hoped despite therapy.

“The (idea) is that there’s some loose floating particles, something in there that’s inhibiting her,” Thibault said, adding lateral movements are still causing Jekabsone-Zogota pain at times. “They can’t find it on the MRI, but the symptoms are too much that there’s something catching in the joint.”

Dr. Ammar Anbari will perform the procedure. Thibault said the recovery time ranges from two to four weeks “depending on what they find.”

Jekabsone-Zogota has started in all 14 games she’s played in this season, averaging 9.3 points and 2.1 assists. She is fourth on the team in 3-pointers made (23).

“It’s a big impact,” Thibault said of losing Jekabsone-Zogota. “She’s one of our best shooters, one of our best passers. She was playing great when she got hurt.”

The Sun (10-6) play at the San Antonio Silver Stars on Tuesday (8 p.m., ESPN2).

Raymond on Jones, Takera, etc.

2010-07-03T00:55:00.003-04:00

Here's a little more from an interview with Tamika Raymond about Asjha Jones and her new shoe line, "Takera." Raymond was Jones' roommate at UConn, a former teammate of hers with the Connecticut Sun and a former assistant coach at the college level:

On Jones starting her own shoe line: She’ll be 30 (years old) Aug. 1. We’ll all be 30 … so of course a lot’s changed. But it’s funny. When people would, ‘Ask Asjha, what do you wanna do?’ She’d say, ‘Start my own shoe line.’ For most people, it’s because they’re in high fashion or this and that. But for Asjha, she can never find shoes that were big enough for her, that were wide enough for her, that were comfortable and that were stylish. Asjha, she’s very bright. I’m probably the only one who’ll say it, she’s the smartest of the bunch. Coach (Geno Auriemma) will tell you that. But she likes shoes and she has a lot of them.

But it’s more about the practicality and a way to invest her money into something she really enjoys and something she wants to give to other people. For her whole life, she’s had to get shoes at lower-end places or if she went overseas, if she went to a Nordstrom’s and they had her size, she’d get a whole bunch of them. And now she wants to make it more accessible to taller girls, women, so they feel more comfortable and have stylish shoes. I totally understand it, and I think it’s great. The shoes are hot, so I’m excited for her.

On there being a need in the shoe market, from her own experience: This is a huge need. … Sometimes the more stylish shoe only goes up to a size 10, which none of us can fit in. Asjha’s the one who’s going to plan and do things right. I think the people she tapped to develop the shoe and the different things she likes and she doesn’t like about the prototypes she has coming out, I think she’s done her homework really well.

But is it a need? It’s a huge need. In our league, and of course, me being a coach (a former assistant at Ohio State and Kansas), having kids going to drafts and kids going to events for All-American stuff, we have 6-3, 6-4, 6-5, 6-6, 6-7, 6-8 and 6-9 girls that have to wear men’s shoes or have to wear shoes that are too small. I think it’s great (what Jones is doing).

How much has Asjha been thinking past basketball and is this a sign of it?: I don’t know exactly how much she’s thinking past basketball. But Asjha’s an extremely bright person. She can run a company and have me talk but she’s be behind the scenes doing all the As, Bs, Cs and Ds of it all.

It’s so funny. I think everybody’s going to be like, ‘Asjha Jones with a shoe line?’ But I think it’s practical for her, I think it’s something that touches home with her. Being almost the tallest person in her family, by far the tallest woman in her family, she’s had problems finding shoes that match her clothes, that match her purses and that are fashionable. So I think people will love it, I think people will buy into it because everybody knows that Asjha doesn’t play around with much.

I think it’s a great move for Asjha. I don’t know if she’s looking past basketball but it’s something she’s been thinking about for a long time. I think it’s more so, she had time. She’s had a little time off this year, it’s the first time she didn’t go overseas and she had to cater to her (Achilles’ tendon) injury, her rehab (following surgery in February). I think it was a little downtime for Asjha not to be thinking about basketball and give her time to think about something that interests. I think this is the perfect time to do it considering how much time she spent in the United States this year.

Bird leads All-Star vote-getters

2010-06-29T20:53:00.002-04:00

The Seattle Storm’s Sue Bird led all players (127,490) in final returns of the 2010 “WNBA vs. USA Basketball: The Stars at the Sun” balloting, released on Tuesday. San Antonio Silver Star Becky Hammon (116,391) finished second.

The All-Star showcase features the U.S. national team vs. a team of WNBA stars at Mohegan Sun Arena on July 10.

Rounding out the top five are the Indiana Fever’s Tamika Catchings (100,248), the Phoenix Mercury’s Diana Taurasi (93,649) and Bird’s Seattle teammate Swin Cash (85,236).

Lauren Jackson (80,392), the Los Angeles Sparks’ Candace Parker (78,624), Silver Star teammates Jayne Appel (69,316), Michelle Snow (67,906) and Sophia Young (65,974) made up the rest of the top 10, who are guaranteed a position on the team rosters. Unlike previous years, the players selected by fans will not necessarily be starters.

Bird, Catchings, Taurasi and Cash, already in the U.S. national team pool, will play for the U.S. and coach Geno Auriemma, while the remaining players who have been voted in by the fans will play on the WNBA team. Parker is in the U.S. pool as well but is out for the season with a shoulder injury.

Hammon is Russian citizen, Jackson is from Australia and Young is from the West Indies. The 11-member U.S. squad will be announced on Thursday, and could include Sun rookie Tina Charles, Sun guard Kara Lawson, Sun guard Renee Montgomery and UConn senior Maya Moore.

Injury update

2010-06-28T22:53:00.002-04:00

The Sun avoided what could have been two major injuries.

An MRI revealed Anete Jekabsone-Zogota has a bone bruise in her right knee, and she is considered day-to-day. She injured her knee in Sunday's loss to New York, in which she played less than six minutes. She did not travel with the team to Tulsa and will miss Tuesday's game.

Sun guard Tan White, meanwhile, is in Tulsa with the Sun, but wore a splint on her shooting hand Monday. She has a sprained right thumb, but did participate in practice.

Even White is unsure exactly when and how she injured it, also during Sunday's loss, Sun coach Mike Thibault said, but he said before Monday's practice session that he’s “not counting on her playing” against Tulsa (3-11).

Jebasone-Zogota out, White doubtful for Tulsa game

2010-06-28T13:55:00.005-04:00

The Sun are going to be short-handed Tuesday night.

Anete Jekabsone-Zogota did not travel with the team for Tuesday's game at Tulsa after returning to Connecticut to have an MRI on her injured knee, and coach Mike Thibault said he doesn't expect reserve Tan White to play either after she injured her shooting hand in Sunday's 77-68 loss at New York.

Jekabsone-Zogota played roughly five minutes against the Liberty before leaving the game. It appears the 5-foot-9 guard aggravated an old injury in her right knee, and she underwent an MRI on Sunday night, though Thibault said the team didn't expect to get the results until later tonight.

White is wearing a splint and had X-rays done. The extent of her injury is unclear at the moment, but Thibault doubted she'd be available against the Shock (3-11), who are in last place in the West but are known for their pressure defense. They lead the conference in steals (10.7 per game) and forced turnovers (18.5).

Game time is 8 p.m.

Agler to serve as WNBA All-Star coach

2010-06-27T20:19:00.002-04:00

Seattle Storm coach Brian Agler has been named the head coach for the team of WNBA stars that will face the U.S. national team in the WNBA vs. U.S.A. Basketball All-Star event at Mohegan Sun Arena on July 10. Agler earned the nod by virtue of the Storm's league-best winning percentage through July 1 (13-2).

The national team, of course, will be coached by UConn's Geno Auriemma. His assistants are Jennifer Gillom (head coach, Los Angeles Sparks) and Marynell Meadors (head coach, Atlanta Dream).

The game will be televised by ESPN at 3:30 p.m.

Charles in charge

2010-06-25T22:34:00.003-04:00

So Tina Charles was spectacular. She was "sensational," according to coach Mike Thibault and a monster, according to well ... anyone who probably watched the Sun's 82-79 victory over Phoenix.

She scored 19 points and grabbed a franchise-record 23 rebounds a week after setting the mark with 19 against Los Angeles. She tied Michelle Snow (2006) for the second most in a game and was one short of Chamique Holdscalw's 2003 WNBA record of 24 in a single game.

Charles had her 10th double-double of the season before halftime, and with 160 rebounds in 13 games, she is on pace to break the single-season WNBA record of 363 boards held by Cheryl Ford (2006). She's also two double-doubles shy of Taj McWilliam-Franklin's franchise mark of 12 double-doubles and should break her team record for rebounds in a season with 306 (also 2006).

Apparently that was a good year for rebounding. So far, this has been a great one for the No. 1 overall pick.

“With rebounding, it takes a lot of heart and having the (right) mindset,” said Charles. “A lot of people sometimes are lazy. … But I think that’s a key thing to winning, getting rebounds. When I was at UConn, every single game that I played since my freshman year, coach (Geno) Auriemma used to always challenge me to try to get a double-double before halftime, so that’s the mindset I have.”

Update: Charles sensational, Sun rally past Mercury

2010-06-25T21:40:00.000-04:00

Tina Charles scored 19 points with a franchise-record 23 rebounds, and the Connecticut Sun rode its international stars late to rally past the Phoenix Mercury, 82-79, on Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Sandrine Gruda and Anete Jekabsone-Zogota combined to score 14 of the Sun's final 16 points, and Connecticut (9-4) improved to 7-1 at home this season and 5-0 against the Western Conference.

Charles, who has 10 double-doubles in 13 games, had set the franchise record for rebounds in a game with 19 a week prior at Los Angeles.

Update: Sun lead Mercury at half

2010-06-25T20:26:00.002-04:00

Tina Charles already has her 10th double-double of the season and the Sun went on long runs to end the first quarter and begin the second to take a 43-37 halftime lead over Phoenix here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Charles has 11 points and 11 rebounds to help fuel Connecticut inside. Diana Taurasi has 12 points for Phoenix and Candice Dupree scored 11, all in the first quarter.

Down 17-5 to begin the game, the Sun closed the opening period on a 14-5 run and ran off a 14-0 stretch early in the second to lead by as many as nine points. The Sun have 18 points inside the paint where they tower over Phoenix, and unlike past games, they have lived at the line, making 11-of-16 free throws.

D-fense, D-fense

2010-06-25T17:21:00.002-04:00

Greetings from Mohegan Sun Arena. The Sun and Mercury tip off in a little under two hours here, but there are some notes and quotes to go over before tonight's game, which is being broadcast on CSN:

* Defense has been the focus in practice since the Sun fell apart late against the Chicago Sky on Tuesday. As expected, the team spent a good portion of practice in recent days studying tape, and as Sun coach Mike Thibault put it, "getting back to good habits." Connecticut spent the previous week harping on rebounding, which improved, but apparently, Thibault said, the defense took a step back in the process.

He made it clear, however, that he doesn't think mental fatigue was a factor against Chicago despite coming off a weekend road trip.

"Nobody’s playing huge minutes," Thibault said following practice Thursday. No one on the Sun is playing more than 30 minutes a game (Tina Charles leads the team at 29.9), compared to a team like Phoenix that has two players (Diana Taurasi and Tangela Smith) topping 30 a night, with a third not far behind (Penny Taylor at 29.8).

"I think it’s a lack of focus on fundamental stuff," Thibault continued. "Staying in the stance, moving your feet. A lot of defense is just focus and energy. There’s technique involve, but you can’t get technique down if you don’t have basic stuff."

Phoenix continues to lead the league in scoring (93.4 points per game) and should provide an immediate test of where the Sun stand. Taurasi (23.1 ppg) leads all individuals in points per game.

"If we can play really well (today) and slow them down some, that means we have really good defense, given they’re the best offensive team," Asjha Jones said.

* The Sun also need to get their footing back late in games. For a team that's relied on late-game runs to put teams away this season, Connecticut was outscored, 27-12, in the fourth quarter Sunday at Phoenix and 25-17 against Chicago on Tuesday.

That obviously speaks to the team's defensive woes, but Tuesday also featured problems simply getting the ball off before the shot clock. Thibault described it after the game as too much standing around.

"Usually we won’t play good throughout a game but by a certain point or by the fourth, we’ll pick it up," Jones said. "And we weren’t able to do that. Our offense tanked, we couldn’t make the shots we were making in the first half, and then they were getting lay-ups."

* A quirky thing to watch for tonight: In the past five games, Anete Jekabsone-Zogota has been announced at a different height each time. It's ranged from 5-foot-7 to 5-foot-11 to 5-foot-9 and 5-foot-10. For the record, WNBA.com has her listed at 5-foot-9 and that's seems about right. Also, her official height isn't listed in the game notes, which may be the cause for the confusion.

Or she's simply shrinking. Or growing.

* Danielle McCray, the No. 7 overall pick in this year's draft, will be in the house tonight. McCray, who's rehabbing a torn ACL in Lawrence, Kansas where she attended school, is expected to pop in now and then with the Sun. She also was at practice Thursday.

Sun raffling off a Harley

2010-06-25T15:27:00.000-04:00

The Connecticut Sun will begin selling raffle tickets to win a Harley-Davidson motorcycle during tonight’s game against the Phoenix Mercury at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Raffle tickets – already on sale at Mohegan Sun Summer Essentials – will be available for $20 each at the Mohegan Sun Arena merchandise stand on Friday night. Proceeds from the raffle will benefit Channel 3 Kid’s Camp and the Connecticut Sun Foundation.

First prize is a 2002 Harley-Davidson FLSTFI Fat Boy that has never been driven. This is a 1450 CC, 2-cylinder bike that has been dressed and modified with custom paint and chrome. It is valued at $14,000.

Second prize is four courtside seats to a 2010 or 2011 Connecticut Sun regular season game, redeemable at Mohegan Sun Arena. It includes a post-game meeting with a Sun player and is valued at $750.

Third prize is four tickets to a 2010 or 2011 Sun regular season game, redeemable at Mohegan Sun Arena, and a basketball autographed by the entire team. This package is valued at $250.

'D' unpluggled

2010-06-23T17:20:00.003-04:00

Coach Taurasi. Imagine that.

According to Diana Taurasi herself, that's all not too far-fetched for the reigning WNBA MVP and Phoenix Mercury guard after her career is over.

"Yeah I definitely would," Taurasi said Wednesday. "I think coaching is something I would love to do. I’ve been around some great minds of basketball that have taught me a lot. Being a coach is a tough thing, though. You have a lot of responsibility. It’s something I would be interested in. ... But you never know down the line. I might hit the lotto and move to Italy.

"How hard can it be? Look at him (UConn coach Geno Auriemma)," she added jokingly. "You just gotta be able to recruit. So I just have to hire CD (UConn associate head coach Chris Dailey) and I’d be OK."

Taurasi was her usual sarcastic, witty self on a wide-ranging conference call with members of the Connecticut media. She touched upon everything from the Mercury's current season ("up-and-down," she called it) to Sun rookie Tina Charles ("She really is playing unbelievable basketball") to to the state of women's basketball and her own career.

"These players have been going overseas for the last five years, not having a break, and you’re seeing a lot of injuries and a lot of tired play out there sometimes," she said. "It’s going to be a serious decision (about taking time off) people are going to start making. I know I’m getting really close to it, too, and I’m going to have to sit down, look at the calendar and really take time off to heal."

Taurasi was asked if taking time off from the WNBA, like many European players have, is an option.

"It’s always easier for the Europeans," she said with a laugh. "We’re hometown so if we did that, people would crucify us. ‘How dare you do that?’ But you have to look at your body and it takes a toll on you. Sometimes you need rest. I know I’m going to need it soon.

"There’s just no way your body can function for that long at that high level. You start to break down. You’re actually doing more of a disservice to your career by playing through being hurt and injured and tired. And a lot of players do a good job of going overseas halfway through (the winter season) but I’m going to have to sit down and really figure (it) out."

A reporter asked if a 15-year career is a reasonable estimate for Taurasi, which she called "realisitc." She's currently in her seventh WNBA season.

"If you think about it, the NBA guys that go 15, that’s a stretch and that’s with three months off every year," she said.

Taurasi, however, said taking time off from basketball overseas -- where she's made her WNBA salary multiple times over -- is less of an option for her.

"At this point, in my career right now, I don’t think I can do that, to take three or four months off," she said. "I don’t see that happening. Yeah, I think once I get to that point, I’m going to have to make a pretty firm decision of where my gap in time of rest is going to have to come from."

Taurasi also mused about life after basketball, which could include coaching (she almost said it half-jokingly most times) or a job in television, such as Sun guard Kara Lawson has.

"Hopefully Kara and I can host PTI together," she joked. "I’ve always been interested in that (TV). I love the game. I don’t see myself doing anything that didn’t concern itself with basketball. That’s the type of passion I have for it, whether it’s breaking down the game on TV or going out for coaching. Coach Auriemma will eventually have to retire."

Here's some other highlights from the call:

On UConn star Maya Moore, the expected No. 1 pick in next year's WNBA Draft: "She’s going to unbelievable. There are certain players that you just know once they get to the WNBA are going to be successful and turn another page, I think, in greatness. She has that ability. I know Coach Auriemma has talked to her a lot about me. She just seems so focused. That’s kind of inspiring to watch, even for me. ... I don’t see why she shouldn’t make the world championship team."

On Charles, who she'll play Friday when the Mercury visit the Sun: "The thing I like about Tina is she really is a hard-working, blue-collar, stick-to-what-I-know type player. ... She is just so relentless."

On her workout overseas, which last year started to include a personal trainer: "People always said, ‘I didn’t know you worked that hard.’ Well, yeah, you have to if you want to be competitive with the great basketball players. I just took a different angle with it to try to make myself better."

Taurasi added that watching Suns guard Steve Nash helped motivated her. "He was the one that I looked at and said, ‘You can get better. No matter where you’re at in your career, you can get better.’"

On still having fun on the court, a staple along with her colorful personality: ", that still has to be No. 1 on my list because if I’m not happy I’m not playing well."

'T' for one

2010-06-23T13:05:00.002-04:00

Renee Montgomery couldn't believe she received a technical foul with 1:58 left in the first quarter of Tuesday's 86-77 loss to the Chicago Sky.

But she said official Cameron Inouye -- who didn't give her the 'T' -- said the situation Montgomery found herself in wasn't rare.

After driving to the hoop and scooping in a lay-up among some contact, Montgomery made an 'and-one' gesture toward official Lamont Simpson, who quickly assessed a technical foul amid argument from both coach Mike Thibault and the 6,981 fans at Mohegan Sun Arena.

"I was very surprised," Montgomery said. "But it was a miscommunication. The other ref (Inouye) told me he (Simpson) thought I was just pointing in his face. I was making the 'and-one' gesture. She said she’s going to talk to the front offices. Maybe it can get cleared up, I don’t know. She said she’s had a problem before where it was a miscommunication and they fixed it. Maybe they can fix it."

Montgomery said she has never received a technical foul before in her life at any level of basketball. It's not surprising from a player who doesn't swear off the court (she thanks her parents for that) and rarely chirps at officials on it.

Update: Sun fall apart in second half, lose to Sky

2010-06-22T21:30:00.001-04:00

The Chicago Sky hit a flurry of fourth-quarter 3-pointers to complete a second-half rally and stun the Connecticut Sun, 86-77, at Mohegan Sun Arena on Tuesday.

Tina Charles had 14 points and 16 rebounds, and four other Sun players scored in double figures. But the Sky, which had lost four straight, hit 6-of-8 3-pointers and shot nearly 47 percent from the field to emerge from an eight-point third-quarter deficit.

Erin Thorn scored a season-high 18 points and Epiphanny Prince scored 19.

Connecticut (8-4) suffered its first loss in seven games this season at home, where it had won eight straight dating back to last season.

Update: Sun lead Sky at half

2010-06-22T19:18:00.002-04:00

Anete Jekabsone-Zogota and Tan White each scored 10 points, and the Sun lead the Sky, 48-43, at the half at Mohegan Sun Arena despite one of their poorest defensive performances at home this season.

The Sun shot 55 percent from the field, but either allowed the Sky to snake right down the middle the lane or bailed them out with foul calls. Chicago shot nearly 49 percent from the field and got 12 points for Dominique Canty.

Renee Montgomery received a very questionable technical foul call early in the half. After driving and hitting a lay-up, she made the motion for an "and-one" call to referee Lamont Simpson, who quickly T'd her up. Montgomery responded by picking the pocket of Epiphanny Prince a play later and sneaking in for an uncontested lay-up. She has four points and four assists.

Charles named Eastern Conference Player of the Week

2010-06-21T16:11:00.002-04:00

Sun rookie center Tina Charles was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week on Monday after averaging 25 points and 15 rebounds over two Connecticut victories, including a 26-point, 19-rebound effort against Los Angeles.

Through 11 games, Charles has helped the Sun to the top spot in the Eastern Conference with an 8-3 mark. She is the WNBA’s top rebounder (11.0 per game) and ranks 13th in scoring (16.3 points per game, tops among rookies). She has eight double-doubles, already four shy of the franchise record of 12 set by Taj mcWilliams-Franklin in 2006.

The top overall pick in this past April's draft, Charles has led the Sun in rebounding in 10 of 11 games.

Minnesota's Seimone Augustus was the West's top player of the week.

Parker out for season

2010-06-18T10:31:00.002-04:00

A shoulder injury will force Los Angeles Sparks star Candace Parker to miss the rest of the season, starting with tonight's game vs. the Connecticut Sun (10:30 p.m., Staples Center). Per The Associated Press:

The Sparks say leading scorer and rebounder Candace Parker will miss the rest of the season because of a dislocated left shoulder that will require surgery.

Los Angeles general manager Penny Toler made the announcement Thursday night. Parker, a forward, was injured Sunday in the first half of the Sparks' 88-84 home win over the Minnesota Lynx. The surgery will be scheduled in the coming weeks.

Parker averaged 20.6 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game this season. Los Angeles (3-7) is fifth in the WNBA's five-team Western Conference.

"Losing Candace is definitely a huge loss for us and the league in general," Toler said. "We still have a great team that is led by two Olympians and loaded with talent. Our goal, as always, is still to win."

Sore Sun

2010-06-15T17:30:00.002-04:00

The Sun practiced Tuesday for the last time in Connecticut this week before leaving for Los Angeles, where they'll practice Thursday and play the Sparks at 10:30 p.m. (East Coast time) on Friday.

That said, the Sun are nursing some injuries. Kara Lawson sat out at least the 45-minute portion of the practice that was open to the media to rest her dislocated shoulder. She played 28 minutes Sunday two nights after suffering the injury, and coach Mike Thibault said the plan was to save her from contract leading up to Friday's game.

Coincidentally, Sparks star Candace Parker also dislocated her shoulder and is scheduled to undergo tests this week.

Sandrine Gruda said Tuesday she's also playing through a groin injury she suffered last Friday against Indiana, though she scored 12 points that night, and had eight points and five rebounds in 22 minutes Sunday. She is fully expected to play Friday.

Tina Charles, meanwhile, had to sit out roughly the last 20 minutes of Tuesday's practice after she caught a pass from DeMya Walker in the face, more specifically between her eye and nose.

"I think it's more her eye than her nose," Thibault said. "You gotta catch things in self-defense. We tell them to throw it (the pass) at their noise.

"You learn to put your hands up," he added with a laugh. "If you don't want to catch the ball there, you're asking for trouble."

And the winner is ... Michelle Snow?

2010-06-15T14:31:00.003-04:00

Early returns on balloting for the U.S.A. Basketball-WNBA All-Star Event at Mohegan Sun Arena — dubbed "Stars at the Sun" — are in, and they're, let's say ... a little screwy.

San Antonio center Michelle Snow is the top vote-getter with 49,029 votes, and the next four after her are all her Silver Star teammates: Jayne Appel (48,746), Becky Hammon (42,720), Sophia Young (36,549) and Ruth Riley (35,612).

Obviously people in San Antonio know how to work a computer. And Hammon and Young are not surprises. But with all due to respect to Snow (9.3 points, 7.3 rebounds), Appel (1.8, 1.6) and Riley (5.4, 3.0), they simply don't belong.

Online voting runs through June 21, with the announcement of the top 10 vote-getters set for June 29. Expect some type of correction between now and then, or else, the WNBA's marquee midseason event is going to be somewhat of a joke without its best players represented.

The full list of vote-getters is below but just to see get a sense of how distorted the voting has been so far, consider this: Tina Charles, the league's top rookie thus far who leads the Sun in scoring (14.3 points) and is fourth in the league in rebounding (10 per game) is ... 29th.

Indiana's top vote-getter, meanwhile, behind Tamika Catchings is reserve Briann January (20,935) and Tulsa's Alexis Hornbuckle, who was suspended two games for a DUI and is averaging 5.6 points per game, ranks 12th, right behind former teammate Shavonte Zellous.

Michelle Snow (SA) 49,029; Jayne Appel (SA) 48,746; Becky Hammon (SA) 42,720; Sophia Young (SA) 36,549; Ruth Riley (SA) 35,612; Sue Bird (Sea) 30,384; Tamika Catchings (Ind) (24,486); Candace Parker (LA) 22,103; Diana Taurasi (Phx) 21,298; Briann January (Ind) 20,935; Shavonte Zellous (Ind) 19,800; Alexis Hornbuckle (Tul) 19,743; Penny Taylor (Phx) 19,638; Plenette Pierson (NY) 19,279; Scholanda Robinson (Tul) 19,135; Kara Braxton (Tul) 18,785; Lauren Jackson (Sea) 16,924; Candice Wiggins (Min) 16,224; Swin Cash (Sea) 15,195; Kara Lawson (Con) 13,970; Camille Little (Sea) 11,659; Tanisha Wright (Sea) 11,434; Katie Douglas (Ind) 9,890; Ebony Hoffman (Ind) 7,636; Tammy Sutton-Brown (Ind) 7,620; Tina Thompson (LA) 5,796; Sylvia Fowles (Chi) 5,740; Cappie Pondexter (NY) 5,557; Tina Charles (Con) 5,262; Nicky Anosike (Min) 4,856; Katie Smith (Was) 4,181; Candice Dupree (Phx) 3,291; Angel McCoughtry (Atl) 3,804; Monique Currie (Was) 3,237; Iziane Castro Marques (Atl) 3,195; Epiphanny Prince (Chi) 3,172; Lindsay Whalen (Min) 3,145; Betty Lennox (LA) 3,037; Shameka Christon (Chi) 2,981; Ticha Penicheiro (LA) 2,959; Crystal Langhorne (Was) 2,839; Catherine Kraayeveld (Chi) 2,825; Janel McCarville (NY) 2,734; Seimone Augustus (Min) 2,672; Erika de Souza (Atl) 2,599; Jia Perkins (Chi) 2,501; Lindsey Harding (Was) 2,475; Renee Montgomery (Con) 2,333; Marissa Coleman (Was) 2,252; Taj McWilliams-Franklin (NY) 2,240; Asjha Jones (Con) 2,114; Nicole Powell (NY) 1,861; Charde Houston (Min) 1,815; Sancho Lyttle (Atl) 1,656; Anete Jekabsone-Zogota (Con) 1,631; Temeka Johnson (Phx) 1,615; DeLisha Milton-Jones (LA) 1,566; Tangela Smith (Phx) 1,418; Essence Carson (NY) 1,282; Shalee Lehning (Atl) 1,209.

Gardin, Jones to sign autographs

2010-06-14T11:10:00.001-04:00

Connecticut Sun players will sign autographs from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. at two different ShopRite locations on Tuesday.

Kerri Gardin will be at the ShopRite in New London while Asjha Jones will be at the store in Norwich. Aside from autographs, fans will also be able to win tickets to upcoming Sun games.

Update: Montgomery, Sun rally past Fever

2010-06-11T21:34:00.001-04:00

Renee Montgomery scored a career-high 29 points and Kara Lawson came back from a separated shoulder she suffered in the first half to help lead the Connecticut Sun to an 86-77 victory over the Indiana Fever on Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Tina Charles recorded her sixth double-double in eight games with the Sun (6-2), scoring 12 points with 12 rebounds, and Sandrine Gruda added 12 points. Jessica Davenport had a career-high 18 points for Indiana.

Update: Fever take lead entering fourth

2010-06-11T20:58:00.002-04:00

Jessica Davenport has a career-high 18 points and the Fever lead the Sun, 62-57, after three quarters here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Davenport, a former No. 2 overall pick who has never lived up to the expectations of her lofty selection, took over a stretch of the third quarter, scoring eight of Indiana's nine points. Her previous career high was 15, set on June 3, 2007 against Phoenix.

The Sun, meanwhile, went cold in the period, scoring 12 points after netting 45 through the previous two quarters.

Update: Lawson back in

2010-06-11T20:38:00.002-04:00

Wearing a brace on her left shoulder, Kara Lawson has returned to start the second half for the Connecticut Sun. Lawson suffered a dislocated left shoulder on a collision with Indiana's Tammy Sutton-Brown with roughly four and a half minutes to play in the second quarterand had to have it popped back in by the Sun medical staff after she left the court, Lawson's husband, Damien Barling said.

Lawson has suffered a dislocated shoulder in the past and will likely have to wear the brace for at least a few days, Barling said.

Update: Sun lead Fever at half

2010-06-11T20:30:00.002-04:00

Renee Montgomery scored 18 first-half points and the Sun shot better than 48 percent from the floor against the league's top defense to take a 45-39 lead over the Indiana Fever at the intermission here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

In a half marred by the apparent shoulder injury of Kara Lawson (see previous post), Montgomery carried the Sun's offense, hitting 4-of-7 3-pointers and 7-of-12 from the floor.

Jessica Davenport has 10 points off the bench for Indiana. Tamika Catchings -- who was trying to call timeout when Lawson, a fellow Tennessee alum, was on the ground in pain with 4:24 left in the second quarter -- had eight points, six rebounds and five steals.

Lawson injured

2010-06-11T20:23:00.003-04:00

Kara Lawson has left the Connecticut Sun's game with Indiana Fever with an apparent shoulder injury. While driving to the hoop with roughly four and a half minutes to play in the second quarter, Lawson collided with an Indiana player near the baseline and passed the ball to the corner before grabbing her left shoulder.

Lawson appeared to say something to the closest official before going to the floor in extreme pain. Play wasn't stopped, and the Fever hit a lay-up on the other end, sparking an eruption of boos from the Mohegan Sun Arena crowd. Lawson lay on the floor for several minutes as her husband, Damien Barling, and Sun medical personnel came to tend to her. She was helped off the court to the Sun locker room and didn't return.

It was a busy day already for Sun trainer Jeremy Norman. Sandrine Gruda (apparent leg or groin injury) and DeMya Walker (apparent shoulder injury) each left the bench at different points of the first half for further medical attention. Both returned to play.

Update: Sun breeze by Stars

2010-06-06T15:04:00.001-04:00

Tina Charles had 19 points and 11 rebounds, Renee Montgomery added 16 and the Connecticut Sun strode past the undermanned San Antonio Silver Stars, 81-68, on Sunday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

DeMya Walker scoreda season-high 12 points for the Sun (5-2), who have won all five of their games at home. Sandrine Gruda had two points on 1-of-6 shooting in her season debut.

San Antonio played without All-Star guard Becky Hammon (strained quad) and head coach Sandy Brondello (maternity leave).

The double-double is Charles' fifth of the season.

Update: Sun rally for halftime lead

2010-06-06T13:52:00.002-04:00

Renee Montgomery scored 11 points, Tina Charles had nine points and seven rebounds, and the Sun used a 9-0 run early in the second quarter to take a 34-30 hafltime lead over San Antonio here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

The Sun hit five 3-pointers, including two straight by Montgomery that gave them their first lead, 23-22, with 7:42 left in the second. But despite playing a zone defense, Connecticut is struggling to keep San Antonio out of the paint, where they're outscoring the Sun, 12-8.

Chamique Holdsclaw has 10 points for the Silver Stars.

Shorthanded Stars

2010-06-06T12:14:00.003-04:00

Hello from Mohegan Sun Arena. The Sun and Silver Stars tip off here at 1 p.m., though San Antonio will do so without several major components. Becky Hammon is out with a strained quad, and head coach Sandy Brondello is on maternity leave. Her husband and associate head coach Olaf Lange is handling her duties.

As a result, San Antonio features a starting backcourt of Roneeka Hodges and Edwige Lawson-Wade. Expect them to lean heavily on their frontcourt. Chamique Holdsclaw is averaging 13.8 points in the four games since being picked up on waivers, and Sophia Young is scoring a team-high 14.8. Michelle Snow, meanwhile, is averaging 9.0 points and 7.5 rebounds.

On the completely different side of that coin, the Sun have their entire roster for the first time this season. Sandrine Gruda isn't starting, but the 6-foot-4 center will dress and come off the bench. Sun coach Mike Thibault is going with the same starting five as last game in Renee Montgomery, Kara Lawson, Anete Jekabsone-Zogota, Asjha Jones and Tina Charles.

With their complete frontcourt, the Sun should have an advantage on the boards. San Antonio is grabbing only 31.2 rebounds per game (compared to 36.3 by their opponents) and surprisingly, Young is averaging just 3.8 total rebounds and 0.5 on the offensive end. She's averaged 6.3 rebounds over her career.

Gruda guaranteed delivery

2010-06-04T22:54:00.002-04:00

Sandrine Gruda is in Connecticut and will practice Saturday in preparation for her season debut Sunday against San Antonio.

The 6-foot-4 French center arrived in New York earlier this evening and spoke to reporters shortly after Connecticut's 75-68 victory over the Liberty.

So the big question was: How did Gruda, who was scheduled to arrive Thursday night, miss her original flight to the U.S.? Apparently, when flying out of French-Martinique, travelers usually can arrive at the small airport 30 minutes prior to an international flight and make their plane. But unbeknownst to her, circumstances Thursday required Gruda to get there an hour before her flight, thus she missed it.

"The next day, I didn’t pay for anything (for a new ticket) because they knew it was unusual," she said.

Either way, the Sun are happy she's here. Gruda was second on the team in scoring (13.5) and tops in rebounding (6.3) last year in her second WNBA season, in which she also arrived late. But that doesn't get any easier, she said.

"No, it’s never easy. Never easy," she said. "That’s the hardest part actually, to come in the middle of the season because you need to learn all the plays and everything by yourself. You’re new. When the whole team’s new and everything, you can actually work and learn with everybody. When you come late, you have to work by yourself."

Gruda said she hasn't been training with her French national team but instead has been resting following her season in Russia.

She also said she has no pre-determined expectations of herself.

"Nothing. Nothing. I don’t think that much, that’s not me," she said, drawing laughter from reporters. "I’m telling the truth. When I come and I have to play, I always give what 100 percent of what I have that day."

Check out Sunday's Norwich Bulletin for more.

Update: Sun ride defense late, hold off Liberty

2010-06-04T22:34:00.000-04:00

Tan White scored 18 points, Tina Charles registered another double-double after a slow start and the Connecticut Sun held on in a back-and-forth game with the New York Liberty, 75-68, on Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Charles finished with 13 points and a season-high 15 rebounds for Connecticut (4-2), which led by as many as 16 points before the Foxwoods-sponsored Liberty (2-3) rallied to close it to two on several occasions. But the Sun outscored New York, 7-2, over the final 2:44 to improve to 4-0 at home.

Kara Lawson added 13 points for the Sun, and Janel McCarville and Taj McWilliams-Franklin each had 14 for New York. Former UConn star Kalana Greene scored 13 off the bench for the Liberty.

Update: Sun lead Liberty at half

2010-06-04T20:28:00.003-04:00

Kara Lawson has 11 points, thanks to some well-time 3-pointers and Tan White was the best player on the floor for the Sun, who slopped their way to a 33-27 halftime lead over the New York Liberty.

White scored nine points, providing a lift offensively early when the Sun looked lost on their own end. She also added five rebounds, mostly on hustle plays, and helped hold Cappie Pondexter to two first-half points on 1-of-6 shooting.

Former UConn star Kalana Greene has six points as the Liberty's first person off the bench.

It was a pretty half by no means. The Liberty shot 32.4 percent from the floor and committed nine turnover. The Sun, thanks to a second-quarter push, managed 42.4 percent, but there were several head-scratching moments early.

Asjha Jones, making her first start of the season, missed the only shot she attempted and has zero points and one rebound in seven minutes.

Jones starting

2010-06-04T19:04:00.002-04:00

Greetings from Mohegan Sun. The Battle of the Casinos kicks off in roughly 20 minutes, but one interesting thing of note before the game: Asjha Jones is re-taking her place as the Sun's starting power forward alongside fellow UConn alum Tina Charles. The backcourt remains the same (Renee Montgomery, Kara Lawson and Anete Jekabsone-Zogota).

As for the Liberty, Leilani Mitchell, Cappie Pondexter, Nicole Powell, Janel McCarville and Taj McWilliams-Franklin make up their first five.

Check back throughout the night for updates.

Gruda misses flight, to miss Liberty game

2010-06-03T16:38:00.004-04:00

Sandrine Gruda will apparently not debut for the Connecticut Sun on Friday.

Gruda, originally slated to arrive tonight from France, missed her flight, Sun coach Mike Thibault said Thursday, and now isn't expected to arrive in New York until after 5 p.m. on Friday. The Sun and Liberty tip off at 7:30 p.m., tomorrow at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Thibault said Thursday afternoon he wasn't sure why the 6-foot-4 center missed her flight — her agent had called the Sun — but "the original deal was she wasn’t coming until Saturday anyway, but I had kind of convinced her to come today. But it backfired anyway."

"I hadn’t planned anything around her being here," Thibault said of Friday's game. "That had no bearing what we were doing for tomorrow. I was more interested in having her watch us play and getting used to her teammates and seeing all that."

Given Gruda arrives on Friday, she'll practice Saturday and suit up on Sunday against the San Antonio Silver Stars.

Meanwhile, Kerri Gardin (concussion) has been cleared to play Friday against New York. The forward was not limited in practice on Thursday and "should be good to go," Thibault said.

A lot to cover ...

2010-06-03T13:52:00.003-04:00

Hello everyone. I didn't get the chance to blog following practice Wednesday, so let's get right to it:

* Asjha Jones's surgerically repaired Achilles' tendon felt sore following Sunday's loss at Washington, but it was to be expected.

"No red alerts," the All-Star forward said. "I've had worse days last year."

That said, Jones' minutes will likely be limited Friday vs. the New York Liberty (think between 15 and 17, according to Sun coach Mike Thibault) and her availability for Sunday's game will be determined about how her ankle responds following Friday's game.

Jones said she was encouraged by parts of her three-point, three-rebound performance against the Mystics. On one of first jump shots from the top of the key, she shot long and missed, but it felt better than she expected.

"Sometimes you don’t have enough legs or whatever" and it falls shot, she said. "But it went long, so I’m like, ‘OK, I’m good'. (laughs) It was just a little long. It wasn’t to the left or the right, just long. ‘OK, that happens usually, when I’m healthy. I’m OK.’"

Conditioning has been a big part of Jones' return and she said she wasn't nearly as tired as she expected she would be.

"I could have played more if I wasn’t so sore," she said.

That being the case, not playing to the potential she's used to is more furstrating in ways than simply not playing.

"I had a hard time after last game just getting mentally back in a good place," she said. "For me, now I’m used to being an All-Star, I’m used to playing a certain way. So for more to be on the court and not play the way I’m used to, it’s really difficult."

* Sandrine Gruda is expected to arrive in Connecticut tonight. The 6-foot-4 center, who was second on the Sun in scoring and led the team in rebounding last season, will participate in the team's shootaround early Friday and then suit up for Friday's game. Like Jones, she'll likely have limited minutes as she gets re-accustomed with the Sun's playbook, which has changed in some ways since last year.

"Some of it hasn’t, but it’s been a long time since she’s played with us and in the process ... you have to remember she’s played in a whole other system with different play calls, then her French team has different play calls," Thibault said. "Now you’re trying to remember which (play call) is which team. Some of it will come back right away. Some if it will take time. You have to reprogram your brain."

Last year, Gruda joined the Sun during a road trip and jumped right into a game against Detroit only to score 23 points. This time, she'll likely be eased into it more only because A) the Sun are deeper with Tina Charles, DeMya Walker and Kelsey Griffin than they were a year ago, and B) following Sunday's game against San Antonio, they have four days off before Friday's game against Indiana.

But once she gets settled, which should be quickly given its her third season in Connecticut, expect Gruda, 22, to continue her upward trend from last year (13.5 points, 6.3 rebounds per game).

Jones, for one, is excited to see Gruda and Charles, the WNBA's newly minuted Rookie of the Month, match up in practice.

"I think it will be good for Tina to have somebody to play against in practice," Jones said. "... She needs to have somebody who’s really long and more of who’s she’s going to see from day to day in games. I said I was excited just to see those two play against each other because it’s just going to be arms everywhere. They’re both all elbows everywhere and they’re both really competitive, so it’s going to be really good for Sandrine, too, to have another young player. And they’re both going to be vying for the same position. It’s going to be a good intensity in practice and it’s going to make our team better.

"It’s going to be a war everyday in practice."

A fun side bet could be, who takes the first elbow from Gruda? The French center doesn't try to take people out, but lean at 6-foot-4, she has a knack for keeping defenders and would-be rebounders at bay. Ask Amber Holt, who took so wicked a shot from Gruda during practice last season she needed medical attention.

"Not me," Jones said, laughing. "I’ve had my share already for three years. I’ve had enough. She gets everybody. If you come around there, be prepared. She doesn’t even know she’s doing it, that’s the first worst part. She’s just long. It happens."

* Kerri Gardin participated in some drills Wednesday as she recovers from a concussion sustained in last Thursday's game against Minnesota. Thibault said the forward's headaches are gone and she was expected to participate more fully in today's workouts.

"The original plan was that she was going to practice (Thursday) so we’ll see," Thibault said.

Check back later today for an update on her status for Friday's game.

* The addition of Jones and Gruda creates some interesting decisions for Thibault. Both are expected to be starters once fully healthy and fully comfortable, respectively, meaning some roles will change. Thibault has always planned to use Walker and Griffin off the bench, but Charles and her team-leading 16.6 points and 9.6 rebounds per game are definitely not moving out of the starting lineup.

"I’m not envisioning taking Tina out of the lineup," Thibault said, adding he'd like to see Gruda, Jones and Charles in the Sun's froncourt. That'd move Kara Lawson, Renee Montgomery or Anete Jekabsone-Zogota to a reserve role, though Jekabsone-Zogota (for her scoring ability) and Lawson (as a veteran) could have a leg-up on Montgomery.

Either way, the Sun plan to use their bench liberally whether it be Tan White coming on in the backcourt for legitimate minutes or Walker and Griffin in the frontcourt. Of course, Allison Hightower and Gardin will also be in the mix on several nights. As the season progresses, a nine-person rotation, given everyone remains healthy, will likely develop with the possibility of any of the Sun's reserves giving a helping hand on a given night.

Thibault mused that he could make a starting lineup based on matchups or even platoon, though he's admittedly not leaning toward the latter option.

"You can make a case that you can put together two even teams on this team," Thibault said.

For kicks, let's say you divided the teams like this: Lawson, Jekabsone-Zogota, Gardin/Hightower, Gruda and Charles vs. Montgomery, White, Griffin, Jones and Walker. It'd be tough to pick a winner on paper.

"I got a lot of thinking to do over the next couple of weeks," Thibault said. "But I can’t really do it until I see it in practice and see who’s healthy on the court. Asjha’s health will determine a lot of how much we can do of different things. How soon can she increase her minutes? If she’s gonna stay at 16 to 20 minutes for three or four weeks, it changes your thought process of what you’re going to do. So I don’t know."

* Asked to evaluate the Sun's good and bad habits, Lawson and Thibault both pointed to the team's work ethic and willingess to share the ball as two major positives to the team's 3-2 start.

Lawson added, however, that the Sun need to take advantage of their post players more.

"Maybe just by virtue of having more bigs here, we’ll see more value in trying to get them the basketball more in advantageous positions," Lawson said. "We have to get Tina, as much as she’s getting touches, more good touches because she’s efficient. When we get her the basketball on the block, she scores. DeMya’s good one-on-one on the block. Asjha’s obivously really good on pick-and-rolls and stepping up. We have to utilize that more. We have to do a better job of using our post play as the centerpiece of our offense and then just set up what we’ll get as guards out of it."

When Lawson says touches, however, that doesn't mean Charles is shooting it every time she gets it.

"New York, Washington — a lot of teams have shown the propensity to double (Charles), so we get her the ball, all of the sudden, everywhere else on the court, we’re 4-on-3 because she’s being double-teamed," she said. "And then knowing that she is double-teamed, if we can find her in one-on-one (situations), we know she can score.

"When the ball hits the post, we have a better offensive possession. Anytime the ball just goes like this (around the perimeter), more often than not, it’s not a good offensive possession. If the ball hits the paint on a given offensive possession, it’s proven if you look up all the percentages, that there is a higher rate of success. It could be from a drive but it can be from getting the ball into the posts. ... One of Coach’s emphasis was, look in the post. Every time you come down, look in the post."

* Also, in case you didn't see it, Foxwoods is now a major sponsor of the New York Liberty. (The team, by the way, is staying there while in Connecticut instead of at Mohegan Sun, like other opponents do.) That means new jerseys, too, which with such a big 'Foxwoods' logo reminds me more of a European soccer jersey than it does anything we're used to seeing in the U.S.

Of course, the Liberty aren't the first to go this rout. Phoenix did it last year.

Jones returns, but Sun fall

2010-05-30T17:57:00.004-04:00

Asjha Jones suited up for the Sun for the first time this season since undergoing surgery on her Achilles' tendon in February, but Connecticut (3-2) fell at Washington, 69-65. Here's the box score.

Jones, playing for the first time since Aug. 14, 2009, finished with three points and three rebounds in a shade under 12 minutes. Tina Charles had 13 points and nine rebounds and Kelsey Griffin and Renee Montgomery each added 10 points, but Connecticut committed 21 turnovers and shot under 39 percent from the field.

Sun coach Mike Thibault said he planned to bring Jones along slowly when she did return. Her presence was certainly welcome with Kerri Gardin (concussion) missing Sunday's game and Sandrine Gruda not slated to arrive in the U.S. until Thursday night. Jones has said throughout the early part of the season one of her biggest hurdles was simply returning to playing shape.

Of Jones, Gruda and Gardin

2010-05-29T19:59:00.004-04:00

Asjha Jones and Sandrine Gruda's return to the Connecticut is likely coming sooner rather than later.

Jones, still recovering from surgery on her left Achilles’ tendon, traveled with the Sun to Washington in preparation for Sunday's game against the Mystics (4 p.m., no TV), and planned to practice Saturday. Sun coach Mike Thibault didn’t sound confident she could play Sunday, but said, “We’ll see how it goes and see how she feels tomorrow.”

Friday's game vs. New York seems to be a better bet.

Gruda, meanwhile, is slated to arrive in the U.S. late Thursday night and will be activated for Friday’s game against the Liberty. She has been training with the French national team in preparation for this fall's world championship. There was a possibility she wouldn't arrive until Saturday.

“Whether she plays much or not (Friday), I don’t know,” Thibault said, “but we’ll suit her up.”

Kerri Gardin did not travel with the Sun after sustaining what Thibault called a “moderate to severe concussion” in a collision with Minnesota’s Rashanda McCants on Thursday.

A CAT Scan came back negative for fractures, but Thibault said the forward is “probably out a week,” leaving the Sun with eight healthy players for Sunday if Jones remains sidelined. But don’t expect the Sun to push Jones into playing simply because of a thinned bench.

“We’ll just deal with it,” Thibault said.

Its 80-65 loss at Connecticut last Sunday started a three-game losing streak for Washington (3-3) in which it gave up 80 or more points each time. The Mystics were allowing a league-low 67.3 beforehand.

Update: Sun pound Whalen, Lynx

2010-05-27T21:36:00.001-04:00

Renee Montgomery scored a season-high 23 points, Tina Charles registered another double-double and the Sun dominated the Minnesota Lynx in Lindsay Whalen's return to Connecticut, 105-79, at Mohegan Sun Arena on Thursday.

Charles finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds for her third double-double in four games, and reserve Tan White added 22 for the Sun (3-1), who shot 50.7 percent from the field.

Whalen, traded to Minnesota during the offseason with the No. 2 pick for Montgomery and the right to draft Charles first overall, had six points

Update: Sun up on Lynx at half

2010-05-27T20:24:00.002-04:00

The numbers will say the Sun are getting the better deal of all their trades with the Minnesota Lynx.

Tina Charles has 19 points and nine rebounds, Renee Montgomery has 12 points and Connecticut leads Minnesota, 55-41, at the half here at Mohegan Sun Arena.

No one has been able to stop Charles, who's been rarely doubel-teamed and has made everyone from Nicky Anisoke to Charde Houston to Rebekkah Brunson pay as a result. Meanwhile, Montgomery enjoyed her best offensive half as a member of the Sun, hitting 4-of-6 shots.

The Sun, however, are playing with an even shorter bench after Kerri Gardin was forced to leave the game with an apparent head injury. While grabbing a rebound with roughly 8:30 to play in the second quarter, Gardin was knocked to the ground in a vicious blind-side collision with Rashanda McCants and remained on the floor for several minutes. She was helped up by teammates and walked to the Sun bench, but left soon after. Sun coach Mike Thibault was livid because no foul was called on the play, but it was obvious that it was no malicious act on McCants' part.

Defensively, the Sun have stuck primarily with a zone defense, as Washington did when it beat Minnesota earlier this season. It's forced the Lynx to hoist up 14 3-pointers, 11 of which they've missed. Monica Wright is 1-for-5 alone.

Minnesota has survived by outrebounding the Sun, 21-17, including an amazing 12 offensive boards. (It can be difficult to find a body to box out when playing zone, which may have led to some Lynx players getting free for rebounds).

This, that and Lynx

2010-05-27T17:48:00.002-04:00

Greetings from Mohegan. Tip-off for Connecticut and Minnesota is about 40 minutes away, but here's some extra notes, quotes and observations from the past few days:

First, though, starters: Rookie Kelsey Griffin will once again start at power forward for the Sun, joining Renee Montgomery, Kara Lawson, Anete Jekabsone-Zogota and Tina Charles.

Meanwhile, with Rebekkah Brunson's arrival, Charde Houston and her team leading 18.5 points per game will move to a reserve role. Lindsay Whalen and Monica Wright start in the backcourt and Nicky Anisoke and another former Monarch, Hamchetou Maiga-Ba, will start in the frontcourt.

As discussed in today's advance, the Sun and Lynx have several connections after making two separate trades this offseason. For one, three Connecticut starters (Montgomery, Griffin and Charles) came via dealings with Minnesota as do two for Minnesota (Whalen, Wright).

But while the two teams obviously have a healthy working relationship, they're not any closer than most front offices, Sun coach Mike Thibault said.

"Just circumstance and coincidence," he said Wednesday of the trades. "Both teams in the same time period had things that the other team wanted. It just kind of works that way sometimes."

But in trading Whalen, Thibault said being that it was Minnesota made it easier to do on a personal level, given Whalen would be returning to her home state.

"What helped is she understands it’s a business," Thibault said. "Things maybe don’t last forever unfortunately and also as part of all that, it would have been harder to do a decision like that if we were sending her anywhere else but Minnesota. That would have been harder. But knowing she was going to get back to her roots and her family, it helped ease it a little bit."

Remembering Whalen: It's been old home day around Connecticut this week with Whalen's return. One fan made a scrapbook of photos of Whalen from her six years with the Sun and was asking those close to the organization to write a note in it for her.

Thibault, who has likened Whalen to a daughter and an extended family member, obviously has a lot of memories of his former point guard.

"I think about when we she first came here how much she changed how we play, that we can be an attack-the-basket team with her," he said. "She’s probably in the history of our league as good a guard at attacking the basket, it’s her and maybe a handful of others. I think of her a lot of times when she was rookie, people said how long it was going to take her to adjust to the league. And I kept thinking, ‘I don’t think it will be this long.’ And it wasn’t. We went to the finals her rookie year. I think she made a name for herself in that playoff run that year.

"Off the court, I think of her humor all the time. She wasn’t elitist, she was one of the crowd. She could laugh easily, she was able to poke at herself. Just one of those good personalities."

No sweat: Speaking of Lynx-Sun swaps, Renee Montgomery said she's felt no added pressure having to perform for a team that traded its franchise point guard to get her.

"The coaching staff does a good job of making sure that I don’t have to come in and do everything," she said. "They had a lot of deals done in the offseason where now I’m starting with Kara Lawson and it’s not just me heading the point. The did a good job of making sure I don’t need to carry a huge load. ... I’ve been fortunate that all the systems I’ve been in wanted me to push the ball."

Injury report

2010-05-26T17:06:00.002-04:00

Check out tomorrow's Bulletin (and NorwichBulletin.com) for more on Thursday night's Lynx-Sun game, but for now, here's a couple quick-hitters from Sun practice today:

* Sun coach Mike Thibault said the target date for Asjha Jones' return is next Friday’s game vs. New York. He doesn’t think the All-Star forward will play Sunday at Washington, but Jones will travel with the team and she has been practicing with them this week. On Wednesday, she participated in roughly two-thirds of the session, Thibault said.

Jones underwent surgery on her left Achilles' tendon in February and has yet to dress for the Sun this season.

* Sandrine Gruda, who is training with the French national team, is expected to arrive either next Thursday, June 3, or Saturday, June 5. If she arrives Thursday, she’ll dress against New York, regardless if she gets to practice beforehand.

Gruda didn't arrive until the ninth game of last season, and despite having nothing but a shootaround under her belt, scored 23 points with six rebounds in her first game back at Detroit. So Thibault has no qualms about playing her cold.

* Renee Montgomery sat out a portion of practice Wednesday to nurse a tweaked left hamstring she suffered before last Friday's game at Atlanta. She also been playing on an injured ankle, though it's improved.

“I’m 100 percent go for tomorrow,” she said.

Going way back with Whalen

2010-05-25T17:41:00.002-04:00

Two days before she returns to Connecticut as a member of the Minnesota Lynx, Lindsay Whalen sat down for a teleconference with the Connecticut media Tuesday. For those who never had the chance to have a few laughs with Whalen while she was busy setting the Sun's assists record and earning MVP runner-up honors during her six seasons here, you missed one of the funniest personalities in Sun history.

That was already on display Tuesday.

"I’m looking forward to it," Whalen said of her return, "seeing everybody, the arena, the casino — everything."

The casino, really?, a reporter asked.

"Yeah, because that’s where they play," Whalen said with wit as dry as a summer day in Scottsdale. "They play at the arena in there."

Whalen is also scheduled to throw out the first pitch at the Twins-Yankees game tonight.

"I’m gonna go with the heat," she said. "Forty miles per hour."

In 197 games (196 starts) with the Sun, Whalen established herself as one of the league's top all-around point guards, becoming the only player in WNBA history to average at least 14 points, five rebounds and five assists in a season (2008) and earning All-Star honors twice. She also led the Sun to back-to-back Eastern Conference championships in 2004 and 2005.

But in their quest to trade for the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft — then owned by Minnesota — the Sun entered talks with the Lynx knowing Whalen, a Minnesota native and Golden Gophers legend, would be what Minnesota coveted. In February, the teams completed the trade, sending Renee Montgomery and the No. 1 pick to the Sun, who used it to draft Tina Charles, for Whalen and the No. 2 pick, of which the Lynx drafted Monica Wright with.

Whalen said leaving Connecticut included some "sad parts" but a part of her always hoped she'd return home to play.

"(But) this offseason was probably the first time that I thought about it," Whalen said. "Of course this is my home and my family’s here. But before I think I was into what we were doing in Connecticut. You can’t be, ‘I wish I was there.’ You have to play and that’s what you were expected (to do) as a professional.

"When Coach T (Mike Thibault) drafted me, you kind of get comfortable in a situation and get to know everybody," she continued. "The year I had my surgery out there, I was part of Coach’s family. I think when you’re in the season and everything, you feel like that’s where you’re going to be for your career. But I thought maybe some day I would be able to come home to play and it worked out this year. I guess things just kind of fell into place this offseason for a reason. I have nothing but good memories. I feel under Coach T, I improved as a player and I learned how to be a pro and learn how to be a point guard in the league. I owe what I know and everything to Coach T."

What tops Whalen's list of things she misses about Connecticut? The people foremost, but there are others.

"I definitely miss the seafood and the clam chowder," she said. "I miss (Interstate) 395. I miss 95. I miss the Long Island Sound. I miss a lot of things about Connecticut. And I miss Abbott’s."

But there are benefits of being home, largely the chance to see her tight-knit family.

"Me and my family kind of had a falling out so that’s been unfortunate," Whalen said.

(She was just joking, of course.)

"No, it’s been great. My sister is like five minutes away. It was my brother's birthday (Monday), Tom, he turned 16. I can’t believe it. So I got to go home and we went out for dinner and had birthday cake. Tonight, my dad and Tom are coming to the Twins-Yankees game.

"My mom, she made lasagna, chili, sloppy joe’s last night. It’s all in my freezer now so I’m very spoiled. (laughs) And my favorite little sandwiches. These little tuna sandwiches. You put them in the freezer and then you microwave them and heat them up. So I've been eating healthy. But for me, I just have lean cuisine and all that other stuff is for (husband) Ben (Greve)."

Look for more in Wednesday's Bulletin.

Bouncing back

2010-05-23T20:40:00.002-04:00

Think Sun coach Mike Thibault was in a better mood Sunday? After calling his team's 97-82 loss to Atlanta the "most embarrassing moment" in his 40-year coaching career on Saturday, he walked into his post-game press conference at Mohegan Sun Arena, found he had no chair to sit at and jokingly did a squat behind the table.

He would have kept the joke going he said, if his knees could hold up.

It was easy for him to smile after Sunday's 80-65 victory over Washington, in which everything the Sun did wrong defensively against Atlanta they did right against the Mystics.

"This was a real good win. A real good win," he said. "We dug in most of the night and played good defense, we rebounded the ball better (44 to Washington's 43), we only gave up two fastbreak points the whole night and we got to the free throw line. Those are all plus signs in trying to build a winning team. I hope this is a sign that we’re resilient."

An important number: The Sun gave up 31 fastbreak points to Atlanta. As Thibault was correct in saying, the Sun allowed just two on Sunday. They buckled down when they needed to, and as Kara Lawson pointed out, simply got back into the halfcourt where they're far better on the defensive end. A case in point: Connecticut forced Washington into four shot clock violations, an unheard of number in most games.

"We’re pretty sound defensively when we get set," Lawson said. "If we don’t get set ... it’s hard. It’s hard to guard players in this league when they’re on the run and have momentum."

Check out the game story at NorwichBulletin.com, but for now, here's a notebook touching upon a few other odds and end that didn't make it into the print edition:

Sun Tan

As laid back as anyone in the Connecticut Sun’s locker room, Tan White talks with a soft drawl that mirrors her Southern roots.

That is to say, rushing is a play in football, not a way of life.

Her play on the court couldn’t be more different.

In quickly becoming a reliable sixth man, White brought everything the Sun needed in Sunday’s 80-65 victory over the Washington Mystics: Scoring, defense and most importantly, energy.

Whether it be her active hands on defense or her play in the open court, she’s becoming what Thibault called a “perfect fit” in the Sun’s system. When things are flat, White, a Tupelo, Miss., native, simply shakes up the bottle.

“She’s bringing such a high energy to the court right now,” Thibault said of White, who finished with a team-high 15 points, six rebounds and three steals Sunday. “She’s become a pretty good sixth man, and I think she’s relishing the role right now.

“We don’t need her to be our leading scorer,” he added, “but we need her to be a consistent scorer off the bench.”

White scored in double figures in two of the Sun’s three games and is now averaging 11. She’s also grabbing five rebounds per contest, and her continually active defense has been valuable.

Sunday, she combined with Anete Jekabsone-Zogota to limit Monique Currie, the league’s leading scorer through three games, to six points on 2-of-9 shooting. When she wasn’t guarding Currie, White helped hold Katie Smith — a Sun killer while with the Detroit Shock — to 10 points.

“When you’re just watching from the bench and you can see how the flow of the game is going, it’s our job off the bench to bring that missing piece,” White said. “And I think in the first half, we were kind of flat. And the second half, we came in, got some stops, pushed the ball up-tempo — our type of basketball — and great things happened.”

Thibault said White may have a had too much energy early on. But as the game wore on, instead of forcing the action, she waited for open shots, took them and most times (5-for-11, 4-of-5 from 3) made them.

Pretty simple stuff.

“Offensively, she’s just in attack mode,” Kara Lawson said. “Sometimes she gets in trouble and turns it over, but that’s OK because she does more good things. She’s a special player for us.”

A down day?

There were few times when Tina Charles touched the ball Sunday and didn’t get double-teamed. A player the Sun have leaned on for scoring throughout her short time at Mohegan, the rookie’s 10-point, eight-rebound effort against Washington may come off as almost pedestrian.

Kelsey Griffin doesn’t think so.

“I think to say that Tina didn’t have a good offensive night would kind of not be giving her enough credit,” her fellow rookie said. “Even though she maybe didn’t put the ball up, she was drawing double teams, she was drawing attention.

“That’s why I don’t look at stat sheets because things like that don’t show up. I think Tina did her thing (Sunday). It was just she did it with rebounding and taking people away from the basket to focus on her. It is huge — people stepped up and made open shots. (But) they were feeding off the double teams she was getting.”

For starters

Griffin was good, too, scoring 11 points with six rebounds in her first start of the season.

Thibault opted to plug Griffin in as the first power forward ahead of DeMya Walker largely because of matchups. Griffin’s speed was a better fit against the 6-foot-2 Crystal Langhorne (16 points) while Walker brought size off the bench to counter the pivot-minded, 6-foot-3 reserve, Chasity Melvin (two points).

“We get smaller when we come off the bench,” Thibault said, “and DeMya’s role when Asjha (Jones) and Sandrine (Gruda) get her it to come off the bench.”

Around the rim

Rookie Allison Hightower responded in a season-high 13 minutes, scoring seven points, including several pretty floaters. “(In my first two games), it was like, ‘Should I shoot it? No don’t shoot it,’” Hightower said. “Now, it’s like, if you’re open, shoot it. I’m not having to think about, ‘Should I shoot this shot?’ Just shoot it.” ... Thibault said he doubts Jones (Achilles’) will be ready to play Thursday against the Minnesota Lynx, though she’ll likely practice sometime this week. ... Balloting opened Sunday for the WNBA All-Star event featuring the U.S. national team and a group of WNBA All-Stars at Mohegan Sun Arena on July 10. Online voting begins Wednesday at WNBA.com.

Update: Sun rebound, trounce Mystics

2010-05-23T17:08:00.003-04:00

Tan White finished with 15 points and six rebounds to lead five Sun players in double figures and Connecticut used an oppressive defense and 18-1 second-half run to put away Washington, 80-65, at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Anete Jekabsone-Zogota added 14 points for Connecticut (2-1), which two days after giving up 97 points to a Atlanta clamped down on the previously unbeaten Mystics (3-1). Washington committed 20 turnovers and shot 39 percent from the field. During a seven-minute stretch spanning the third and fourth quarters, the Sun held the Mystics to zero field goals to turn a 42-39 lead into a 60-40 advantage.

The Sun made nine 3-pointers for the second time in three games, matching their season-high from all of last year.

Update: Sun lead Mystics at half

2010-05-23T15:56:00.003-04:00

Anete Jekabsone-Zogota and Kara Lawson each have six points and the Sun lead the Washington Mystics, 31-28, at the half here at Mohegan Sun Arena despite shooting 31.3 percent form the field.

The Sun are talking and switching well on defense, and the combination of Jekabsone-Zogota, Tan White and even for a short time, Allison Hightower, has frustrated the league's leading scorer, Monique Currie (one point on 0-for-5 shooting). As a team, Washington isn't shooting much better than the Sun (35.7 percent) and has as many turnovers as Connecticut (eight).

Kelsey Griffin, starting in place of DeMya Walker (for matchup reasons most likely), has three points but also three fouls and only played seven minutes.

Also, a quick update from the All-Star voting. Of the 60 players on the ballot (fans can also write-in players), five Sun players are included: Tina Charles, Jekabsone-Zogota, Asjha Jones, Lawson and Renee Montgomery.

For starters, a change ...

2010-05-23T14:45:00.004-04:00

An interesting change in the Sun's lineup. Rookie Kelsey Griffin will start at power forward instead of DeMya Walker.

After foul trouble hampered her in 19 minutes in Connecticut's opener, Walker had 10 points and four rebounds in the Sun's 97-82 loss at Atlanta. But she struggled in guarding Sancho Lyttle, who had 27 points, 17 rebounds. A big part of the change, however, may be matchup-based. Washington has a quicker frontcourt than Atlanta with Monique Currie, Crystal Langhorne and Nakia Sanford.

The rest of the Sun's starters remain the same: Renee Montomery, Kara Lawson, Anete Jekabsone-Zogota and Tina Charles. Lindsey Harding, Katie Smith, Monique Currie, Crystal Langhorne and Nakia Sanford are starting for Washington.

Also, voting for the WNBA's All-Star event between the U.S. national team and a group of league All-Stars has started. Fans can vote in person at WNBA arenas. Fans can also vote online beginning Wednesday at WNBA.com.

The balloting program gives fans the opportunity to vote for the top 10 players in the WNBA, regardless of conference or position. The 60 players included on the 2010 ballot represent all 12 WNBA teams. A write-in option is also available, allowing fans to choose players not listed on the ballot. The 10 players who receive the most votes will be guaranteed a position on the team rosters. Unlike previous years, the players selected by fans will not necessarily be starters. Any player voted in who is already in the USA national team Pool will play on the U.S. team under coach Geno Auriemma, while the remaining players who have been voted in by the fans will play on the WNBA team.

Greetings from Mohegan

2010-05-23T13:31:00.003-04:00

Hello all,

Just arrived at Mohegan Sun Arena for today's Sun-Mystics game (3 p.m.). WNBA president Donna Orender is meeting with the media in roughly 30 minutes, as is Sun CEO Mitchell Etess and U.S.A. Basketball's Carol Callan. In the interim, here's a link to today's advance.

An 'L' in ATL

2010-05-21T23:26:00.002-04:00

Some notes and quotes from the Sun's 97-82 loss at Atlanta on Friday night:

* This is the Sun's third straight loss to the Dream and fourth in their last five meetings.

* The Sun led, 6-1, in the first quarter before the Dream outscored them, 50-25, over the remainder of the half. In the decisive second quarter in which Atlanta outscored Connecticut, 25-9, the Sun shot 16.7 percent from the field (3-of-18) while Atlanta shot 68.8 percent.

* The 39 field goals the Dream made are the most for a Sun opponent through regulation. The 81 points they scored through three quarters tied the most for a Connecticut opponent (Phoenix, June 18, 2008) and the 33 field goals they made in the same span broke the mark Atlanta set last year on Sept. 11, 2009 when it hit 32 shots entering the fourth to knock the Sun from playoff contention.

* The Dream largely was a three-person show: Angel McCoughtry (32 points, 10 rebounds), Sancho Lyttle (27, 17 rebounds) and Iziane Castro Marques (18) made 31 of their team's 39 field goals, scored 77 of its 97 points and nearly became the first trio to all score at least 20 points in the same against Connecticut.

* Tina Charles had 22 points and 11 rebounds, both team highs. Anete Jekabsone-Zogota added 13 points and Tan White had 10.

For more stats, here's the box score.

Sun coach Mike Thibault, on the game: “In 40 years of coaching, I think that’s the worst half of basketball I’ve had a team play in the first half. Hopefully when we get our other two players (Asjha Jones and Sandrine Gruda) back, we’ll do a better job on the boards. But you have to play with what you have.

"We had a week to get ready for this. Our whole focus at practice was defensive transition against their fastbreak and defensive rebounding. We were awful at both.”

Tina Charles, on the absence of Jones (rehabbing after Achilles' tendon surgery) and Gruda (training with French national team until early June): “You can’t use that as an excuse. We’re pros, this is what we chose to do.”

Kara Lawson, on approach to the game: “We felt like our best chance was to get them in a halfcourt game, and we didn’t do a good job of that tonight.”

False Idol

2010-05-20T19:52:00.003-04:00

Sun guard Kara Lawson had a funny story at practice on Wednesday. As an ESPN analyst and professional basketball player, it's common for her to be recognized, but the following encounter at Target earlier this week was a first.

I'll let Lawson tell it:

"I was going down the aisle. I don’t know (what I was buying), toothpaste or deodorant, you know stocking up on stuff because we’re going on the road.

And this old lady was like, ‘Kara?’ And I said, ‘Yes.’ And she said, ‘Oh my gosh, I love watching you.’

I said, ‘Thank you,’ and I was kind of walking away. And the one lady said to the other lady, ‘She’s my favorite on American Idol.’ I was like, ‘American Idol?’ I kept walking at that point."

Lawson said she got a text for her sister on Tuesday night that read: "I’m watching the show tonight, to see if you’re on there."

"The one you get the most (often), people know your face but they can’t place who you are," Lawson said. "So they’re like, ‘Oh, please tell me your name, please tell me your name. Who are you again?’ (But) I’ve never gotten American Idol. Never. And you’ve ever heard me sing or seen me dance, you would never say American Idol."

Sun in HD

2010-05-20T19:44:00.004-04:00

The Sun have a new TV contract with Comast SportsNet New England.

CSN will air seven Sun games this season, beginning with Friday's game at Atlanta. All games will be available in high definition. Mike Gorman and UConn alumna Rebecca Lobo will provide commentary.

“We are really excited by this new television partnership,” Connecticut Sun vice president and general manager Chris Sienko said in a press release. “Comcast SportsNet gives us a great opportunity to reach a broader audience all over New England, where we have many fans. The Connecticut Sun is always looking for different ways to grow its brand and we think this will afford us the chance to do so.”

The other games include:
* June 11, vs. Indiana
* June 25, vs. Phoenix
* June 27, at New York
* July 24, vs. Los Angeles
* Aug. 3, at Minnesota
* Aug. 17, vs. Tulsa

The Sun already have three games set for ESPN2: July 6 at San Antonio, July 20 vs. New York and Aug. 5 at Seattle.

Dream release Holdsclaw; Leuchanka on board

2010-05-19T23:34:00.003-04:00

This per The Associated Press:

Chamique Holdsclaw’s brief WNBA tenure with Atlanta is over.

The six-time All-Star was released on Wednesday by the Dream after coach Marynell Meadors said the forward asked for a trade three days prior to training camp and did not report to the team.

Meadors, who said she was surprised by Holdsclaw’s trade request, says she tried to workout a deal for the team’s second-leading scorer.

The 32-year-old Holdsclaw came out of retirement and averaged 13.9 points a game last season, helping the Dream go from four wins in their inaugural season to 18 and a playoff berth last year. For her career, the 10-year veteran has averaged 17.3 and 7.9 rebounds.

The Dream signed 6-foot-5 center Yelena Leuchanka, who played on the Belarusian team.

The Sun play at Atlanta on Friday, and will be without starting forwards Asjha Jones and Sandrine Gruda. The addition of Leuchanka places further importance on the Sun's ability to rebound against a frontcourt that also includes 6-foot-5 Erika de Souza and 6-foot-4 Sancho Lyttle and and 6-foot-7 Allison Bales off the bench.

Jones not expected to play this weekend

2010-05-19T15:18:00.002-04:00

Asjha Jones is not expected to play in either of the Connecticut Sun's two games this weekend, coach Mike Thibault said after practice on Wednesday.

Jones, who is recovering from surgery on her left Achilles' tendon in February, participated in parts of Sun practice Wednesday, including fullcourt drills with no defense and "all the shooting drills," Thibault said. But the All-Star forward is far from being ready to play in Friday's game against Atlanta or Sunday's game at home vs. Washington. And Thibault said he doesn't even know if next Thursday's game vs. Minnesota "is in the discussion yet until I see her do more."

"Part of it is getting even leg strength between the two. Part of it is getting her cardio back, which is going to be the hardest part," Thibault said. "We’re probably still sometime next week (away) from doing live 5-on-5 stuff. So I don’t know, we’ll see how that goes. That’s why I’m not putting a timetable (on it). It could be Minnesota, it could be the following week. I just don’t know."

Thibault has taken a cautious approach with Jones after she missed the final 11 games of last season. Even when she returns, the coach plans to put a limit on her playing time, likely keeping her between 15 to 18 minutes early on.

"It’s too long a season to risk everything before she’s ready," Thibault said. "It’s one thing to do what she’s doing (right now). It’s another thing to jump into a crowd and land and turn and pivot and run up the court and then get in a (defensive) stance. I don’t know how many days of that she’ll have to do before she feels comfortable."

Thibault said the possibility of applying to the league for a hardship is still available. With just nine healthy players — Sandrine Gruda won't arrive until early June — the Sun can ask to bring a player in and pay her on a per-day basis. They're currently too close to the salary cap to sign another player outright.

But Thibault said he wouldn't consider that option to after the weekend and it isn't something he's crazy about doing anyway.

"If they tell me Monday she (Jones) is still two weeks away, we might do it," he said. "But right now, to bring somebody in and teach them all the stuff, they’re going to be gone in two weeks anyway. I’m not big on that right now."

Asked if that meant he may lean toward someone like forward Judie Lomax — who was cut before the season opener but already knows a good amount of the playbook — Thibault was noncommittal.

"I'm not leaning toward anything," he said.

Update: Sun dominate Sky, 74-61

2010-05-15T17:24:00.002-04:00

Tina Charles finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds in her first pro regular-season game and Anete Jekabsone-Zogota had 18 points, leading the Sun to a 74-61 rout of Chicago that wasn't nearly as close as the final score indicates.

The Sun held Sky center Sylvia Fowles to just two second-half points and 16 overall, and Connecticut used a 16-2 run in the third quarter and 12-0 spurt to start the fourth to put the game away.

Jekabsone-Zogota hit 4-of-6 3-pointers and Kelsey Griffin (eight points, 10 rebounds) played even better than her numbers show, drawing two charges on Fowles while filling in for a foul-plagued DeMya Walker.

Update: Sun lead Sky, 42-33, at half

2010-05-15T16:28:00.003-04:00

The Sun looked absolutely great at times in building a 42-33 lead over Chicago at halftime here at Mohegan Sun Arena. But the Sky, who traded one of their best players (Candice Dupree) during the offseason, looked good themselves -- but really only when Sylvia Fowles touched the ball in the halfcourt.

Otherwise, the Sun have been otherwise dominant, starting with Tina Charles, who has 15 points and nine boards (already) and Anete Jekabsone-Zogota, who has 10 points. Fowles, meanwhile, has 14 points and six rebounds, and when she's gotten the ball in the blocks, Charles and anyone else has been otherwise helpless in stopping here. Still, she alone can't keep the Sun off the boards (24-15 advantage).

Kelsey Griffin also played well, compiling four points and three rebounds and mixing in a nice up-and-under move for a lay-up and foul on Cathrine Kraayeveld. Yet, in a rookie mistake, she went back to the same exact move on the next possession -- and came up with nothing.

The highlight of the half came at the end the first quarter when Kara Lawson knocked down a shot from halfcourt at the buzzer, hitting all net.

Charles vs. Fowles

2010-05-15T14:44:00.003-04:00

The Sun's season-opener with the Chicago Sky is less than 30 minutes away, and one of the more interesting story lines to watch for is the matchup of Sun rookie Tina Charles and Sky center and former LSU star Sylvia Fowles.

Charles famously (at least in the world of UConn basketball) kept a press clipping and photo of Fowles in her locker following the Huskies' loss to LSU in the 2007 NCAA tournament in which Fowles (23 points, 15 rebounds) dominated Charles (one point, three rebounds) en route to a 73-50 victory.

Here's a look at all three times the two met during their college careers, including that NCAA tournament showdown:

Feb. 11, 2007 (72-71 UConn victory):
Charles: 17 points, nine rebounds, 29 minutes, 8-of-12 shooting
Fowles: 22 points, 17 rebounds, 40 minutes, 9-of-15 shooting

March 26, 2007 (73-50 LSU victory):
Charles: one point, three rebounds, 21 minutes, 0-for-5 shooting
Fowles: 23 points, 15 rebounds, 39 minutes, 10-of-18 shooting

Feb. 25, 2008 (74-69 UConn victory):
Charles: 18 points, six rebounds, 40 minutes, 9-of-15 shooting
Fowles: 26 points, 11 rebounds, 40 minutes, 8-of-14 shooting

An interesting thing to note in the final matchup is the play of Kaili McLaren, who finished with 11 points and 12 rebounds in 30 minutes and helped keep Fowles (somewhat) at bay.

11 for 12

2010-05-15T01:42:00.005-04:00

Here are the complete 11-person, opening-day rosters for the WNBA's 12 teams. To check on who's been waived, go to the transactions page on WNBA.com:

ATLANTA
Alison Bales
Iziane Castro Marques
Erika de Souza
Chamique Holdsclaw
Shalee Lehning
Sancho Lyttle
Angel McCoughtry
Coco Miller
Kelly Miller
Armintie Price
Brittainey Raven

CHICAGO
Mistie Bass
Dominique Canty
Shameka Christon
Sylvia Fowles
Sandora Irvin
Cathrine Kraayeveld
Abi Olajuwon
Jia Perkins
Epiphanny Prince
Erin Thorn
Tamera Young

CONNECTICUT
Tina Charles
Kerri Gardin
Kelsey Griffin
Sandrine Gruda
Allison Hightower
Anete Jekabsone-Zogota
Asjha Jones
Kara Lawson
Renee Montgomery
DeMya Walker
Tan White

INDIANA
Tully Bevilaqua
Tamika Catchings
Jessica Davenport
Katie Douglas
Ebony Hoffman
Briann January
Jessica Moore
Jené Morris
Eshaya Murphy
Allie Quigley
Tammy Sutton-Brown

LOS ANGELES
Marie Ferdinand-Harris
Betty Lennox
DeLisha Milton-Jones
Candace Parker
Ticha Penicheiro
Noelle Quinn
Andrea Riley
Tiffany Stansbury
Tina Thompson
Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton
Kristi Toliver

MINNESOTA
Nicky Anosike
Seimone Augustus
Quanitra Hollingsworth
Charde Houston
Hamchetou Maiga-Ba
Gabriela Marginean
Nuria Martinez
Rashanda McCants
Lindsay Whalen
Candice Wiggins
Monica Wright

NEW YORK
Nikki Blue
Essence Carson
Kalana Greene
Tiffany Jackson
Janel McCarville
Taj McWilliams-Franklin
Leilani Mitchell
Cappie Pondexter
Nicole Powell
Sidney Spencer
Kia Vaughn

PHOENIX
DeWanna Bonner
Candice Dupree
Sequoia Holmes
Temeka Johnson
Taylor Lilley
Nicole Ohlde
Brooke Smith
Tangela Smith
Ketia Swanier
Diana Taurasi
Penny Taylor

SAN ANTONIO
Jayne Appel
Helen Darling
Megan Frazee
Becky Hammon
Roneeka Hodges
Crystal Kelly
Edwige Lawson-Wade
Ruth Riley
Belinda Snell
Michelle Snow
Sophia Young

SEATTLE
Svetlana Abrosimova
Sue Bird
Abby Bishop
Swin Cash
Lauren Jackson
Alison Lacey
Camille Little
Ashley Robinson
Jana Vesela
Le’coe Willingham
Tanisha Wright

TULSA
Chante Black
Kara Braxton
Shanna Crossley
Amber Holt
Alexis Hornbuckle
Marion Jones
Natasha Lacy
Plenette Pierson
Scholanda Robinson
Amanda Thompson
Shavonte Zellous

WASHINGTON
Matee Ajavon
Alana Beard
Marissa Coleman
Monique Currie
Lindsey Harding
Ashley Houts
Crystal Langhorne
Chasity Melvin
Jacinta Monroe
Nakia Sanford
Katie Smith

Sun ready to go; Jones not

2010-05-14T17:46:00.003-04:00

The Sun open their eighth season tomorrow against the Chicago Sky (3:30 p.m., Mohegan Sun Arena), but they'll do so with just nine players, no Asjha Jones and, as expected, no Sandrine Gruda.

Jones, who is still recovering from surgery on her left Achilles' tendon, has stepped up her rehab in recent days and said her ankle feels stronger. But she is far from actually returning to full game mode and joked that she was still out of shape following practice on Friday.

"It’s about building strength, so every day you push it to the max and it recovers and that’s how it gets stronger," Jones said. "I’m totally out of shape. (laughs) That’s probably the hardest part, getting back into shape. But it’s getting stronger. It’s hard to predict, to give you an exact day (of when I’ll return). It’s more of a day-to-day thing."

Fortunately for Jones, the Sun don't play again for six days after Saturday's opener. They visit Atlanta on Friday, May 21. Asked if she could return by then, Jones said, "If it keeps recovering the way it is now, I think so.

"I’m going for that," she continued. "You don’t want to do too much and put it out there. ... But you have to have your long-term goals and your short-term goals. That’s a long-term goal for me. The short-term goal is every day going a little more and a little more."

Originally, both Jones and Thibault called the season-opener a possible return date. Jones said it's frustrating not to be playing, but that target date "wasn't a definite thing" in the first place.

"That’s what I’ve been learning in dealing with this thing for a while — nothing’s definite," she said. "Just try to keep it in perspective. The point is to be there down the road and not to rush back. Right now, that’s what we’re trying to do: Keep everything in perspective, just really focus in and realize that I want to be there at the end. I wasn’t there at the end of last year and it wasn’t good for our team. That point is to be there to finish it out."

With Jones out and Friday's cuts of May Kostopoulos and Judith Lomax, the Sun will open the season with just nine players. Why did the Sun put themselves in a position, knowing Jones and Gruda wouldn't be playing? The salary cap forced their hand. As Thibault explained it, with the salary being reduced by $52,000 this year and the Sun buying out a portion of Tamika Whitmore's contract, it left the team $10,000 short of their salary cap. Either Kostopoulos and Lomax, however, would have cost roughly $32,000.

"But what we can do," Thibault said, "is apply to the league, because we have nine players, for a hardship and you can pay them on a per-day basis that they’re here on a minimum salary. I don’t know if we’re going to do that right away. I don’t need them for this game. I’ll wait until after the weekend, see where we are health wise and see if I wanna do that next week. I don’t know. But we had to cut them first and let them clear waivers before we bring them back."

Don't expect another team to pick up Kostopoulos or Lomax. They should clear waivers before game time Saturday.

Thibault, however, isn't too concerned with having only nine players as he is missing two starters.

"I guess I have a different perspective," he said. "I coached in the CBA, where we had a 10-man roster, guys went and down to the NBA sometimes on a weekly basis. And I would go and pick up a new player and I would figure out how to do drills for 4-on-4. ... I think I’ve learned because I’ve been through it, how to adapt. In general, you only play nine or 10 players in a game. You’re not going to play all 11 most nights. It won’t be that I’m running out of players to play in a game. It’s probably more of an issue of (not) having your best players here and practice situations."

Still, Thibault is confident with the players he has.

"That doesn’t mean you can’t win games" without these players, the coach said. "That just means you might not be as good as you can be. We’re only a couple weeks from the first week of June; Sandrine will be here. Hopefully Asjha will play by game three or four.

"We’ve got good players. DeMya Walker has been a starter. We’re bringing Tan White off the bench, who’s a good player. Kelsey Griffin’s going to be really good right away. She’s really good."

Some extra notes entering tomorrow:

* Renee Montgomery, Kara Lawson, Anete Jekabsone-Zogota, Walker and Tina Charles will start, Thibault said.

* Charles' first pro test comes against one of her biggest nemesis in college, Sylvia Fowles. Charles famously kept a picture of Fowles in her locker room throughout college as motivation. The No. 1 overall pick averaged 19.3 points and 10.3 rebounds during the preseason, albeit against lesser competition than Fowles. More on this tomorrow.

* Jones said the hardest thing to do right now on her ankle is back-pedaling and stopping, as such putting all the weight on her recovering Achilles'. But on Friday, she did start taking lay-ups to test jumping off only her left foot.

* Thibault, who has agreed to a new two-year contract, said he wouldn't have been worried if he and the team hadn't come to an agreement for this season, which would have been played under the option on his old contract.

"I haven’t worried about a contract (since I've been here). I haven’t worried about any of that stuff," he said. "I figured if somebody doesn’t want me some day, I’ll find something else. But they’ve been great to me. Everything about it has been great."

Thibault signs contract extension

2010-05-13T18:37:00.002-04:00

The Sun announced this afternoon coach Mike Thibault has signed a two-year contract extension with an option for a third.

Thibault was entering the option year of the contract he signed back in 2008 that Chris Sienko said at the time put the coach in the upper pay scale of coaches league-wide. Terms of the latest extension were not disclosed.

Thibault is the only coach in Sun history, taking over the team when it relocated in 2003. He also handles player personnel decisions and numerous players in the past have said he's the main reason they have signed to play in Connecticut.

Thibault is a two-time WNBA Coach of the Year, and in the league's GM survey, also realeased on Thursday, he was voted best coach, earning 36 percent of votes.

"I have enjoyed every part of being here, every part of this job,” Thibault said in a press release. “I look forward to going to work every day. I like my team and I like the direction we are headed. There's a lot that goes in to building a winning organization, and I think we've done a lot of great things to give us a bright future. I’m looking forward to being the coach of this group."

The Sun underwent a major overhaul from last season, bringing back just five players from the 2009 team and adding No. 1 overall pick Tina Charles, No. 3 overall pick Kelsey Griffin and free agent Kara Lawson. The Sun also picked up forward DeMya Walker in the Sacramento dispersal draft and traded for starting point guard Renee Montgomery.

The GM survey also cited the Sun as the team that made the best offseason personnel moves and Charles as most likely to win Rookie of the Year awards. League GMs also think Charles will be the best rookie five years from now.

Currently the longest-serving coach in the league, Thibault was the third fastest in WNBA history to reach 100 wins. His .601 winning percentage is first among active coaches.

“When we hired Mike eight years ago, we had one goal in mind, to win a championship,” Sienko said Thursday. “We still believe Mike is the best person to make that happen.”

Update: No. 1 in the books

2010-05-04T13:00:00.002-04:00

Make it 79 straight for Tina Charles.

Charles finished with 21 points, nine rebounds and six blocks in her pro (preseason) debut and Renee Montgomery added 12 points and four assists to lead the Sun to an 86-79 victory over Atlanta.

The Sun's rookie class as a whole played well. Kelsey Griffin had 11 points and four rebounds, and Allison Hightower scored 10 points.

Update: Preseason's here

2010-05-04T11:56:00.002-04:00

Greetings from Mohegan Sun Arena, where the Sun trail Atlanta, 48-46, at the half. Some observations from the first 20 minutes of the 2010 season:

* That Tina Charles is pretty good. The Sun trailed, 11-0, roughly two minutes into the game before Charles starting touching the ball and asserting herself. Through a series of post moves and tough blocks on the defensive end, she helped spark Connecticut in this early morning start time, closing the half with 11 points, six rebounds and four blocks.

Yes, Atlanta is missing the majority of its frontcourt, including All-Stars Sancho Lyttle and Erika de Souza. But Charles is making it look like there's not much difference between the WNBA preseason and college basketball. And truthfully, there probably isn't with the number of college players who make up early season rosters but won't be there come the regular season. Either way, she's been as impressive as you hope the No. 1 overall pick would be.

* DeMya Walker has five points and two rebounds, but the toughness she gave (and will give) the Sun made the difference. At one point in the second quarter, she became tangled with Atlanta's Angel McCoughtry (17 points) and literally threw the former Louisville star into the base of the basket. There was no foul (and there shouldn't have been), but the muscle and attitude the Sun hoped they'd get the last few years from Tamika Whitmore, Barbara Turner and others may finally be here in Walker.

* The Sun have had trouble getting back on defense so far. On the other hand, Renee Montgomery (nine points, two assists) has looked speedy as ever on the break for the Sun.

Not sure if Atlanta is that fast -- the Dream have been making a point to push the tempo behind Armintie Price and Shalee Lehning -- or if the Sun have just slept-walk through the 11 a.m start. Chalk it up to the preseason.

* Of the camp invitees to play so far, Pauline Love has five points, including a 3-pointer, and Judith Lomax has an rebound and an assist.

Some Sun events

2010-04-30T17:37:00.003-04:00

Greetings all,

Apologies for the lack of blog posts with Sun training camp starting this week, but I just returned from a friend's wedding abroad. Besides getting a decent tan, I'm also feeling recharged to tackle the rest of camp and the preseason as the Sun prepare for their eighth season at Mohegan.

Check back tomorrow for some updates from camp at Connecticut College, but in the meantime, the Sun have announced a few offers fans may be interested in:

— Connecticut Sun fans who attend Tuesday’s morning preseason game against Atlanta (11 a.m., Mohegan Sun Arena) can present their ticket to eat two-for-one at either the Seasons or Sunburst Buffet at the casino following the game.

Those who present a season ticket card can also take part in the special.

— For the third straight year, the Sun are also hosting an open practice at St. Joseph College in West Hartford from 5-7 p.m. on Wednesday. As usual, the Sun will scrimmage at the O'Connell Center on campus. More info to follow.