For the first time ever, fans will have the opportunity to watch virtually every Connecticut Sun game during the 2009 season through www.connecticutsun.com.
Only games televised nationally or locally, or games tipping off at the same time as an ESPN2 or ABC broadcasted game in another market, will be delayed. But all WNBA LiveAccess games will be archived for on-demand viewing.
Although the schedule is subject to change, a total of 22 Sun games are currently expected to be available for live viewing on the web. That list includes:
June 14 vs. Atlanta
June 16 at Chicago
June 19 vs. Chicago
June 27 vs. Atlanta
July 2 at Indiana
July 5 at Detroit
July 7 at Atlanta
July 19 vs. Indiana
July 22 vs. Sacramento
July 30 at Indiana
Aug. 2 at Detroit
Aug. 7 at Minnesota
Aug. 9 vs. Washington
Aug. 13 vs. Seattle
Aug. 14 at Washington
Aug. 19 vs. New York
Aug. 22 vs. Minnesota
Aug. 25 vs. Detroit
Aug. 27 at Seattle
Aug. 30 at Los Angeles
Sept. 1st at Sacramento
Sept. 11 at Atlanta
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
More on Chante
So we're a little behind on the blogging to start the year, but let's catch up a little bit. The Sun opened camp Monday, and they'll have a lot to accomplish with 15 players in camp and 11 open spots. And here's a quick pre-preseason primer for the Eastern Conference.
And for today, here's a look at Chante Black, who spent last summer in Connecticut coincidently for an internship at the St. Francis Hospital in Hartford.
But there's more to the 6-foot-5 rookie's story. Black's mother, Mazie, has spent the past two years on a fellowship teaching English to fifth- and sixth-graders in Saudi Arabia. Black has never gotten the chance to visit her there -- and the schedule made it impossible for Mazie to attend any of Chante's games the last two years at Duke -- but she did make it back to attend the WNBA draft last month with her daughter.
Chante said travel has always been in her mother's life. Mazie was in Army before taking up teaching, and she has spent 10 months each of the last two years in the Middle East.
"She’s adventurous," Chante said. "I don’t think I’m as bold as her."
But despite the nine-hour time difference, mother and daughter still talk often, whether through e-mail, Skype or magicJack. (Mazie has a local in Saudi Arabia.)
"So now it’s on the regular," Chante said. "But (because of the time difference), when she calls I’m like sleeping and it’s 6 in the morning but she’s wide awake. I’m like, ‘Call me later.’"
Mazie is also planning to return to school, Chante said, possibly in New England, meaning she may be able catch her daughter at Mohegan Sun Arena often.
More to come from camp late today.
And for today, here's a look at Chante Black, who spent last summer in Connecticut coincidently for an internship at the St. Francis Hospital in Hartford.
But there's more to the 6-foot-5 rookie's story. Black's mother, Mazie, has spent the past two years on a fellowship teaching English to fifth- and sixth-graders in Saudi Arabia. Black has never gotten the chance to visit her there -- and the schedule made it impossible for Mazie to attend any of Chante's games the last two years at Duke -- but she did make it back to attend the WNBA draft last month with her daughter.
Chante said travel has always been in her mother's life. Mazie was in Army before taking up teaching, and she has spent 10 months each of the last two years in the Middle East.
"She’s adventurous," Chante said. "I don’t think I’m as bold as her."
But despite the nine-hour time difference, mother and daughter still talk often, whether through e-mail, Skype or magicJack. (Mazie has a local in Saudi Arabia.)
"So now it’s on the regular," Chante said. "But (because of the time difference), when she calls I’m like sleeping and it’s 6 in the morning but she’s wide awake. I’m like, ‘Call me later.’"
Mazie is also planning to return to school, Chante said, possibly in New England, meaning she may be able catch her daughter at Mohegan Sun Arena often.
More to come from camp late today.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
All-Star game tickets on sale
The WNBA is releasing a limited number of tickets for the 2009 WNBA All-Star Game, to be held Saturday, July 25 at the Mohegan Sun Arena. The game, set for a 3:30 p.m. tip, will be televised live on ABC.
Tickets are available by going online to ticketmaster.com or by calling 1-877-WNBA-TIX, and range from $10 to $55. Special pricing will apply for groups of 20 or more.
The sale follows a presale conducted for season-ticket holders of the host Connecticut Sun and the WNBA’s 12 other teams.
Tickets are available by going online to ticketmaster.com or by calling 1-877-WNBA-TIX, and range from $10 to $55. Special pricing will apply for groups of 20 or more.
The sale follows a presale conducted for season-ticket holders of the host Connecticut Sun and the WNBA’s 12 other teams.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Sun sign three to camp contracts
The Connecticut Sun are filling out their training camp lineup, announcing Wednesday they’ve signed three college seniors to camp contracts.
Illinois State’s Kristi Cirone, Murray State’s Ashley Hayes and Duke’s Carrem Gay will all report to Connecticut for the start of camp on May 18 with the hopes of making the Sun in a season when spots are at their highest premium in WNBA history.
In addition to trimming rosters from 13 to 11 players, teams have also been forced to reduce the number of players available to open camp from 18 to 15. Making the competition even more intense is the expected presence of most of the Sun’s stars, including Lindsay Whalen and Asjha Jones, who have missed the start of camp in previous years.
The league pushed its opening weekend back roughly three weeks this season, affording players competing overseas more time to arrive in time for the preseason. Some, like Whalen and Australian Erin Phillips, are already in the United States.
That will put the onus on the undrafted seniors to make an immediate impact, though they all come with credentials.
A three-time Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year, the 5-foot-8 Cirone is the leading scorer in Illinois State history (2,139 points), and last season ranked second in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.57) while averaging a team-high 18.8 points per game.
Hayes, a 5-foot-10 guard, is the first player in Murray State history to earn an invite to a WNBA camp. Another pure scorer, she averaged 22.6 points per game as a senior and set a school record by netting 46 points at Tennessee State on Feb. 4. She topped 30 points seven times last season, including five games in a row.
The 6-foot-2 Gay averaged 6.6 points and 5.1 rebounds last year while playing alongside Sun first-round pick Chante Black at Duke. Gay ranks ninth all-time in program history with 80 blocks.
The Sun open the preseason on May 22 against New York and have to make final cuts by June 5, a day before their season- and home-opener against the Washington Mystics.
Illinois State’s Kristi Cirone, Murray State’s Ashley Hayes and Duke’s Carrem Gay will all report to Connecticut for the start of camp on May 18 with the hopes of making the Sun in a season when spots are at their highest premium in WNBA history.
In addition to trimming rosters from 13 to 11 players, teams have also been forced to reduce the number of players available to open camp from 18 to 15. Making the competition even more intense is the expected presence of most of the Sun’s stars, including Lindsay Whalen and Asjha Jones, who have missed the start of camp in previous years.
The league pushed its opening weekend back roughly three weeks this season, affording players competing overseas more time to arrive in time for the preseason. Some, like Whalen and Australian Erin Phillips, are already in the United States.
That will put the onus on the undrafted seniors to make an immediate impact, though they all come with credentials.
A three-time Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year, the 5-foot-8 Cirone is the leading scorer in Illinois State history (2,139 points), and last season ranked second in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.57) while averaging a team-high 18.8 points per game.
Hayes, a 5-foot-10 guard, is the first player in Murray State history to earn an invite to a WNBA camp. Another pure scorer, she averaged 22.6 points per game as a senior and set a school record by netting 46 points at Tennessee State on Feb. 4. She topped 30 points seven times last season, including five games in a row.
The 6-foot-2 Gay averaged 6.6 points and 5.1 rebounds last year while playing alongside Sun first-round pick Chante Black at Duke. Gay ranks ninth all-time in program history with 80 blocks.
The Sun open the preseason on May 22 against New York and have to make final cuts by June 5, a day before their season- and home-opener against the Washington Mystics.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Sun take Duke's Black
The Connecticut Sun added some needed frontcourt help in the WNBA Draft today, selecting Duke’s Chante Black with the 10th overall pick.
Black, a 6-foot-5 center, averaged 14.5 points and 8.5 rebounds this past season for the Blue Devils. She’ll join one of the league’s smallest frontcourts in Asjha Jones, Tamika Whitmore and the 6-foot-4 Sandrine Gruda, likely as a back-up.
“From what I’ve seen, the Connecticut Sun is a very up-tempo team,” Black said on a conference call last week. “They have a great point (guard) with Lindsay Whalen and I know she’s looking for a big to dish off to when she penetrates. I always love those opportunities when you have a guard looking to pass the post the ball. And I would always love an opportunity to play for any team that’s playing that type of style.”
The Sun select again at No. 17 and No. 36.
Black, a 6-foot-5 center, averaged 14.5 points and 8.5 rebounds this past season for the Blue Devils. She’ll join one of the league’s smallest frontcourts in Asjha Jones, Tamika Whitmore and the 6-foot-4 Sandrine Gruda, likely as a back-up.
“From what I’ve seen, the Connecticut Sun is a very up-tempo team,” Black said on a conference call last week. “They have a great point (guard) with Lindsay Whalen and I know she’s looking for a big to dish off to when she penetrates. I always love those opportunities when you have a guard looking to pass the post the ball. And I would always love an opportunity to play for any team that’s playing that type of style.”
The Sun select again at No. 17 and No. 36.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Sun not among Jackson's choices
The Sun have apparently fallen out of the race for former league MVP Lauren Jackson. The Australian star said in a radio interview that she will play in the WNBA this season but for either the Seattle Storm or Phoenix Mercury.
Sun coach Mike Thibault had pursued Jackson, flying to Russia on at least one occasion to speak with her. Jackson is playing with Moscow's Spartak Vidnoe, which competes in the Russian league and in EuroLeague.
"Seattle and Phoenix are sort of the two places I'm looking at. Obviously, I love Seattle and I've been there for many years," Jackson said in the 18-minute interview with Radio Sport 927 in Melbourne, excerpts of which were obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press. "It's always going to be a tough decision, but I don't know what I'm going to do. As long as I feel like I don't know, I can't make any decisions."
Sun coach Mike Thibault had pursued Jackson, flying to Russia on at least one occasion to speak with her. Jackson is playing with Moscow's Spartak Vidnoe, which competes in the Russian league and in EuroLeague.
"Seattle and Phoenix are sort of the two places I'm looking at. Obviously, I love Seattle and I've been there for many years," Jackson said in the 18-minute interview with Radio Sport 927 in Melbourne, excerpts of which were obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press. "It's always going to be a tough decision, but I don't know what I'm going to do. As long as I feel like I don't know, I can't make any decisions."
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Sun sign Jekabsone-Zogota
The Connecticut Sun addressed their need for a shooter Friday, signing Latvian star Anete Jekabsone-Zogota to a training camp contract.
She'll likely arrive in late June or early July, Sun coach Mike Thibault has said, because of her commitment to play for the host Latvian team in the European Championships. The Sun open their season on June 6.
But when she does make it to Connecticut, she'll give the Sun, whose shooting struggles cost them in their first-round playoff loss to New York last summer, a scorer in the mold of former Connecticut star, Katie Douglas. The Sun made just 73-of-203 field goals (36 percent) and shot 22 percent from the 3-point line in that series.
"We’re really excited to sign her," Thibault said in a statement. "We feel she will make an impact when she comes."
Averaging a team-high 15.9 points per game for defending FIBA EuroCup champion Moscow Dynamo this season, the 25-year-old Jekabsone-Zogota is 22-of-44 from three-point range in 10 EuroCup games.
The FIBA Europe Women’s Player of the Year in 2007 and the FIBA Europe Young Women’s Player of the Year in 2005, Jekabsone-Zogota helped Moscow Dynamo win the EuroCup title last year, averaging 20 points per game in the finals. She is the daughter of former Latvian men’s basketball star Andris Jekabsone.
"She’s one of the best young shooters in all of Europe, and she is the captain of her Olympic team," Thibault said of Jekabsone-Zogota, who averaged 15.8 points for Latvia during the Summer Games in Beijing. “When we finished last season, we said we needed to add a great shooter to our team, we feel like she can do that. This is a big off-season signing for us."
She'll likely arrive in late June or early July, Sun coach Mike Thibault has said, because of her commitment to play for the host Latvian team in the European Championships. The Sun open their season on June 6.
But when she does make it to Connecticut, she'll give the Sun, whose shooting struggles cost them in their first-round playoff loss to New York last summer, a scorer in the mold of former Connecticut star, Katie Douglas. The Sun made just 73-of-203 field goals (36 percent) and shot 22 percent from the 3-point line in that series.
"We’re really excited to sign her," Thibault said in a statement. "We feel she will make an impact when she comes."
Averaging a team-high 15.9 points per game for defending FIBA EuroCup champion Moscow Dynamo this season, the 25-year-old Jekabsone-Zogota is 22-of-44 from three-point range in 10 EuroCup games.
The FIBA Europe Women’s Player of the Year in 2007 and the FIBA Europe Young Women’s Player of the Year in 2005, Jekabsone-Zogota helped Moscow Dynamo win the EuroCup title last year, averaging 20 points per game in the finals. She is the daughter of former Latvian men’s basketball star Andris Jekabsone.
"She’s one of the best young shooters in all of Europe, and she is the captain of her Olympic team," Thibault said of Jekabsone-Zogota, who averaged 15.8 points for Latvia during the Summer Games in Beijing. “When we finished last season, we said we needed to add a great shooter to our team, we feel like she can do that. This is a big off-season signing for us."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
