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Ashdod Drops Finals Opener

Saturday, March 27th, 2010

Game 1 of the Israeli D-I Finals went to host Electra Ramat Hasharon on Thursday, which led most of the way and pulled away in the fourth quarter to win 78-60. Ashley Walker contributed 16 points, eight boards and five assists, but her Ashdod team shot just 39.8% from the field in the loss. Former Storm player Sheri Sam had 14 points, eight boards and six steals for Ramat Hasharon. The teams will have a week off before resuming the series at Ashdod on April 1.

In Poland, the quarterfinals are complete and the playoffs will continue without Wisla Can-Pack. Wisla blew out CCC Polkowice 83-61 in Game 2 to send the series the distance, getting 22 points on 9-of-11 shooting and eight boards from Janell Burse. Back at home, however, CCC advanced to the semifinals with a 75-66 triumph in Game 3. Burse’s 14 points and nine rebounds weren’t enough to overcome 22 points and eight boards from Nataliya Trofimov and 20 and 14 from one-time Liberty forward Amisha Carter. It is odd how Wisla is the story of Euroleague, headed to next month’s Final Four, but has struggled in PLKK play and won’t be in the league’s final four.

On the other hand, Lotos Gdynia did advance to the semifinals with a sweep of Superpole Tecza. Tanisha Wright contributed 10 points, seven rebounds and three assists in Gdynia’s Game 2 victory. Lotos faces Energa Torun in a best-of-three series starting Wednesday and will have home-court advantage.

Spartak Moscow Region got off to an excellent start in its pursuit of the Russian Superleague title Thursday, swamping Vologda 109-74 in Game 1 of their quarterfinal series. Spartak led 29-10 after one quarter and 60-30 at the half before things got a bit more respectable with Spartak’s subs in the game. Sue Bird needed play just 15 minutes and had 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting and six assists in that span. Ilona Korstin came off the bench to put up 21 points and lead seven Spartak players in double-figures. Spartak will go for the sweep tomorrow at Vologda.

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Finals Set in Israel

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

Earlier today, favorites Maccabi Ashdod and Electra Ramat Hasharon both completed 3-1 series victories in the Israeli D-I semifinals to set up a showdown against each other in the finals. Both teams lost Game 1 of the series at home but won three straight times to advance.

Storm forward Ashley Walker led Ashdod, which reached the finals for the first time in its history. Walker had 21 points and 14 rebounds – both game highs – in today’s 63-54 road victory. Meanwhile, Maccabi Ramat Hen fell 71-62 to Ramat Hasharon despite 10 points and 12 rebounds from Camille Little.

Ramat Hasharon will have home-court advantage in the finals, which begin on Thursday. Both teams have been atop the Israeli standings throughout the year, so it should be an excellent matchup.

In yesterday’s Russian Superleague season finale, Spartak Moscow Region went on the road to pick up an impressive 84-70 victory over rival UMMC Ekaterinburg. Sue Bird had a big game for Spartak, scoring 16 points, handing out six assists and knocking down three of her four attempts beyond the arc. Backcourt mate Diana Taurasi poured in 28 points with eight rebounds and five assists and Spartak controlled Ekaterinburg’s American stars. Deanna Nolan, Cappie Pondexter and Candace Parker combined for 27 points while shooting 8-of-21 from the field.

By virtue of winning by more than the eight points that was the margin in UMMC Ekaterinburg’s earlier head-to-head victory, Spartak secured the top seed in the Superleague playoffs and will host Vologda in a quarterfinal matchup. The best-of-three series kicks off on Thursday. Both Spartak and Ekaterinburg were undefeated against everyone but each other during the regular season and will be heavy favorites to meet each other in the Superleague Finals, where Spartak would have home-court advantage.

In Poland, best-of-three quarterfinal series began yesterday. Lotos Gydnia earned an easy 93-70 victory over Leszno in Game 1, getting 17 points on 5-of-6 shooting and four assists from Tanisha Wright. Wisla Can-Pack had to go on the road for Game 1 and, despite getting 24 points and nine boards from Janell Burse, dropped Game 1 83-78 to CCC Polkowice. Iziane Castro Marques added 25 for Wisla, but no other players reached double-figures. Wisla will look to stay alive at home on Wednesday when Game 2s are played.

A battle of new Storm teammates in Spain, where Le’coe Willingham and Halcon Avenida squared off against Jana Vesela and Ros Casares Valencia in a meeting of two of the league’s top teams. Willingham had 14 points and five boards while Vesela scored nine points and grabbed four rebounds, but it was her Ros Casares squad that emerged victorious by a 73-65 final. DeLisha Milton-Jones had 22 points for Ros Casares.

Nice win in Italy for Liomatic Umbertide, which snapped a recent losing streak by blowing out Pool Comense 71-50 on Sunday. Chelsea Newton scored eight points and led an Umbertide defense that limited Comense to 21.6 percent shooting inside the arc. Teammate Ticha Penicheiro contributed 13 points, 14 rebounds and five assists.

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Overseas: Spartak Showdown Looming

Monday, March 15th, 2010

Spartak Moscow Region got an easy 105-65 win over Dynamo Moscow on Sunday. Sue Bird called it a night after 15 minutes, but still found time to score 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting and hand out five assists. Marina Karpunina scored 22 and Ilona Korstin had 21 for Spartak. The regular-season finale is up next for Spartak, and it’s a big one – a rematch with rival UMMC Ekaterinburg, which handed Spartak its only Russian Superleague loss back in December (without Bird). Both teams are undefeated against the other seven Russian teams, so next Sunday’s matchup will decide first place going into the playoffs.

The Israeli DI semifinals kicked off last Thursday. Maccabi Ramat Hen continued its hot streak by pulling off a 62-50 Game 1 upset against top-seeded Electra Ramat Hasharon. Camille Little scored a game-high 19 points and pulled down 13 rebounds in the win. Ramat Hasharon shot 6-of-28 from three-point range in the loss. The other higher seed, Maccabi Ashdod, also dropped Game 1 at home, losing a shootout 100-95 to Elizur Ramla. Ashley Walker scored 26 points on 8-of-12 shooting for Ashdod, which also got 27 points from Christi Thomas but surrendered 26 points and 11 boards to Noelle Quinn and 26 to former Storm guard Edwige Lawson-Wade. Game 2s of those series are today.

Ramat Hen’s run did not extend to the Israeli Cup, where the team fell 79-61 to Ramat Hasharon in the semifinals. Little had 14 points and nine boards in the loss.  Ramat Hasharon went on to defeat Ramla to win the Israeli Cup.

The PLKK is also headed for the finish line, with the last round of games scheduled for St. Patrick’s Day. On Saturday, Wisla Can-Pack earned a 78-77 win over Gorzow behind 15 points and 16 boards (10 offensive) from Janell Burse. 16-7 Wisla currently stands fifth in the PLKK table, a game back of CCC. Tanisha Wright and Lotos Gdynia, meanwhile, are in second place at 19-4.

In the Spanish Liga Feminina, the Storm’s newcomers play for the two top teams. At 22-1, Ros Casares Valencia leads the league. On Friday, Ros Casares defeated Gran Canaria 93-69. Jana Vesela, with 13 points, four rebounds and three assists, was one of five players in double-figures, led by 25 from DeLisha Milton-Jones. Halcon Avenida played without Le’coe Willingham, who was back in the U.S. according to news reports, but still beat Real Canoe 94-46 to improve to 21-2.

Chelsea Newton had 10 points and six rebounds, but Liomatic Umbertide fell to Seralwall Livorno 64-53 on Sunday. Umbertide sits eight in LegA Femminile at 7-12.

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Europe Wins Euroleague All-Star Game

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

The Euroleague gathered Tuesday in Gdynia, Poland to celebrate its brightest talents in the 2010 Euroleague All-Star Game, once again matching a team of Europe’s top players against the best from the Rest of the World. The Storm was represented by Janell Burse, the starting center for the Rest of the World. Burse played just 11 minutes, grabbing two rebounds and missing her only shot attempt, as Pokey Chatman chose to play small in the middle.

Rebekkah Brunson scored a team-high 15 points and Candice Dupree had 11 points and nine boards, but Europe finished the game on a 7-2 run to win 93-89. Marta Fernandez’s bucket put the Europeans ahead for good, and MVP Agnieszka Bibrzycka capped her 20-point outing by putting the game away with a late three-pointer. That’s it for the Euroleague until next month’s Final Four.

DRAFT SET FOR APRIL 8

The WNBA announced this morning that the 2010 WNBA Draft will be held Thursday, April 8 in Secaucus, NJ at the NBA Entertainment studios. That’s now less than a month away. The Storm will pick 10th overall in the first round, televised on ESPN2 and streamed on ESPN360.com, and holds picks 22 and 34 in the second and third rounds, which will be on ESPNU as well as NBA TV. We’ll kick off our unparalleled draft coverage in earnest later this month.

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Capitals, Jackson Reign in WNBL

Monday, March 8th, 2010

For the sixth time in her remarkable career, Lauren Jackson has helped her team to a WNBL championship. Saturday’s 75-70 Canberra TransAct Capitals win over the Bulleen Boomers, however, was very much a team effort. Though Jackson won Grand Final MVP honors, teammates Natalie Hurst and Marianna Tolo were at least equally valuable as the Capitals rallied on the road from an eight-point deficit and a 68-62 disadvantage early in the fourth quarter.

A Carly Wilson three-pointer gave Canberra its first lead of the fourth quarter, and moments later Abby Bishop answered Liz Cambage’s score with another three that gave the Capitals the lead for good. They would hold Bulleen scoreless over the final 2:47, getting a free throw from Bishop at the 1:55 mark to extend the lead to three. A pair of Jackson free throws with four seconds left sealed the game and provided the final margin.

Jackson finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds, shooting 7-of-23 from the field. Hurst scored a team-high 21 points and Tolo shut down Cambage down the stretch, blocking six shots. Bishop also had a double-double with 10 points and 12 boards. The Boomers’ Jenna O’Hea was the game’s high scorer with 26 points, knocking down four triples, grabbing seven rebounds and handing out five assists. Cambage had 16 points and 11 rebounds but was limited to 6-of-17 shooting.

“Since the last Bulleen game everyone has played an equal part in winning,” Jackson told the Sydney Morning Herald, ”and tonight, everybody did. They could play anywhere in the world.”

Five of Jackson’s six WNBL championships have been won for Canberra, and the Capitals won their seventh as a franchise, tops among all teams. Head Coach Carrie Graf also won her seventh WNBL championship.

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Burse Joins Teammates in Final Four

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

The Storm got its first represenative in the Euroleague Final Four, when Sue Bird and Spartak Moscow Region swept their quarterfinal series. A second came Wednesday morning when the Storm signed Ros Casares Valencia forward Jana Vesela. Now, the Storm has a third player in the Euroleague’s showcase event after Janell Burse helped Wisla Can-Pack outlast Frisco Sika Brno 78-73 in the deciding Game 3 of their matchup.

The teams were tied at 65 midway through the fourth quarter, but Wisla controlled the stretch run, reeling off eight unanswered points and a deciding bucket from Marta Fernandez with 12 seconds left in the game. Burse was a major factor, scoring a game-high 20 points on 10-of-17 shooting and adding eight rebounds. Fernandez had 17, Iziane Castro Marques 14 and Ewelina Kobryn a double-double of 12 points and 10 boards. Jelena Skerovic led Brno by scoring 18 points.

The win continues a stunning Euroleague run for Wisla, which only got a chance to play at Europe’s highest level because CSKA Moscow folded before the start of the season. Now, Wisla will join Russian powers Spartak and UMMC Ekaterinburg and Ros Casares in the Final Four, which will take place on April 9 and April 11. The host city has yet to be determined among the finalists.

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Canberra Reaches WNBL Grand Final

Monday, March 1st, 2010

Lauren Jackson and the Canberra TransAct Capitals are headed for the WNBL’s Grand Final after knocking off the rival Sydney Uni Acuvue Flames 61-56 in Saturday’s Preliminary Final. After Sydney led early, Jackson scored 10 of her 14 points in the second quarter to put visiting Canberra ahead at halftime. The Capitals nursed the advantage throughout the second half and Jackson’s putback with 36 seconds left kept the Flames from having the ball with a chance to tie.

Even on a night where she was quiet on offense, shooting 6-of-20 from the field, Jackson was still a force in the paint. She grabbed 18 boards, eight of them on the offensive end, and blocked four shots. Natalie Hurst led Canberra with 18 points. Sydney’s Deanna Smith led all scorers by putting up 20 points, but no other Flames reached double-figures. The team missed Suzy Batkovic-Brown, who was unable to play due to a left knee injury.

The Capitals advance to take on the Bulleen Bombers in the Grand Finals next Saturday. Bulleen enters the game 22-1 on the season, having crushed Sydney at home in last week’s semifinal. The Bombers are also the only team to defeat Canberra since Jackson began playing for the Caps, winning 88-78 at home on Feb. 13. So Canberra will need to pull an upset for Jackson to add a sixth WNBL championship to her trophy case.

Sue Bird is also no stranger to championships, and Spartak Moscow Region’s bid for a fourth consecutive Euroleague title took another step forward last Friday when Spartak worked overtime to defeat Fenerbahce 87-85 in Game 2, sweep their quarterfinal series 2-0 and reach the Euroleague Final Four. The Turkish squad rallied from a 15-point deficit early in the fourth quarter to tie the score with 12 seconds left on a Nicole Powell jumper. Powell was unable to recapture the magic in the extra session, missing twice after Diana Taurasi put Spartak ahead for good with 24 seconds to play.

Taurasi scored 38 points on 13-of-30 shooting, while Sylvia Fowles (the Euroleague Player of the Week)  had 26 points (shooting 12-of-15 from the field) and 19 boards for Spartak. Bird was the third player in double-figures for the Russian side, finishing with 10 points and three assists. Powell led Fenerbahce with 23 points.

“This was a great game between two very good teams,” said Spartak Coach Pokey Chatman. “If I was a fan I would probably enjoy it very much.”

To join Spartak in the Final Four, Wisla Can-Pack will need to survive a Game 3 at home after losing 87-72 to Frisco Sika Brno on the road in Game 2. Brno opened up a close game by outscoring Wisla 23-14 in the third quarter. After outplaying counterpart Taj McWilliams in Game 1, Janell Burse was limited to three points and one rebound in the loss, shooting 1-of-7 from the field. Eva Viteckova had 25 points and McWilliams 20 for Brno. The series returns to Poland for Game 3, which will be played on Wednesday.

The two other quarterfinal series saw UMMC Ekaterinburg and Ros Casares Valencia reach the Final Four with sweeps. Ros Casares eliminated Le’coe Willingham and Halcon Avenida, which was bidding for a second straight Final Four trip, with a 63-57 Game 2 victory. Willingham had 14 points and 10 rebounds and Sancho Lyttle also recorded a double-double (17 points, 10 boards), but Avenida shot just 4-of-17 from beyond the arc.

The last of the Storm playoff action took place in Israel, where Camille Little and Maccabi Ramat Hen pulled off an upset of Elizur Maccabi Natanya in the teams’ best-of-five quarterfinal series. First, Ramat Hen forced the deciding game by defeating Natanya 86-71 at home in Game 4. Little (13 points, 11 rebounds) and Tiffany Jackson (21 points, 11 rebounds) both had double-doubles up front. Ramat Hen went on the road for yesterday’s Game 5 and came up with a 78-74 win. Little led all scorers with 23 points and grabbed nine boards. Ramat Hen joins Ashley Walker and Maccabi Ashdod in the quarterfinals.

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Spartak, Wisla Start Euroleague Quarters with Wins

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

Best-of-three Euroleague Quarterfinal series kicked off with Tuesday’s Game 1s, and both Spartak Moscow Region and Wisla Can-Pack recorded home victories.

Spartak led Turkish power Fenerbahce by 21 with four minutes to play before Fenerbahce finished the game on a 12-2 run to make the final a respectable-looking 90-79 score. Spartak controlled the game from the start, leading by 17 after one quarter. Diana Taurasi was terrific for Spartak, scoring 28 points on 10-of-17 shooting. Sylvia Fowles added 18 points and 12 boards and Sue Bird was the third Spartak player to reach double-figures, knocking down a pair of three-pointers and scoring 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting with four assists. For Fenerbahce, Nicole Powell scored 18 of her 25 points beyond the arc (making six threes in nine tries) and Nevriye Yilmaz added 22 points.

Wisla had a much tougher time against Frisco Sika Brno and trailed by 10 late in the third quarter before erasing the deficit with a 14-2 run in the fourth quarter. Wisla held on to its slim lead by holding Brno scoreless in the game’s final 2:26, with Janell Burse’s bucket at the 16-second mark the only points in that period, leaving Wisla 78-74 winners. Along with Iziane Castro Marques and Ewelina Kobryn, Burse was one of three Wisla players to score 18 points. She filled out her box score with 12 rebounds, six assists and four blocked shots in a phenomenal all-around performance. Burse outplayed counterpart Taj McWilliams, who had eight points and 10 boards.

For Le’coe Willingham and Halcon Avenida, Game 1 of their Spanish showdown with Ros Casares Valencia was not as successful. Riding 13 points from Belinda Snell in the first quarter, Ros Casares got off to a fast start and never looked back in a 74-50 win over Avenida. Willingham had a strong outing, finishing with 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting and eight rebounds. As a team, Avenida shot just 34.5 percent from the field in the loss. Snell finished with 21 points.

The action will shift locations as the lower-seeded teams host Game 2s on Friday.

Playoff action also continued Monday in Israel, where Ashley Walker and Maccabi Ashdod finished off a three-game sweep of Raanana Hertzeliya with a 95-69 Game 3 victory. Walker led the way with 21 points on 6-of-9 shooting, 10 rebounds and six of the team’s 24 assists. Ashdod is still awaiting a semifinal opponent, since all three other series are 2-1 right now. That includes Camille Little and Maccabi Ramat Han trailing Elizur Maccabi Natanya after falling on the road 83-71 on Monday. Little had 26 points and nine boards in a losing effort. Ramat Hen will try to stay alive at home on Thursday in Game 4.

A heartbreaker in China, where Guangdong Asia Aluminum lost Game 1 of its series with the Shenyang Army 83-82 earlier today. Swin Cash had a chance to win the game, but missed at the buzzer. Cash was a big reason why Guangdong was in position to win, scoring 20 points, grabbing 12 rebounds and handing out five assists. Game 2 of the series will be Friday.

Chelsea Newton has a new (old) teammate with Liomatic Umbertide – Ticha Penicheiro, her backcourt-mate for the better part of the last five years in Sacramento, including during the Monarchs run to the 2005 WNBA championship. Penicheiro’s arrival wasn’t enough to snap an Umbertide losing streak (now at four games) in her debut, a 73-68 loss to Erg Power & Gas Priolo. Penicheiro had five points and five assists, while Newton scored nine points, grabbed five rebounds and handed out three assists.

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Sydney, Canberra to Meet for Spot in Grand Final

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

Storm teammates Suzy Batkovic-Brown and Lauren Jackson will see their teams square off with a trip to the WNBL’s Grand Final on the line in Saturday’s Preliminary Final in Sydney. However, barring an unlikely return to the lineup, Batkovic-Brown will be sidelined by a knee injury for the Flames’ matchup against Jackson’s Canberra TransAct Capitals.

Without Batkovic-Brown, Sydney was no match for the top-ranked Bulleen Boomers in a Major Semifinal that was more lopsided even than the 72-55 final score indicates. Bulleen led by as many as 31 points. Sydney totaled just 34 points in the first three quarters, shot 27 percent from the game and had no one outside of Natalie Porter and Mikaela Dombkins score more than six points. Four Boomers scored double-figures.

Canberra had a much easier time of things on Sunday despite playing without one of its starters – guard Jessica Bibby, whose WNBA rights are held by the Storm, missed the game and is out indefinitely after her brother passed away last week. With their absent teammate top of mind, the Capitals crushed the Townsville Fire 70-39 to advance. Abby Bishop led Canberra with 20 points and 16 rebounds, while Jackson posted 16 points, seven rebounds, four blocks and three steals.

The Flames will have home-court advantage, but the Capitals have the momentum going into their showdown. Canberra defeated Sydney in overtime at home last month.

If the Flames needed any extra motivation, they may have gotten it from Bulleen coach Tom Maher (Jackson’s former coach with Canberra and the Opals National Team), who questioned Sydney’s ability to create a rematch in the Grand Final after the Boomers’ easy win.

“Seeing that, I can’t see Sydney getting through,” Maher told The Herald Sun. “But if they did get through, they’d have to wrestle with the demons. (The real margin) was 30, so they’ll have to wrestle with those things.

One other note: Former UW guard Nicole Romeo is one of Jackson’s teammates in Canberra and talked to Jayda Evans of the Seattle Times, who was catching up with the Huskies’ 2007 recruiting class that left the school. Romeo talked about the experience of playing with Jackson.

Is talk of a “Lauren Jackson” mania true?
The Jackson mania! Haha yes, this is very true. She probably wouldn’t like me saying this statement is true as she is quite shy, but since she has joined the league the crowd numbers around the country have increased dramatically. Lauren is an amazing ambassador for not only Australian basketball, but for women’s basketball world-wide and us Aussies couldn’t be happier having her home. After games she finds herself sitting for hours signing autographs and photos, always with a smile on her face. So, she is definitely someone to aspire to be and a great role model for the kids.

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Israeli Playoffs Continue

Friday, February 19th, 2010

Ashley Walker led Maccabi Ashdod to the lone sweep of a first-round series in the Israeli D1 league. Ashdod went on the road to defeat Raanana Hertzeliya 85-78 in Game 2 of their best-of-three series. Playing through foul trouble, Walker scored a game-high 24 points in 25 minutes, shooting 8-of-13 from the field and 8-of-11 from the free throw line. She added eight rebounds.

Playing at home, Maccabi Ramat Hen eeked out a 62-61 victory in Game 2 of its series against Elizur Maccabi Natanya to force a deciding Game 3 on Monday. Camille Little had 17 points and 12 boards in the win.

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