Around the League: WNBA statistical roundup and notes going into the 2nd half of the season
| EAST | ||||||||||||||
| W | L | PCT | GB | CONF | HOME | ROAD | L 10 | STREAK | ||||||
| ATLANTA 1 | 15 | 6 | 0.714 | 0.0 | 10-6 | 10-2 | 5-4 | 7-3 | L 1 | |||||
| INDIANA 2 | 11 | 12 | 0.478 | 5.0 | 9-7 | 5-8 | 6-4 | 5-5 | W 1 | |||||
| WASHINGTON 3 | 10 | 13 | 0.435 | 6.0 | 6-6 | 4-7 | 6-6 | 5-5 | W 1 | |||||
| CONNECTICUT 4 | 10 | 14 | 0.417 | 6.5 | 6-9 | 7-5 | 3-9 | 2-8 | L 1 | |||||
| NEW YORK 5 | 8 | 13 | 0.381 | 7.0 | 5-8 | 7-5 | 1-8 | 5-5 | W 1 | |||||
| CHICAGO 6 | 8 | 14 | 0.364 | 7.5 | 7-7 | 5-7 | 3-7 | 2-8 | L 6 | |||||
| WEST | ||||||||||||||
| W | L | PCT | GB | CONF | HOME | ROAD | L 10 | STREAK | ||||||
| PHOENIX 1 | 18 | 3 | 0.857 | 0.0 | 12-2 | 10-1 | 8-2 | 10-0 | W 12 | |||||
| MINNESOTA 2 | 17 | 6 | 0.739 | 2.0 | 11-4 | 10-1 | 7-5 | 8-2 | W 4 | |||||
| SAN ANTONIO 3 | 11 | 12 | 0.478 | 8.0 | 6-9 | 4-6 | 7-6 | 4-6 | L 3 | |||||
| LOS ANGELES 4 | 10 | 12 | 0.455 | 8.5 | 6-8 | 3-7 | 7-5 | 6-4 | L 1 | |||||
| SEATTLE 5 | 9 | 15 | 0.375 | 10.5 | 5-10 | 5-4 | 4-11 | 4-6 | L 2 | |||||
| TULSA 6 | 8 | 15 | 0.348 | 11.0 | 4-11 | 5-7 | 3-8 | 2-8 | W 1 | |||||
| Rank | Player | Games Played | Points | Average |
| 1 | Maya Moore (MIN) | 23 | 554 | 24.1 |
| 2 | Skylar Diggins (TUL) | 23 | 482 | 21.0 |
| 3 | Candace Parker (LA) | 22 | 441 | 20.0 |
| 4 | Angel McCoughtry (ATL) | 20 | 400 | 20.0 |
| 5 | Diana Taurasi (PHX) | 21 | 374 | 17.8 |
| 6 | Tina Charles (NY) | 21 | 360 | 17.1 |
| 7 | Brittney Griner (PHX) | 21 | 324 | 15.4 |
| 8 | Candice Dupree (PHX) | 21 | 322 | 15.3 |
| 9 | Chiney Ogwumike (CONN) | 23 | 352 | 15.3 |
| 10 | Lindsay Whalen (MIN) | 23 | 349 | 15.2 |
Rebounds
| Rank | Player | Games Played | Rebounds | Average |
| 1 | Courtney Paris (TUL) | 23 | 239 | 10.4 |
| 2 | Erlana Larkins (IND) | 23 | 221 | 9.6 |
| 3 | Erika de Souza (ATL) | 21 | 199 | 9.5 |
| 4 | Glory Johnson (TUL) | 23 | 215 | 9.3 |
| 5 | Tina Charles (NY) | 21 | 194 | 9.2 |
| 6 | Sancho Lyttle (ATL) | 21 | 186 | 8.9 |
| 7 | Chiney Ogwumike (CONN) | 23 | 195 | 8.5 |
| 8 | Maya Moore (MIN) | 23 | 190 | 8.3 |
| 9 | Crystal Langhorne (SEA) | 24 | 194 | 8.1 |
| 10 | Brittney Griner (PHX) | 21 | 169 | 8.0 |
Assists
| Rank | Player | Games Played | Assists | Average |
| 1 | Courtney Vandersloot (CHI) | 15 | 96 | 6.4 |
| 2 | Diana Taurasi (PHX) | 21 | 124 | 5.9 |
| 3 | Lindsay Whalen (MIN) | 23 | 129 | 5.6 |
| 4 | Skylar Diggins (TUL) | 23 | 123 | 5.3 |
| 5 | Danielle Robinson (SA) | 23 | 121 | 5.3 |
| 6 | Candace Parker (LA) | 22 | 99 | 4.5 |
| 7 | Angel McCoughtry (ATL) | 20 | 88 | 4.4 |
| 8 | Sue Bird (SEA) | 24 | 102 | 4.3 |
| 9 | Odyssey Sims (TUL) | 23 | 97 | 4.2 |
| 10 | Cappie Pondexter (NY) | 21 | 86 | 4.1 |
| 11 | Briann January (IND) | 21 | 86 | 4.1 |
Efficiency
| Rank | Player | Games Played | MPG | PTS | REBS | ASTS | STLS PG | BLKS PG | EFF40MIN | EFF |
| 1 | Maya Moore | 23 | 35.0 | 24.1 | 8.3 | 3.4 | 2.00 | 0.87 | 30.06 | 26.3 |
| 2 | Candace Parker | 22 | 32.6 | 20.0 | 7.2 | 4.5 | 2.05 | 1.50 | 28.97 | 23.6 |
| 3 | Brittney Griner | 21 | 30.3 | 15.4 | 8.0 | 1.6 | 0.57 | 3.81 | 29.46 | 22.3 |
| 4 | Tamika Catchings | 6 | 28.7 | 19.0 | 7.5 | 2.3 | 2.00 | 1.33 | 30.92 | 22.2 |
| 5 | Erika de Souza | 21 | 29.3 | 14.8 | 9.5 | 1.2 | 1.24 | 1.71 | 28.39 | 20.8 |
| 6 | Erlana Larkins | 23 | 32.6 | 10.5 | 9.6 | 2.9 | 2.17 | 0.91 | 24.74 | 20.1 |
| 7 | Sylvia Fowles | 9 | 27.4 | 13.8 | 9.6 | 0.3 | 1.33 | 2.67 | 29.20 | 20.0 |
| 8 | Diana Taurasi | 21 | 31.2 | 17.8 | 3.9 | 5.9 | 0.86 | 0.24 | 25.04 | 19.6 |
| 9 | Tina Charles | 21 | 32.3 | 17.1 | 9.2 | 2.4 | 1.10 | 0.76 | 24.08 | 19.5 |
| 10 | Elena Delle Donne | 9 | 30.8 | 21.2 | 4.9 | 1.6 | 0.78 | 1.67 | 25.09 | 19.3 |
Source: WNBA.com
Hot Mercury
Before the All-Star break, Phoenix extended its franchise-record win streak to 12 consecutive games (previous record, seven in 2006), the longest win streak in the league this season. They defeated the Connecticut Sun 101-85.
The Mercury has not lost in more than a calendar month, since June 12 at the Sun. With 13 games remaining in the regular season, the Mercury is five wins shy of matching a franchise record (23-11 in 2007 and 2009
Penny Taylor Redux
Since returning to the starting lineup on June 15, the Mercury’s Penny Taylor has averaged 13.75 points per game, scoring in double figures the last 10 games before the break including a 23-point performance vs. Connecticut last Thursday.
Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and a Coaching Change
During halftime of the All-Star game, the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame announced the 2015 class. Members include former Los Angeles Sparks assistant coach Gail Goestenkors who resigned from the job the next day when the franchise fired head coach Carol Ross.
Sparks executive vice president and general manager Penny Toler took over the team. She told the Associated Press: “If we’re going to make this change, I’ll go down there and coach the team. It’s a difficult situation for any coach to come into, so I’ll go to the bench, and I’ll coach the team.” While the Sparks lost a game heading into the midseason break, they did have a three-game winning streak before falling to Washington last Thursday.
The Sparks host New York Wednesday and Phoenix the next evening during the franchise’s “Pride Night.” Thursday night’s events will feature a meet and greet with Mercury player Brittney Griner.
The State of the League per Laurel Richie
Just before the start of the All-Star game Saturday, league president Laurel Richie addressed the media. Some key quotes by Richie included:
- “Our viewership on ESPN2 is pacing ahead of year-end last year by about 16 percent.”
- “Fans have been signing up in record numbers for LiveAccess, more subscribers and more rev returns.”
- “At Madison Square Garden this year, they are having an incredible season. Their revenue is up 26 percent…”
- “In Minnesota, their camp day earlier this week, they also set a new record in attendance for that franchise of over 16,000.”
- “I love suggestions that we could expand into and cities we could return to. I am a native of Cleveland. So at this point in time, I have not ruled out any location, and I have always happy to have conversations with folks about expansion.”
As the season winds down here are some key dates for the rest of the summer.
- Sunday, August 17: The last date of regular season games
- Thursday, August 21: Playoffs begin
- Saturday, September 6: WNBA Finals begin
- Wednesday, September 17: Finals end
- Saturday, September 27 to Sunday, October 5: FIBA World Championship for Women in Turkey
