Former Scarlet Knights Begin WNBA Playoffs
Aug 30 | Women's Basketball
PISCATAWAY, NJ – Former Scarlet Knights Chelsea Newton (’05) and Pat Coyle (’82) will begin their WNBA postseasons Aug. 30-31
Newton, a member of the Western Conference champion Sacramento Monarchs, will play the fourth-seeded Sparks in a best-of-three opening series. Game 1 (Wednesday, Aug. 31, at 10:30 p.m. ET) will be played in Los Angeles, followed by Game 2 (Friday, Sept. 2, at 10:00 p.m. ET) and, if necessary, Game 3 (Sunday, Sept. 4, at 9:00 p.m. ET) in Sacramento. All three games will be shown on NBA TV, and a free audio stream of the radio broadcast is available for each game via wnba.com.
Newton, a second-round selection of the Monarchs in the 2005 WNBA Draft, was one of two rookies to start every regular-season game (Temeka Johnson, Washington). Newton is averaging 4.4 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 21.0 minutes per game, and has been used as a defensive stopper, often drawing the toughest assignment on the perimeter.
The 2005 BIG EAST Conference Defensive Player of the Year and a member of the All-BIG EAST Third Team, the 5-11 Newton averaged 9.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.1 steals for Rutgers as a senior, starting 32 of 33 games and posting 15 double-digit scoring efforts. A selection to the University of the Virgin Islands Paradise Jam All-Tournament Team (Nov. 27-29, 2004), she was named Rutgers’ 2003-2004 Most Valuable Player after averaging 11.0 points, 2.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game, posting 11 double-digit scoring efforts (two 20+ points). During her four years “On the Banks,” Newton started 95 of 104 games, averaging 9.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.8 steals per contest, posting 51 double-digit scoring games (four 20+ points), two double-digit rebounding games and two double-doubles.
Coyle is serving her first full season as the head coach of the New York Liberty. New York, the third seed in the Eastern Conference, will host the second-seeded Indiana Fever in Game 1 of the best-of-three series Tuesday, Aug. 30, at 7:30 p.m. ET. Games 2 (Thursday, Sept. 1, at 8:00 p.m.) and, if necessary, Game 3 (Saturday, Sept. 3, at 7:00 p.m.) will be played in Indianapolis. The Aug. 30 game will be shown on ESPN2, while the remaining games of the series will be carried on NBA TV. A free audio stream of the radio broadcast is available for each game via wnba.com.
In addition, Tammy Sutton-Brown (’01), who just finished her fifth season with the Charlotte Sting, will compete with the Canadian National Team at the FIBA Americas Championship Sept. 14-18 in the Dominican Republic.
