Pondexter Scores 19 Points To Lead Liberty To 80-68 Victory Over Sparks

AP) LOS ANGELES (AP) - Cappie Pondexter scored 19 points and the New York Liberty pulled away in the third quarter to beat the Los Angeles Sparks 80-68 Tuesday night for their third consecutive victory.

Noelle Quinn scored a career-high 24 points, topping her career-best for the second straight game, to lead the Sparks (3-11). They fell to 0-4 since leading scorer Candace Parker was lost for the season with a shoulder injury.

Marie Ferdinand-Harris, who replaced Parker in the starting lineup, added 12 points.

Pondexter continued the tear she’s been on for the last four games, maintaining her 20-point average over that stretch.

Former Sparks player Taj McWilliams-Franklin added 14 points and Plenette Pierson had 13 for the Liberty (7-7), who controlled the boards 35-22 and improved to 2-4 on the road.

New York led 44-35 at halftime, then used a 20-7 run to take its largest lead, 66-45, late in the third quarter. The Sparks chipped away at the deficit in the fourth, but never got closer than 12 points.

The Liberty closed the first half on an 18-9 run. McWilliams-Franklin scored six points and Essence Carson added four.

The Sparks shot 62 percent from the floor in the first quarter, when their biggest lead was five points.

WNBA: PONDEXTER LEADS LIBERTY TO WIN OVER SUN

NEW YORK (AP) — The Liberty did not want to start a three-game West Coast road trip after a loss.

So facing a 16-point deficit, they turned up the defensive pressure Sunday and rallied to beat the Connecticut Sun 77-68. It was the Liberty’s last home game before the July 10 WNBA All-Star game.

“This was big,” Liberty coach Anne Donovan said. “We recognize we need to play well in the Garden … our full-court defense looked pretty good tonight.”

The Liberty looked as if they were going to be run off their home court in the first quarter.

Liberty guard Cappie Pondexter scored 19 points. She said the team started to come together in a 92-78 win against Tulsa on Friday.

“Everybody’s doing their part,” Pondexter said. Especially on defense.

The Liberty held Connecticut to 22 second-half points to take control of the game.

New York’s Nicole Powell had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Taj McWilliams-Franklin added 10 points.

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WASHINGTON — Had enough of players who master the art of passive-aggressiveness, saying in one breath that they love playing where they are, then grumbling under the next breath that they wouldn’t mind being dealt, if it helps the organization?

Meet Cappie Pondexter, whose DNA is apparently devoid of the passive-aggressive gene or at least any that fudge the truth about where she wants to be and what she wants to do.

After four years with the Phoenix Mercury, Pondexter decided in the offseason that she wanted to be traded.

That, of course, doesn’t make her strange in today’s athletic climate. Where Pondexter is unusual is she actually told someone, namely Phoenix general manager Ann Meyers-Drysdale, that she wanted to leave, and didn’t duck from her request once it became public knowledge.

“Pretty much, I demanded a trade,” said Pondexter, the No.2 overall pick in the 2006 draft out of Rutgers. “I want to finish my career on the East Coast. That’s where I started it. That was pretty much it.”

And, as a result, it’s Pondexter’s image that adorns a side of Madison Square Garden, as the 5-foot-9 inch guard has come to New York as a part of a three-team trade, literally to seek fame and make a fortune, and possibly get the long suffering Liberty to the playoffs and beyond.

“I’m confident in my ability to lead this team,” said Pondexter. “I was brought here for that. I wanted to be here for it and I’m taking the responsibility.”

FULL STORY HERE

THE NEW YORK LIBERTY NEWEST STAR, GUARD CAPPIE PONDEXTER,

HITS THE STREETS OF THE BIG APPLE

KNOW YOUR LIBERTY: CAPPIE PONDEXTER

CAPPIE PONDEXTER ON ALISTRADIO.NET

There’s more to New York professional basketball than the possibility of LeBron James joining the Knicks… There’s the guarantee of Cappie Pondexter, the new star guard for the New York Liberty.

With only five years in the WNBA–Cappie, 27, who was recently traded from the Phoenix Mercury– is a Rutgers University alum (2006 Big East Player of the Year), a three-time WNBA All-Star, two-time WNBA Champion, a Finals MVP and an Olympic champion. You didn’t know?

Madame Noire caught up with the new New Yorker and we got to chat about playing at the Garden, her successful side-gig–a Madame has to plan for the future–and how the WNBA still has a way to go…

Now you know.

Madame Noire: How has the transition been from Phoenix to New York City?

I’ve only been here for a month, because I just got back from playing in Russia. Because the WNBA season is only for four-months, I have to hustle. Playing in Europe is great because the crowds are really into it, there’s always a sold-out arena. But as far as this city, I’m happy to be here and ready to win a championship. It’s been a rocky transition, not in a bad way, but I guess when you’re comfortable in a certain place for so long, you have to take some time to adjust. It’s not a bad thing at all, I welcome the challenge.

MN: How is playing in the Garden? Does it feel like home yet?

As a kid, I always watched games at the Garden and dreamed of playing there. So now, even when I walk into the arena, into the locker room, I am overwhelmed.

MN: I’ve attended NBA and WNBA games and they have a very different vibe as far as being a spectator. Do you notice that same difference on the court?

A lot of people come to the games and always say that the vibe [at WNBA games] is totally different than the NBA. They say that it’s more of a fun and welcoming environment. We can’t jump as high as the guys, or do some of the things they do–purely based on physics –but we play the game.

To me, that says a great thing about the WNBA, we actually play the game and are more fundamental. It just shows the hard work that we have to put in. When you have people that realize that, it’s a great feeling.

FULL STORY HERE

NEW YORK, June 14, 2010 – Cappie Pondexter of the New York Liberty and Diana Taurasi of the Phoenix Mercury were named the league’s Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week presented by Kia Motors, respectively, for regular season games played Monday, June 7 through Sunday, June 13.

This marks the first season that Kia Motors, an official marketing partner of the WNBA, has presented the WNBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week award.

Pondexter and Taurasi, who helped the Mercury win two WNBA championships, are the first pair of former teammates in WNBA history to win the Player of the Week presented by Kia Motors award during the same week. For Pondexter, who was dealt to New York as part of a three-team trade in March, this is the sixth such honor of her career. She last won the award in 2009 when she captured it in three consecutive weeks during July.

Pondexter helped the Liberty to a 2-1 record as she led the league in scoring (25.3 ppg) while shooting 62.0 percent from the field (fourth best in the Eastern Conference) on 31 of 50 shots. She also ranked third in the East with 4.3 assists per game and contributed the identical number of rebounds.

The Rutgers product and Chicago native began her week with a season-high 31 points, along with five rebounds and three assists in an 85-70 win at Chicago that snapped the Sky’s four-game win streak.

FULL STORY HERE

Pondexter has won two WNBA titles in four seasons.

Welcome to SportsNation! On Wednesday, New York Liberty guard Cappie Pondexter stops by to chat about the WNBA season as well as winning the Eastern Conference Player of the Week award.

The Liberty finished the week 2-1, while Pondexter led the league in scoring (25.3 ppg), averaging 4.3 assists per game (third in the East), shooting 62 percent from the field. This is the sixth time Pondexter’s won the weekly award, last winning it during July 2009 when she won three straight.

Pondexter came to New York via a three-team trade in March. She had been the No. 2 overall pick of the Phoenix Mercury in the 2006 draft. Pondexter helped Phoenix win titles in 2007 and 2009, while earning WNBA Finals MVP in 2009. Fans can follow Pondexter on her website CappiePondexter.com or on Twitter: @cappa23.

FULL CHAT/STORY HERE