The Las Vegas coach has implemented a halfcourt shooting contest at the end of game-day shootarounds, designed for his players to have fun before games and win money.
Sam Gordon
Sam Gordon was born and raised in Minneapolis and is back for his second stint with the Review-Journal. He’s covered the NFL, NBA, the Big Ten, the Mountain West and prep sports for various publications during his professional tenure. Gordon, a University of Minnesota graduate, is a basketball junkie who coached high school basketball for three seasons.
The two heavyweights were at ease Wednesday during their final news conference before Saturday’s bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena that will be televised on ESPN Plus.
USA Basketball on Monday morning unveiled its national team training camp roster, comprised of 20 NBA players competing for 12 roster spots ahead of the FIBA Basketball World Cup.
Kayla McBride scored 25 points Sunday, but the Aces shot 35.9 percent from the field and fell 88-78 to the New York Liberty in White Plains, New York.
The Aces bench continues to give the team a spark, with Dearica Hamby leading the way with averages of 11.8 points and 8.3 rebounds in 20 minutes per game.
The Aces opened the game with a 19-2 run and coasted to a 92-69 victory over the Atlanta Dream on Thursday at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.
Las Vegas, the preseason betting favorite to win the WNBA championship, has started the season 1-2 entering Thursday’s game at the Atlanta Dream.
The Rebels will play five teams that qualified for the postseason, including three defending conference champions. They open the season Nov. 5 against Purdue Fort Wayne.
Desert Oasis graduate and UNLV shortstop Bryson Stott was selected with the No. 14 overall pick Monday by the Philadelphia Phillies in the MLB Draft.
The Aces built a 10-point lead in the first half, but committed 14 turnovers in the second half and surrendered a 7-0 run late in the fourth quarter en route to a second consecutive loss.
The Aces told the veteran guard on May 23 that she would be released. But they decided against it, and she has provided a lift off the bench in the first two games.
The Aces surrendered a 13-0 run early in the fourth quarter and a 6-0 run late en route to an 86-84 loss Friday night at the Phoenix Mercury.
Liz Gambage, who has been dealing with Achilles tendinitis since the WNBA offseason, will play her first game with the Las Vegas Aces on Friday at Phoenix.
Isaacs, a 6-foot-1-inch, 175-pound floor general, spent the last week earning one of 12 roster spots on USA Basketball’s under-16 national team, which travels Thursday to Brazil for the 2019 FIBA Americas U16 Championship.
Coach Bill Laimbeer has been impressed with the guard’s maturity and patience as she adjusts to the speed and pace of the WNBA. Young scored eight points in her debut.