The Dream will have to go through Connecticut star Tina Charles and win a game in a rowdy road arena for a chance at a WNBA championship.
It’s nothing the Dream’s Angel McCoughtry hasn’t seen before.
“At this point, I am used to it, going back to college.” McCoughtry said before the Dream departed for Game 1 of their best-of-three Eastern Conference semifinals that begin Friday at Connecticut.
McCoughtry and Charles were rivals in the Big East. Charles’ Connecticut team beat McCoughtry and Louisville in the 2009 NCAA championship game to conclude an undefeated season.
A month later the Dream selected McCoughtry with the No. 1 overall draft pick and she went on to win the Rookie of the Year award. The next season Charles was the No. 1 overall pick for Connecticut and succeeded McCoughtry as the top rookie.
McCoughtry and Charles were teammates on the U.S. national team that won the gold medal at the FIBA women’s world championship last summer. Now both are candidates for the WNBA’s MVP award, with the votes already in.
Charles led the league in rebounds (11 per game) and ranked second in blocks (1.76) and fifth in scoring (17.6). McCoughtry was the league’s second-leading scorer at 21.6 points per game and third in steals (2.18).
Charles is one of five former UConn players on the Sun’s roster. They play their games in Uncasville, where the Sun are 15-2 this season.
“It’s a great environment,” Dream coach Marynell Meadors said. “It’s like playing UConn. The environment is the same as what UConn fans bring. But we have always played well with Connecticut, and it usually gets down to last three or four minutes and then someone decides it.”
The teams split the season series 2-2, with each winning at home. McCoughtry averaged 29.5 points per game, a third of the Dream’s total against Connecticut.
“Hey, I’m sure they looked at the stats and said, ‘This girl has got a lot of points against us,’” McCoughtry said. “It is going to now be a matter of everyone stepping up and me getting my teammates involved early. That takes a lot of attention off me, and that’s when the game opens up.
“I can’t go in there trying to gun thinking I am going to get something because they are going to be after me. I’m smart enough to know that.”
Meadors said McCoughtry has learned to better deal with the increasing defensive attention from opponents by setting up her teammates. But Dream point guard Lindsey Harding said McCoughtry still finds a way to score when her team needs it.
“She’s extremely aggressive,” Harding said. “She works hard. When she makes her mind up, she’s going. She’s hard to stop. I remember all the times I have played against her and I hated it. And now I love being on her team and giving her the ball and letting her do what she does best.”
About the Author
