2006 WNBA Finals
 |
|||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
| Dates | August 30 – September 9 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MVP | Deanna Nolan (Detroit Shock) | ||||||||||
| Television | ESPN2 | ||||||||||
| Referees | |||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
| Eastern Finals | Detroit defeated Connecticut, 2–1 | ||||||||||
| Western Finals | Sacramento defeated Los Angeles, 2–0 | ||||||||||
| Game 1: | Corteau, Simpson, Price |
|---|---|
| Game 2: | Blauch, Walker, Mattingly |
| Game 3: | Humphrey, Trammell, Napier |
| Game 4: | Walker, Corteau, Price |
| Game 5: | Trammell, Napier, Mattingly |
The 2006 WNBA Finals was the championship series of the 2006 WNBA season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Detroit Shock, second-seeded champions of the Eastern Conference, defeated the Sacramento Monarchs, second-seeded champions of the Western Conference, three games to two in a best-of-five series. This was Detroit's second title.
The Shock made their second appearance in the Finals in four years. The Monarchs appeared in the Finals for the second straight time after having won the title in 2005.
Going into the series, the Shock had won one championship, as had the Monarchs. The Houston Comets hold the record with four championships won.
The Shock's 23-11 record gave them home court advantage over Sacramento (21–13), but a scheduling conflict meant that the fifth and deciding game had to be moved to Joe Louis Arena in downtown Detroit.
The Shock and the Monarchs split the regular season series:
All times listed below are Eastern Daylight Time.
Kara Lawson led a balanced attack with 22 points as the Monarchs posted an impressive 95-71 victory over the Detroit Shock in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals. Sacramento, which set a WNBA Finals record for points, field goals (35) and 3-pointers (ten), took the early edge in the best-of-five series.
Cheryl Ford scored 25 points and Katie Smith added 21 for Detroit, which is seeking its second title in four years. The Shock certainly will not get there committing a Finals-record 24 turnovers as they did in Game 1.
Sacramento officially took charge of the contest with an 8-0 run during the third quarter that turned a 13-point lead into a 61-40 bulge with 6:09 to play. Nicole Powell ignited the surge with a 3-pointer and Griffith made a pair of baskets before Ticha Penicheiro capped the run with a free throw.
...
Wikipedia