NBC will air two WNBA games during the women's league's
inaugural weekend, beginning with the N.Y. Liberty-L.A.
Sparks game on Saturday at 4:00pm ET. That will be followed
by the Charlotte Sting-Phoenix Mercury on Sunday at 4:00pm
ET. In L.A., Larry Stewart: "Somewhere lost in all the hype
surrounding the debut of the Women's NBA weekend on NBC is
that Hannah Storm becomes the first regular women's play-by-
play announcer on women's television" (L.A. TIMES, 6/20).
NBC Exec VP Ken Schanzer: "This is absolutely the right time
for this" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 6/20). But in
Philadelphia, Bill Fleischman wonders, "[W]ill anyone watch
women's basketball in the summer?" (DAILY NEWS, 6/20).
TEAM NOTES: The Sacramento Monarchs have sold about
6,000 tickets to their home opener and around 3,500 season-
tickets (S.F. CHRONICLE, 6/18). The Liberty have sold out
all seats for its home opener on Sunday, June 29. The team
will pull back the drapery on 2,000 more seats (N.Y. DAILY
NEWS, 6/19). In Utah, the Starzz had sold 2,200 season
tickets as of Wednesday (Lya Wodraska, SALT LAKE TRIBUNE,
6/18). In Arizona, 23% of the Mercury season-ticket holders
are also Suns' ticket holders (ARIZONA DAILY STAR, 6/20).
