Maya Moore: Top Six games of the 2011 WNBA Playoffs - Part 1
Minnesota Lynx star forward Maya Moore has been the biggest revelation this WNBA season, making it to league finals in her very first year with the league.
During the regular season, Moore proved herself as one of the best WNBA players and earned 2011 Rookie of the Year award, receiving $5,000 and a specially designed trophy by Tiffany & Co. The four-time All-American topped all rookies
with an average of 13.2 points, 28.0 minutes and 1.4 steals per game. The player was second overall amongst rookies in rebounds (4.6) and third in assists (2.7). The 22-year-old won two out of three WNBA ‘Rookie of the Month’ honours during the season.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2011 WNBA Draft also the starting forward in the 2011 Western Conference All-Star Team, joining Betty Lennox (2000) and Seimone Augustus (2006) as the only Minnesota rookies to appear in the All-Star
game.
The Minnesota forward also made history by becoming the first female basketball player to sign with Jordan Brand, products originally designed for and endorsed by NBA Hall of Famer and Six Time NBA Champion Michael Jordan.
After a terrific regular season, Moore helped her team to win its first WNBA championship with an average of 13.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game during the playoffs. She reached double figures in seven of the eight playoff games.
Here is a brief review of Moore’s six breath-taking games during the post season:
10 points in Conference Semi-Finals Game-1
Playing at the Target Center, the Moore landed 10 points and grabbed three rebounds to spearhead her team to a hard-fought 66-65 victory over the Silver Stars in Game 1 of the conference seminal series on September 16.
With the score tied at 53-53 early in the crucial fourth quarter, Moore successfully drove to the rim to make it 55-53. However after San Antonio responded with a two and again tied the game at 55, the University of Connecticut
product answered a jumper to put Minnesota ahead.
14 points in Conference Semi-finals Game-3
On September 20, the 22-year-old forward chipped in 14 points in Minnesota’s 85-67 victory over the San Antonio Silver Stars in the third game of the best-of-three conference semi-final series.
The 6 ft forward also pulled down six rebounds and dished out four assists in the Lynx’s first playoff series victory in franchise history. Moore shot 5 for 12 from the floor and pinned 3 of 3 free throws in the victory.
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