Jul 24, 2008 - 2:40 PM
0 shoutsNEW YORK (Ticker) -- The WNBA lowered the boom Thursday on the Los Angeles Sparks and Detroit Shock, suspending 10 players and one assistant coach in response to the ugliest incident in league history.
Candace Parker and Lisa Leslie, Los Angeles' top two players, and Shock assistant Rick Mahorn headlined the list of individuals penalized as a result of Tuesday night's bench-clearing brawl between the teams.
"The WNBA and its players represent all that is good about sports: passion, hard work and sacrifice," league president Donna Orender said in a statement issued Thursday afternoon. "On a nightly basis, our players display extraordinary skill, athleticism and competitive fire. The events Tuesday, however, were inexcusable and in no way indicative of what the league stands for."
Parker and Leslie, the Sparks' two leading scorers, each were suspended one game for throwing punches during the brawl. Mahorn, an assistant coach for the Shock and former forward for the NBA's Detroit Pistons, was suspended two games for escalating the altercation.
The stiffest penalty was issued to Detroit's Plenette Pierson, who was suspended four games for initiating the fight by confronting Parker.
Other Shock players suspended were Kara Braxton, Tasha Humphrey, Elaine Powell and Sheri Sam, all of whom were given one-game bans for leaving the bench area during the brawl.
Sparks forward Murriel Page and guard Shannon Bobbitt each were suspended two games for leaving the bench and becoming physically involved in the fight.
DeLisha Milton-Jones, Los Angeles' third-leading scorer, also received a one-game suspension.
In order to enable both teams to dress the minimum number of players, the start dates of the suspensions have been staggered.
Parker, Leslie, Bobbitt and Milton-Jones will serve their suspensions Thursday when the Sparks visit the Connecticut Sun. Page will miss Friday's road game against the New York Liberty.
Mahorn, Pierson, Braxton and Humphrey also will start their suspensions Thursday when the Shock visit the Houston Comets. Powell and Sam both will serve their suspensions at later dates.
The brawl began in the waning seconds of Los Angeles' 84-81 victory when Parker, this year's No. 1 overall draft selection, and Pierson got tangled up following a free throw and fell to the floor. Pierson then charged Parker, who slung the Detroit center to the court, igniting the incident.
Mahorn came off the bench - presumably as a peacemaker - but the 6-10, 300-plus pounder created more violence when he inadvertently knocked Leslie to the floor. Milton-Jones came to Leslie's defense by punching Mahorn in the back.
Parker, Pierson, Mahorn and Milton-Jones all were ejected as a result of the brawl, which also resulted in a season-ending knee injury to Shock forward Cheryl Ford.
Leslie, a former league MVP, reacted regrettably after the game, telling reporters that the players involved in the fracas had misrepresented the WNBA, a league desperate for positive publicity.
Orender echoed Leslie's sentiments in Thursday's statement, which said that on-court fights would not be tolerated.
"We hold our players to a very high standard," Orender said. "These suspensions should serve notice that the behavior exhibited at the end of Tuesday's game will not be tolerated."
