Seimone looks to help find cure, raise awareness for Multiple Sclerosis

From Robin Fambrough of The Advocate:

Championships have always been at the heart of Seimone Augustus’ dreams.

Two surgeries in a 12-month period — one to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament and the other to remove noncancerous fibroids from her abdomen and back — would end the dreams of some.

The 26-year-old former Capitol High and LSU standout isn’t your typical athlete. Her dreams are more vivid and defined than ever.

There are still visions of championships for the star of the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx. Augustus’ dreams now have a deeper driving force.

A season-ending ACL injury in June 2009 was followed by news that her father, Seymore, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.

“I talk to my parents six or seven times a day,” Augustus said. “My dad has good days and bad days. Overall he’s doing better. He’s stubborn and he’s not about to let this get him down. My mom (Kim) is our rock. That’s motivation for me.”

Recovery from knee surgery kept Augustus from coming to Baton Rouge last summer. Instead, she researched multiple sclerosis.

Before she scanned the Internet, Augustus learned that Sherie Starkey, the wife of LSU women’s basketball assistant Bob Starkey, also has MS, and is also a breast cancer survivor. The Starkeys became valuable advisers for the Augustus family.

“I knew she (Sherie Starkey) had breast cancer, and when I found out she has MS, I was shocked,” Augustus said. “It affects more people than you think.”

Through research, talks with doctors and others such as Bob Starkey, Augustus learned about the various types of multiple sclerosis.

Seymore Augustus has a relapsing-remitting form. Periods with no problems are followed by those with symptoms including severe headaches, vision problems and loss of muscle strength.

Augustus wants to start a foundation to help find an MS cure. She is surveying options much like she does before executing a signature fade-away jumper.

Her dreams are shaded with orange. One day, she hopes the WNBA and others use it as a symbol.

“Orange is the color for MS just like pink is for breast cancer,” Augustus said. “What we do for breast cancer is so important. I’d love to see us do the same thing for MS in the WNBA. We could wear orange shoes, shoelaces and ribbons. It’s important to raise awareness.”

Augustus remains focused on basketball. The Lynx (5-11) are battling for a playoff berth. Augustus is averaging a team-high 17.6 points per game in seven games since her second surgery.

“I’m about 75 or 80 percent,” Augustus said. “I feel better every day. The hardest thing is getting back to playing at a high level.

Read Robin's entire article at: http://bit.ly/9oDlW3

Filed under  //  Alumni   Seimone Augustus   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey 

Big Syl WNBA Player of the Week....AGAIN!

NEW YORK, July 6, 2010Sylvia Fowles of the Chicago Sky and Lauren Jackson of the Seattle Storm were named the WNBA’s Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week presented by Kia Motors, respectively, for games played Monday, June 28 through Sunday, July 4.

This marks the first season that Kia Motors – an official WNBA marketing partner – has presented the WNBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week award.

Fowles and Jackson shared the top spot in rebounds for the week, each averaging 11.5 boards. Jackson led the league in scoring (25.5 ppg) and Fowles ranked second (24.0 ppg). Fowles also ranked atop the WNBA in blocks (3.5 bpg). This week marks Fowles’ second career Player of the Week presented by Kia Motors award, following her first honor on June 6 of this year.

Fowles posted a pair of double-doubles in leading Chicago to a 2-0 record during the week, giving the Sky four wins in a five-game stretch. The LSU product opened the week with 26 points, 11 rebounds, four blocks, and four assists in a win over Connecticut. She then led Chicago past the Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta Dream with 22 points, 12 rebounds, three blocks and two steals.

Fowles, who will play for the USA Women's National Team in the "WNBA vs. USA Basketball: The Stars at the Sun" contest on July 10, leads the WNBA in blocks (2.82 bpg), ranks fifth in scoring (18.9 ppg) and sixth in rebounding (8.9 rpg).

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Filed under  //  Alumni   Sylvia Fowles   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey 

Lady Tigers on the tube tonight

It will be a great evening to park it in front of the television to watch some Lady Tigers in action tonight.

At 7:00 PM, on ESPN2 Allison Hightower and the Connecticut Sun will face Roneeka Hodges in San Antonio.  Then at 9:00 PM, still on ESPN2, Temeka Johnson and the Pheonix Mercury battle conference rival Marie Ferdinand's Los Angeles Sparks in LA.

Earlier in the evening, Sylvia Fowles and the Chicago Sky host the Indiana Fever but that will not be televised.

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Filed under  //  Alumni   Sylvia Fowles   Temeka Johnson   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey 

Lady Tiger's "Miami Connection" score big last night in the WNBA

Only one team in the WNBA has defeated the Dream in Atlanta and that team is the Chicago Sky -- and now they've done it twice.  Sylvia Fowles leads the way again with another double-double tallying 22 points by hitting 7 of 12 shots and grabbing 12 rebounds along with 3 blocked shots.  But it was Syl's free throw shooting that put that game away as she hit two big ones with 20 seconds to play to ice the game away.  For the game, Syl hit 8 of 11 from the free throw line where she is shooting 81% for the year.

Chicago game story and box score: http://bit.ly/aU1Msp

In Tulsa, Scholanda Robinson stayed red-hot by against leading Tulsa in scoring with 16 points.  Sho-Time's numbers weren't enough however as the Shock lost to the Washington Mystics 69-54.

Tulsa game story and box score: http://bit.ly/9q7DSF 

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Filed under  //  Alumni   Sylvia Fowles   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey 

LSU's big 3 (Augustus, Fowles, Johnson) put up big numers in W action last night

Last night, in Chicago's victory over league-leading Connecticut, Sylvia Fowles did everything but work the concession stands at half-time.  Big Syl's stat line against the first play Sun was spectacular hitting 11 of 14 shots, 4 of 5 free throws, grabbing 11 rebounds, blocking 5 shots, and passing off for 4 assists.

Guards Erin Thorn and Jia Perkins added 12 and 11 points, respectively. Forwards Sandrine Gruda and Asjha Jones led the Sun (10-6) with 17 and 16 points, respectively. Sun rookie center Tina Charles, the WNBA's No. 1 draft pick, was frustrated into foul trouble early on and limited to five points, on 2-for-9 shooting, and six rebounds. She came in averaging 15.9 points and 12.5 rebounds.

''I had no personal inspiration going up against Charles,'' said Fowles, who earlier in the day was named to Team USA for the game against WNBA stars on July 10. ''She's a very good player. I just wanted to do my best and slow things down and not necessarily stop her because she's usually going to get her points.''

Allison Hightower played little but made the most of her opportunity hitting a 3-pointer on her only field goal attempt.

Chicago/Connecticut Box & Game Story: http://bit.ly/cuPoMW

Temeka Johnson turned in her consecutive double-double effort last night but it was enough as Washington outscored Phoenix 107 to 104.  Meek was 6 of 10 from the floor including a three-point and chalked up 11 assists.

Phoenix Box & Game Story: http://bit.ly/9dIV4o

In Atlanta, Seimone Augusuts lead Minnesota with 17 points but it wasn't enough to defeat the dream. Mone was 8 of 15 from the floor and grabbed 3 boards and added to steals:

Minnesota Box & Game Story: http://bit.ly/9voMc4

 

Filed under  //  Alumni   Seimone Augustus   Sylvia Fowles   Temeka Johnson   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey 

Seimone does Twitter Q&A for WNBA

Via the WNBA website, Mone does a Q&A via Twitter.  Checkout what she has to say to her fans!

http://bit.ly/9YEkZ1

 

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Filed under  //  Alumni   Seimone Augustus   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey 

Adversity makes Seimone's family even closer

From The Times-Picayune's Rachel Whitaker:

The relationship between Seimone and Seymore Augustus encompasses more than just that of a father and daughter.

They grew stronger through the most adverse of times in the past year, when they both faced illness and injury obstacles.

Seimone Augustus, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2006 WNBA draft by the Minnesota Lynx, tore her ACL in a June 2009 WNBA game against the Phoenix Mercury, after a collision with Mercury forward Diana Taurasi.

A devoted daughter who learned to play basketball through rigorous training in her driveway with her father, she received worse news during her knee rehabilitation -- her father had multiple sclerosis, a debilitating disease in which the brain and spinal cord in the central nervous system degenerate. There is no cure for the disease.

Early warning signs he suffered were blurred vision, stiff muscles and struggling to walk on his own.

Common symptoms that evolve in multiple sclerosis patients include fatigue, speech and swallowing problems, tremors, muscle spasms and dizziness.

Seimone, 26, said it was crushing to be apart from her father while he was sick and she was rehabbing her knee.

"For the first three months I wasn't able to walk, and the doctor said I couldn't go visit my dad until I wasn't on crutches and didn't have a limp, " she said. "But I knew I had to be stronger, because he was always the strong one in our family."

It was difficult for Seymore Augustus to come to grips with the realization that he would have to stop working and rely on his family for care.

He said he had to go to therapy to learn to walk again.

"I have lesions on my brain; it's rough stuff, " he said. "With (multiple sclerosis), you have good days where you can feel healthy, and the next day you'll be in a lot of pain. I wouldn't wish it on anybody."

He said his wife, Kim, was the rock he and Seimone needed when they were at their weakest points.

"Without my wife, neither of us would have made it, " he said. "At times I couldn't even pick up toilet paper. (Seimone and I) both got depressed because we were used to working all our life."

Kim Augustus said one way the family bonded was becoming educated on multiple sclerosis.

She said Seymore is in the "relapsing-remitting" stage of the disease, meaning he suffers unpredictable attacks, or "exacerbations, " of symptoms for periods ranging from a few days to weeks, followed by recovery of some functions. Recovery can take weeks or even months.

"None of us knew what he was going to go through in the months and years to come, so we spend a lot of time sitting and talking about the literature we read, " Kim Augustus said. "We found out in the last couple of months that taking Vitamin D helps along with his medication."

Seymore said when Seimone is away playing in the WNBA or overseas, they often use Skype to communicate, fostering the relationship they developed when Seimone was young.

Seimone said her father was the first basketball coach she ever had. She played volleyball, soccer and T-ball as a child, but she fell in love with basketball, and her father committed her to excel on the court.

Read the rest of the article: http://bit.ly/dhSAkg

Filed under  //  Alumni   Seimone Augustus   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey 

Sho, Meek and Marie shine last night in the WNBA

There were a lot of LSU Lady Tigers in action but none shined more than Scholanda Robinson.  In fact Sho is on a tear and playing as well as anyone in the WNBA right now.  She has had two consecutive weeks where she has been mentioned as a candidate for WNBA Player of the Week and she started off the week well last night by leading all scorers on both teams with 19 points.  Her effort wasn't enough however as Tulsa lost to Allison Hightower's Connecticut Sun 101-89.  Ally came off the bench to hit a 3 for the Sun in the win.

Temeka Johnson registered a double last night with 11 points and 12 assist but it was enough to help Phoenix on the road in Atlanta as the Dream defeated the Mercury 94-88.  The Mercury played without Diana Taurasi last night.

Marie Ferdinand-Harris also had an outstanding night with 12 points, 4 rebounds and four assists but it too was not enough at the Los Angeles Sparks dropped a game to the New York Liberty.

Scholanda & Ally's Game: http://bit.ly/9YRaol

Temeka's Game: http://bit.ly/bJ7YDw

Marie's Game: http://bit.ly/9gplBH

Filed under  //  Alumni   Temeka Johnson   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey 

Sun excited about Hightower and other rookies

When the Connecticut Sun walked away from the 2010 WNBA Draft with Tina Charles, Kelsey Griffin, Danielle McCray and Allison Hightower, the questions surrounding the team didn’t lean toward the “if” as much as they did the “when.” How long would it take for these rookies to mesh with the veteran presence of Kara Lawson, Asjha Jones and Tan White? How patient would Sun fans have to be as they literally watched a team grow before their own eyes? WNBA.com asked those same questions before the season tipped off.

The answer to both questions (with the exception of Danielle McCray’s recovery from pre-draft knee surgery): Not long at all.

“It’s kind of interesting,” said Sun head coach Mike Thibault. “With the draft, there were so many people all over the place wondering what kind of team we were going to have. Some people picked us for first, some people picked us for last. You just never know when you have that many new players.”

At 9-5, the Connecticut Sun remains a strong contender for first place in the Eastern Conference. The neck-and-neck race with the Atlanta Dream and Washington Mystics puts all three teams in a position where each win remains just as crucial as the previous one, and each loss stings twice as much.

Read the entire article: http://bit.ly/9nZXxv

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Filed under  //  Alumni   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey 

Big Syl "Most Improved" in WNBA thus far

An article at Full Court Press by Christopher Thompson:

But in addition to this elite group, there are some players who have taken a big step forward this season. This week we will take a look at the WNBA’s most improved players in 2010 and how they have shaped the early season.

The most improved player so far is Sylvia Fowles. Big Syl was a “can’t miss” prospect out of LSU two years ago but due to injuries and playing on a poor Chicago team, Fowles has been a bit of a disappointment. This year, she has stepped out of the shadows to become the best true center in the league. She is averaging 19.7 points per game, up from 10.9 her first two years and sixth in the WNBA in scoring this season. She is also second in the league in field-goal percentage (64.3 percentage) and leads the league in blocked shots (2.5 per game). This hasn’t yet translated into making Chicago (near the bottom of the East at 5-8) a title contender, but if she continues her strong play the Sky could squeak into the playoffs.

Read entire articel: http://bit.ly/dmVSWJ

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Filed under  //  Alumni   Sylvia Fowles   WNBA  
Posted by Bob Starkey