Rick Mahorn,Lisa Leslie and Candace Parker suspended after WNBA fight
Ten players are suspended one to four games; Shock assistant coach Rick Mahorn is suspended for two games after on-court melee.
The WNBA today suspended five Los Angeles Sparks players, including Candace Parker and Lisa Leslie, and five Detroit Shock players and assistant coach Rick Mahorn for their involvement in an on-court fight in Tuesday’s game.
As a result, the Sparks will be without four starters, including Olympians Parker, Leslie and DeLisha Milton-Jones, when they play the Connecticut Sun tonight at Mohegan Sun Arena.
The trio, along with rookie point guard Shannon Bobbitt and reserve forward Murriel Page, were suspended for their actions in the closing seconds of the Sparks’ 84-81 victory over Shock at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
Parker, Leslie and Milton-Jones were suspended one game each for throwing punches during the scuffle, and Bobbitt and Page were suspended two games for leaving the bench area and making contact with Shock assistant coach Mahorn. Page’s suspension will begin Friday night in New York against the Liberty.
Shock forward Plenette Pierson was suspended four games and Mahorn two games for escalating the altercation. Four other Shock players were suspended a game for leaving the area of the bench.
“The WNBA and its players represent all that is good about sports: passion, hard work and sacrifice,” said league president Donna Orender in a statement. “The events Tuesday, however, were inexcusable and in no way indicative of what the league stands for. We hold our players to a very high standard and these suspensions should serve notice that the behavior exhibited at the end of Tuesday’s game will not be tolerated.”
The skirmish began when Pierson, standing next to Parker as Sparks guard Marie Ferdinand-Harris shot two free throws, forcefully slid her hip into Parker after the second free throw. They tangled arms as they headed up floor, causing both players to tumble to the floor. Pierson quickly rose to her feet and stood over Parker, who then pulled Pierson to the ground.
As both benches emptied, Leslie came to Parker’s aid but was restrained by Mahorn. Leslie appeared to take a swing at Mahorn and he put his hands out, causing Leslie to fall to the hardwood floor. Milton-Jones then slapped Mahorn in the back and Bobbitt and Page rushed up and pushed him in the chest.
At the same time, Shock forward Cheryl Ford re-injured her knee while pulling Pierson away from the fracas and had to be taken away in a wheelchair. She was declared out for the season Wednesday with a torn ACL in her right knee.
Tensions had escalated when Parker grabbed a defensive rebound with 8.3 seconds remaining and the Sparks leading by two points. Parker was immediately fouled and Ford then reached in and tore the ball from Parker’s grip.
Parker, who made national highlights earlier this month when she scored off slam dunks in consecutive games, walked toward Ford and both players had to be separated.
dan.arritt@latimes.com
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