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Last week in the WNBA saw another record for A’ja Wilson and another battle between Aliyah Boston and Kamilla Cardoso. Catch up on their weeks and all the other Gamecocks.

Atlanta Dream (6-6)
Laeticia Amihere (6 games, 2.8 minutes, 0.3 pts, 1.0 rebs)
Once again, Amihere’s only appearance of the week was in a blowout loss.

Last week:
Vs Washington (87-68 loss): 3 minutes, no stats
At Indiana (91-84 loss): DNP-CD
Vs Los Angeles (87-74 win): DNP-CD

Allisha Gray (12 games (12 starts), 32.2 mpg, 15.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.9 apg, 1.2 spg)
Gray got off to a little bit of a shaley start to the season, but she is once again playing at an All-Star level. 

Last week:
Vs Washington (87-68 loss):  28 minutes*, 9 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, block
At Indiana (91-84 loss): 34 minutes*, 12 points, 5 rebounds, assist, block
Vs Los Angeles (87-74 win): 34 minutes*, 25 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists

This week’s schedule:
Wednesday, June 18 at Minnesota (8:00 ET, League Pass)
Friday, June 21 vs Indiana (7:30 ET, Ion)
Sunday, June 23 vs New York (3:00 ET, League Pass)

Chicago Sky (4-9)
Kamilla Cardoso (7 games (4 starts), 22.3 mpg, 8.4 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.1 apg)
Cardoso registered the first double-double of her career against Indiana, but she was held without a rebound in the second half as Aliyah Boston wore her down. It’s the difference between being a rookie and a second-year player.

Last week:
Vs Connecticut (83-75 loss): 30 minutes*, 10 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks
At Washington (83-81 loss): 24 minutes*, 12 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists
At Indiana (91-83 loss): 35 minutes*, 10 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, block

This week’s schedule:
Thursday, June 20 vs Dallas (Noon ET, League Pass)
Sunday, June 23 vs Indiana (4:00 ET, ESPN)

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Connecticut Sun (12-1)
Ty Harris (13 games (13 starts), 30.8 mpg, 10.8 ppg, 3.8 apg, 1.8 rpg)
As the (nominal) point guard on the league’s best team, Harris has put together a dark horse All-Star candidacy. She distributes the ball, hits key shots, and plays tough defense. It’s hard to believe Dallas couldn’t find any use for Harris.

Last week:
Vs Indiana (89-72 win): 29 minutes*, 11 points, 4 assists
At Chicago (83-75 win): 32 minutes*, 13 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals
At Dallas (85-67 win): 26 minutes*, 10 points, 4 assists, rebound

Tiffany Mitchell (13 games, 16.2 mpg, 4.7 ppg, 1.7 rpg)
Mitchell isn’t scoring a lot, but she’s playing big minutes off the bench because of her defense. Connecticut currently has the WNBA’s best defense, so Mitchell is appreciated.

Last week:
Vs Indiana (89-72 win): 22 minutes, 10 points, assist
At Chicago (83-75 win): 22 minutes, 3 points, 3 assists, steal
At Dallas (85-67 win): 20 minutes, 4 points, 3 rebounds

This week’s schedule:
Tuesday, June 18 vs Los Angeles (7:00 ET, League Pass)
Friday, June 21 at Las Vegas (10:00 ET, Ion)
Sunday, June 23 at Seattle (3:00 ET, League Pass)

Indiana Fever (5-10)
Aliyah Boston (15 games (15 starts), 29.6 mpg, 12.3 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.2 bpg)
Finally, Indiana is involving Boston in the offense with more than three seconds left on the shot clock. The result is three straight double-doubles, including 27 points to tie her career-high.  Boston is also second on the team in assists and the screen game with Caitlin Clark is finally taking off. 

Last week:
At Connecticut (89-72 loss): 33 minutes*, 14 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists
Vs Atlanta (91-84 win): 34 minutes*, 27 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists
Vs Chicago (91-83 win): 37 minutes*, 19 points, 14 rebounds, 5 blocks, 4 assists

Victaria Saxton (5 games, 2.4 mpg, 0.6 ppg, 0.2 rpg)
Saxton appeared in the blowout loss to Connecticut and got her third point of the season.

Last week:
At Connecticut (89-72 loss): 3 minutes, 1 point
Vs Atlanta (91-84 win): DNP-CD
Vs Chicago (91-83 win): DNP-CD

This week’s schedule:
Wednesday, June 19 vs Washington (7:00 ET, League Pass)
Friday, June 21 at Atlanta (7:30 ET, Ion)
Sunday, June 23 at Chicago (4:00 ET, ESPN)

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Las Vegas Aces (6-6)
A’ja Wilson (12 games (12 starts), 33.9 mpg, 28.0 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 2.6 apg, 2.5 bpg, 1.7 spg)
Record of the week: Wilson set the WNBA record with eight consecutive games with 25 or more points. She leads the league in scoring and rebounding and is second in blocks. Her scoring average is nearly 3 points higher than the single-season record, so naturally Rebecca Lobo isn’t sure Wilson should be the MVP.

Last week: 
Vs Minnesota (100-86 loss): 33 minutes*, 28 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals
At Phoenix (103-99 win): 34 minutes*, 32 points, 15 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks, steal
Vs New York (90-82 loss): 36 minutes*, 21 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, block

This week’s schedule:
Wednesday, June 18 vs Seattle (10:00 ET, League Pass)
Friday, June 21 vs Connecticut (10:00 ET, Ion)

Los Angeles Sparks (4-10)
Zia Cooke (11 games, 7.6 mpg, 2.1 ppg, 0.8 rpg, 0.7 apg)
Cooke has fallen out of the Sparks’ rotation.

Last week:
At Seattle (95-79 loss): 1 minutes, assist
At Minnesota (81-76 loss): DNP-CD
At Atlanta (87-74 loss): DNP-CD

This week’s schedule:
Tuesday, June 18 at Connecticut (7:00 ET, League Pass)
Thursday, June 20 at New York (7:00 ET, Amazon Prime)
Saturday, June 22 at New York (3:00 ET, ESPN)

Phoenix Mercury (7-7)
Mikiah Herbert Harrigan (10 games, 8.7 mpg, 2.4 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 0.5 bpg)
Herbert Harrigan has not played since Brittney Griner returned from injury.

Last week:
Vs Las Vegas (103-99 loss): DNP-CD
Vs Seattle (87-78 win): DNP-CD

This week’s schedule:
Tuesday, June 18 vs New York (10:00 ET, CBS Sports Network)
Saturday, June 22 at Minnesota (8:00 ET, League Pass)

Unsigned

Brea Beal 
Las Vegas cut Beal early in training camp.  

Alaina Coates (Preseason stats with Seattle: 2 games, 8.0 minutes, 3.0 pts, 1.0 reb, 1.0 block) 
Coates got a long look in Seattle but didn’t fit in with the Storm’s rebuild. She’s got lots of experience, though, and will probably be one of the first calls for any team that needs post depth once the season starts. 

Kaela Davis (Preseason stats with Seattle: 2 games, 14.0 minutes, 1.5 points, 3.5 rebs)
Davis was hoping to show she was fully recovered from an Achilles injury, but she didn’t do enough to convince Seattle. 

Destanni Henderson (Preseason stats with Atlanta: 2 games, 19.0 minutes, 3.5 pts, 6.0 assists, 2.0 rebs, 1.0 steal)
Henderson was signed after training camp started and put up nice numbers in Atlanta’s two preseason games. Whenever Henny gets a shot, she contributes, but she can’t seem to stick anywhere.

Many were surprised when Hall of Fame coach Paul Mainieri came out of retirement to become the next head baseball coach of the South Carolina Gamecocks. Returning to the SEC for the first time since 2021 after spending 15 years with LSU and leading the Tigers to a national championship.

In Columbia, South Carolina they’re hoping that Mainieri can bring the program similar success. Which never comes easy in the SEC and will only get more difficult next season with Texas and Oklahoma joining the conference.

At his introductory press conference, Mainieri was asked what he thinks the biggest barrier will be between the Gamecocks and championship success.

“Well I think the league is getting tougher every year, there’s a lot of great teams out there,” Mainieri said. “And let me tell you something, one year I went as a coach our team went, at LSU, our team went 13-17. We make the SEC Tournament, there was only eight teams that went that year. I think that was 2011.”

“Two years later we went 17-13. We were national seed. Four game difference, 36-21 year to 40-16 the next. Four game difference in conference, four game difference overall. Went from not making the tournament to national seed, so the difference is razor thin,” Mainieri explained.

There isn’t a coach in college baseball that can speak from experience more than Mainieri, who rejoins the game with 1,501 career wins and 39 years of head coaching experience. Also understanding that playing the best when it matters the most in college baseball over any metric.

“You win a few one run games and you’re having a good year. that’s the key. You gotta win the close ones,” Mainieri said. “And the only way to win the close ones is with clutch hitting, poise on the mound and on defense late in the game, and a belief that they’re that you’re going to finish the game off. That’s one of the things that quite frankly we’ve been proud about in our career, as we’ve won a lot of close games, and I think it’ll make the difference in the season.”

South Carolina is an NCAA Tournament regular, but have not been able to break through to the College World Series and SEC Championship heights they were able to achieve a little over a decade ago. But with Mainieri now at the helm for the Gamecocks, it will be fascinating to see if the program can return to those heights.

Updated June 16, 2024 at 19:31 PM ET

The 77th Tony Awards air Sunday night on CBS. Below is the full list of 2024 Tony Award nominees, with winners marked in bold.

Best Sound Design of a Play

• WINNER: Ryan Rumery, Stereophonic
• Justin Ellington and Stefania Bulbarella, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding
• Leah Gelpe, Mary Jane
• Tom Gibbons, Grey House
• Bray Poor and Will Pickens, Appropriate

Best Lighting Design of a Play

Best Lighting Design of a Musical

• WINNER: Brian MacDevitt and Hana S. Kim, The Outsiders
• Brandon Stirling Baker, Illinoise
• Isabella Byrd, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
• Natasha Katz, Hell’s Kitchen
• Bradley King and David Bengali, Water for Elephants

Best Choreography

• WINNER: Justin Peck, Illinoise
• Annie-B Parson, Here Lies Love
• Camille A. Brown, Hell’s Kitchen
• Rick Kuperman and Jeff Kuperman, The Outsiders
• Jesse Robb and Shana Carroll, Water for Elephants

Best Scenic Design of a Musical

Best Orchestrations

Best Costume Design of a Musical

Best Costume Design of a Play

• WINNER: Dede Ayite, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding
• Dede Ayite, Appropriate
• Enver Chakartash, Stereophonic
• Emilio Sosa, Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch
• David Zinn, An Enemy of the People

Best Book of a Musical

• WINNER: Shaina Taub, SuffsKristoffer Diaz, Hell’s Kitchen
• Bekah Brunstetter, The Notebook
• Adam Rapp and Justine Levine, The Outsiders
• Rick Elice, Water for Elephants

Best Musical

• Hell’s Kitchen
• Illinoise
• The Outsiders
• Suffs
• Water for Elephants

Best Revival of a Musical

Best Direction of a Musical

Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical

Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical

Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical

Best Play

• Jaja’s African Hair Braiding
• Mary Jane
• Mother Play
• Prayer for the French Republic
• Stereophonic

Best Revival of a Play

Best Direction of a Play

Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play

• Betsy Aidem, Prayer for the French Republic
• Jessica Lange, Mother Play
• Rachel McAdams, Mary Jane
• Sarah Paulson, Appropriate
• Amy Ryan, Doubt: A Parable

Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play

Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play

Best Original Score

Best Sound Design of a Musical

Best Scenic Design in a Play

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