Each week, the Blue Zone takes a look at the seven former Blue Devils currently playing across four WNBA teams this season. This week we bring you:
Lexie Brown and Karima Christmas-Kelly, Minnesota Lynx
Coming off a career night, Brown was back on the court June 12 with her team suffering a 75-69 defeat to the New York Liberty. Brown shot 2-for-4 from long range and scored another basket to finish with eight points in 22 minutes. The former Blue Devil also recorded three assists. In only her second game of the season, Karima Christmas-Kelly picked up a steal in four minutes and attempted two shots from the field.
The Lynx returned home two days later and fell to the Connecticut Sun 85-81. Brown tied a season-high with four assists and two steals. The 2018 first round pick finished with five points on 2-for-6 shooting from the field and also knocked down a three pointer. Christmas-Kelly played a season-high 17 minutes and recorded her first blocked shot of the year. The Lynx forward also registered two assists, one rebound and a steal.
In a Sunday evening game at the Target Center, the Lynx lost for the fourth time in a row. The Las Vegas Aces inched past the Lynx 80-75. In 21 minutes of action, Brown shot 3-for-6 and made a triple to finish with seven points. She also recorded four rebounds and a steal. Christmas-Kelly did not score in 12 minutes, but did pick up a pair of rebounds and two assists to go along with a steal.
After Sunday night’s game, Brown ranks third in the WNBA with 19 total three pointers.
Upcoming: June 22 v. New York Liberty
Alana Beard and Chelsea Gray, Los Angeles Sparks
Against the Phoenix Mercury June 14, Chelsea Gray’s strong first quarter culminated in an 85-68 win. Gray scored 14 of her team-high 21 points in the opening frame and made four triples.
The former Blue Devil also dished out a season-high nine assists against the Mercury in addition to three rebounds and a steal.
The Sparks returned home the next night to take on the New York Liberty. Los Angeles was unable to win their third game in a row, falling 98-92 in a game that went down to the wire. After her 21-point showing the night before, Gray picked up where she left off and scored 18 points with a pair of three pointers. The Sparks’ point guard shot 8-for-16 from the field and finished with four rebounds. Gray also picked up six assists and a steal in 29 minutes. Fellow Blue Devil Alana Beard did not see action in either game this week.
Going into the fourth week of the season, Gray ranks seventh in the league in scoring with 16.7 points per game. She is also fifth in assists per game with 5.3.
Upcoming: June 18 v. Washington Mystics; June 21 at Seattle Storm; June 23 at Phoenix Mercury
Jasmine Thomas, Connecticut Sun
On June 11, the Connecticut Sun defeated the Washington Mystics 83-75. Jasmine Thomas recorded a team-high six assists in 28 minutes and had one rebound. The Sun's point guard also registered a steal and scored two points in the victory.
In the next game, a win against the Lynx, Thomas scored nine points on 4-of-10 shooting. She also brought down four rebounds in 27 minutes.
To close out the week, Thomas’ Connecticut team picked up its sixth consecutive victory by knocking off the Seattle Storm 81-67 in front of an announced attendance of 7,773. The veteran guard finished with two assists and a rebound.
Thomas ranks 10th in steals with 1.7 per game and ninth in assists with 4.4 per game.
Upcoming: June 21 v. Atlanta Dream; June 23 at Chicago Sky
Elizabeth Williams and Haley Peters, Atlanta Dream
In their only game of the week, the Atlanta Dream lost to the Dallas Wings 71-61 on the road. Elizabeth Williams recorded her best all-around game this season, scoring 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting and a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. Williams also grabbed a season-high eight rebounds, five of which came on the offensive end. In addition, the former Blue Devil blocked a pair of shots and registered an assist in a team-high 35 minutes. Haley Peters saw the floor for five minutes as she picked up her first steal of the season. Off the bench, she had one rebound and did not score in two shot attempts.
Williams ranks fifth in the WNBA with 2.0 blocks per contest.
Upcoming: June 19 v. Indiana Fever; June 21 at Connecticut Sun; June 23 v. Washington Mystics
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