2012 Media Guide - WNBA.com

SEVEN CONSECUTIVE WNBA PLAYOFF APPEARANCES
Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the week ending on
6/28…she led the team in rebounds, steals and assists, and was
second on team in scoring…Catchings shot a career-high .873 from the
free-throw line…she ranked first in the WNBA in free throws made…she
was sixth in the WNBA with seven double-doubles…Catchings had six
steals in a game five different times.
2008: In an abbreviated season due to injury and rehabilitation,
Catchings started 17 games in 25 appearances…she averaged 13.3
points and 6.3 rebounds per game…she scored in double-digits in 17 of
25 appearances, and scored 20 points or more in five out of six games
during the final stretch of the regular season…she posted identical
double-doubles (20 points, 10 rebounds) in back-to-back games at
Detroit, 9/5, and Atlanta, 9/8, to open the month of September…despite
a shortened season, she still was named to the WNBA All-Defensive
Team for the fourth straight season…her 1.96 steals per game was fifth
in the league…Catchings shot a career-best 43.2 percent from behind
the arc in 2008, second-best on the team and fourth in the WNBA.
2007: Catchings averaged 16.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, 4.7 assists
and 3.1 steals per game while starting in all 21 of her
appearances…she was having perhaps the best season of her career,
including career-high averages in rebounds and assists before she
injured her left foot (partially torn plantar fascia) vs. Detroit, 7/20…she
missed the final 13 games of the regular season…the Fever was 5-8 in
her absence…she was named All-WNBA second team and was a firstteam
selection to the WNBA All-Defensive team for the third straight
season…she posted a season-high 26 points to go with 14 rebounds in
a win at Detroit, 6/16…she had a season-high 15 rebounds one night
earlier against Phoenix, 6/15…she had 22 points, 13 rebounds and six
assists to go with two steals in 37 minutes vs. Chicago, 7/18…the game
vs. the Sky represented her seventh double-double of the season and
the 50th of her career…despite missing 13 games, she led the WNBA
in steals for a third consecutive season.
2006: Catchings averaged 16.3 ppg and 7.5 rpg, to go with a
league-leading 2.94 spg to earn her second consecutive Defensive
Player of the Year Award...she earned First Team All-WNBA honors,
and was named at midseason to the WNBA’s 10th Anniversary All-
Decade Team...she was the leading vote-getter for the WNBA All-Star
Game, but was unable to play due to a heel injury...she scored a
season-high 30 points, snared nine rebounds with three assists and
three steals in an overtime win at New York, 6/13...in the same game,
she broke a 78-78 tie on a jump shot with just one tenth of a second left
in overtime...Catchings was named the WNBA Player of the Week for
the ninth time in her career, as she was honored for the week ending
7/30...she scored 20+ points nine times and scored in double figures in
all but four games, including each of the last 17...her 165 FT and 204
FTA both were second in the WNBA...she topped the league in steals
with 94, which tied her own mark for the second-highest figure in WNBA
history...she helped the Fever to a total of 355 steals, the highest figure
by a team in WNBA history…she missed two games early in the season
(at Houston, 5/31, and at Minnesota, 6/2) due to a sprained right arch –
they were the first games she had missed in her WNBA career.
2005: Catchings started all 34 games and led the Fever to the
Eastern Conference Finals, averaging 14.7 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 4.2 apg and
2.6 spg...she was named the WNBA’s Defensive Player of the Year and
a member of the WNBA All-Defensive First Team...she led the league
with 90 steals while no other player in the WNBA had more than 67
thefts...she finished with a club record 143 assists in 2005...she had a
season-best eight steals against Connecticut, 7/13...it was the most
steals by any player in the WNBA in 2005...she tied a Fever record with
three consecutive double-doubles, 7/26-7/31, and fell one rebound
short of her fourth in a row vs. Seattle, 8/4...she led the WNBA with 193
free throws attempted and ranked second in the league with 152 free
throws made...she set team single-game records for free throws made
and attempted, shooting 15-17 vs. Phoenix, 5/24...she scored 20+
points a team-high 10 times, including a season-best 28 points vs.
Phoenix, 5/24...she was named the WNBA Player of the Week three
times, being so honored for the weeks ending 6/19, 7/17 and 8/21...she
led the Fever in points, rebounds and assists in the same game 10
times...she set a franchise record with 10 offensive rebounds vs.
Charlotte, 8/20...that was the most offensive rebounds by any player in
#24 TAMIKA CATCHINGS
the WNBA in 2005 and was two short of the league record.
2004: Highlighted by her gold medal appearance in the Olympics in
August, Catchings appeared in all 34 games for the Fever and started
in 33, missing a start only against San Antonio, 9/10, after sustaining a
toe injury in practice...the missed start snapped a string of 96
consecutive starts dating to the opening game of 2002...she was named
second team All-WNBA after leading the Fever in points (16.7),
rebounds (7.3), assists (3.4), steals (2.0) and blocks (1.1)...she finished
fifth in the WNBA in scoring, fourth in rebounds and fourth in steals per
game...she recorded five double-doubles and scored in double figures
in all but three games...she saved her best game for the season finale
at Connecticut, 9/19, by scoring 30 points with nine rebounds, four
assists and four steals...she shot 10-12 at the free throw line, and tallied
21 points in the second half...she was twice named the WNBA’s Player
of the Week for the weeks ending 6/7 and 6/21.
2003: For the second straight season, Catchings was the runner-up
in balloting for the league's MVP and Defensive Player of the Year
Awards...she was named First Team All-WNBA and was the leading
scorer (17 points) in the WNBA All-Star Game, 7/14...she started and
scored in all 34 games averaging 19.7 ppg, including an average of
22.0 ppg during July and 20.0 ppg during August...she twice matched
her own franchise record by scoring 20+ points in four consecutive
games...she had 10 games with double-figure points and
rebounds...she matched a career scoring high with 32 points, and
added a game-high 14 rebounds, in the Fever's first-ever win at
Madison Square Garden, 8/22...she had 25 points and a career-high 16
rebounds in a double-overtime win at Connecticut, 6/26...she outdueled
Chamique Holdsclaw and led the Fever to a pair of dramatic road wins
at Washington, just five days apart in July...after scoring 29 points on
7/24, she added 30 points during a 92-91 overtime game,
7/29...Catchings' spinning baseline floater off the glass as time expired
overshadowed Holdsclaw's apparent game-winning basket just seconds
earlier, 7/29...she led the WNBA with 35.6 mpg...she finished second in
the WNBA in steals and third in scoring.
2002: The WNBA Rookie of the Year, she was runner-up in voting
for the league's MVP and Defensive Player of the Year Awards...she
became the first Fever player ever to be named to the All-WNBA First
Team...she ranked in the WNBA’s top 10 in points, rebounds, assists,
steals and blocks...in addition to being the only player in the WNBA to
lead her team in points, rebounds and assists, she led the Fever in
steals, blocked shots, minutes played and 3-pt FG...she led the team in
scoring 21 times, rebounding 23 times and in assists 16 times...she led
the WNBA in steals (2.94 spg)...she tied a WNBA record with nine
steals against Minnesota, 7/26...she was the first Fever player to score
30+ points, scoring a team-record and career-high 32 points vs. New
York, 6/8...she matched that total against Orlando, 8/7...she grabbed a
season-high 15 rebounds against Charlotte, 8/3...she ranked second in
the league in 3-pt FG with 76...her 193 attempts from long range led the
league...she set a WNBA record by hitting all six of her 3-pt FG at
Orlando, 7/3...those six 3-pt FG set a franchise record and tied the most
by any player in the WNBA in 2002...she logged just 11 minutes after
being elbowed in the nose by Miami's Ruth Riley, 7/12...that elbow
resulted in a broken nose, but she did not miss any games and was one
of two Fever players to start all 32 games...the first Fever player to start
a WNBA All-Star Game, she scored a team-high 12 points with nine
rebounds, one assist, one steal and four blocked shots...those blocked
shots tied the All-Star Game record.
2001: She did not play due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in
her right knee suffered during her senior season at Tennessee...she
tore cartilage (medial meniscus) in her right knee during the Fever's
practice in Houston, 7/5, and underwent surgery, 7/9.
PLAYOFFS
Catchings owns career playoff averages of 16.3 points, 8.3
rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.3 steals per game...she averages a doubledouble
in nearly 50 percent of all playoff games…in 37 career playoff
games, she has posted 18 double-doubles including 7 in 19 games the
past three seasons…she has appeared in every playoff game in Fever
history and ranks among WNBA all-time playoff leaders in free throws
made (3rd, 191), free throw attempts (3rd, 215), offensive rebounds (T-
WNBA career steals leaders entering 2012: Tamika Catchings 775, Ticha Penicheiro 756, Sheryl Swoopes 657.
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