In a press statement issued on Thursday, the Connecticut Sun rҽvealed TD Garden in Boston will host a home game for the team in August of 2019.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This August 20 match will make Boston the site of its inaugural WNBA contest.

Before Thursday’s game between the Boston Celtics and the Cleveland Cavaliers, Sun executives and All-Star Brionna Jones were in Boston.

“The Sun is New Englаnd’s prоfessiоnаl wоmen’s bаsketbаll teаm with pаssiоnаte fаns аcrоss the regiоn,” stаted Jennifer Rizzоtti, president оf the Sun. Hоsting оur gаme in Bоstоn, а city with а lоng histоry оf success in New Englаnd spоrts, wаs the оbviоus chоice.

She explained that their goal was to help thousands of kids and their families get familiar with the Connecticut Sun brand, as well as provide young girls a real chance to witness the iconic TD Garden in Boston and dream of playing there one day.

Being able to play in Boston at the TD Garden venue for the inaugural WNBA regular season game is an incredible opportunity for the Connecticut Sun.  The general manager of the Suns, Darius Taylor, noted that the Boston area and the rest of New England had a long history of sports fandom and a deep love for the game.

This will be the first time the Sun have played a home game outside of Connecticut; their only previous home game was in Hartford in 2003, their first season in the state.

Retired WNBA player Hayes: On her podcast, Tiffany Hayes—a former star for UConn—announced her retirement from the WNBA.

Before signing with the Sun last summer, she played for the Atlanta Dream for her first ten years of WNBA play.

For the Huskies, Hayes started every game in the regular season and finished with an average of 12.1 points, 3.0 boards, and 2.6 assists. In 2023, Hayes scored in double digits in 28 of 40 regular season games, including a 14-game streak from August 1st through September 8th. With 30 points in WNBA semifinal game 2 against New York on September 26, she also tied her career-high for postseason scoring.

The Sun’s head coach, Stephanie White, expressed her team’s gratitude for the season they had featuring Tip. “As a competitor and a professional, she is unmatched. Passionate and fierce, she competes from both ends of the court and never lets her guard down. During the entire season, I stated it.

She has a lightning fast first step and is one of the rare players in league history who can go downhill and defeat opponents.  To put it simply, she is exceptional.  White expressed his admiration for Tip’s stellar career and best wishes for her future endeavors.

Hayes was named to the WNBA All-Rookie team (2012), the WNBA All-Defensive second team (2018), the All-WNBA first team (2018), and the WNBA All-Star team (2017) throughout her tenure in the league.

Playing for the Shanghai Swordfish of the WBCA, Hayes is presently away from home in China. Her statistics speak for themselves: 24.6 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 3.9 asts, and 3.0 steals per game.