Contemplating the WNBA finals

This is the best account of last night's game that I've come across so far, including a picture of the moment that really struck me: Katie Douglas sliding her hand over that of Tamika Catchings, who had crawled down on the floor with her when she rolled her ankle in quarter one. No word yet on how Douglas is. Game story excerpts:

"There really isn't a lot to say when you get your butts handed to you like that," Connecticut coach Mike Thibault said. "It's not a good sign when you're missing your shots and they're making theirs ... and some of the balls we shot didn't even draw iron. It was like the football term, 'Wide right.' But they made everything."

The Fever did all this -- shoot out of their minds, defend with passion -- because their leader, Tamika Catchings, was doing it first. When Douglas went down early in the game, she was forced to stay on the court, in pain, for a full possession before Indiana intentionally committed a foul to stop play. Catchings immediately sprinted over to Douglas, her teammate since 2008, and kneeled on the court to communicate with her. Catchings seemed to understand that Douglas' return was unlikely, especially because Douglas did not put an ounce of pressure on the ankle as she left. "Katie and I, the one thing we share, is that we never give up -- we share that attitude," Catchings said afterward.

Great stuff.

Game highlights.

Fever guard Shavonte Zellous, who propelled her team into game three, gave UConn assistant Shea Ralph a shout out.

Now, preparations for the Finals can begin.

The league is playing it up as Catchings' quest for a championship vs. the Lynx's road to repeat.

Finals schedule:

Date Matchup Local EDT National Broadcast

Game 1 - Sun October 14 Indiana at Minnesota 7:00 PM 8:00 PM ESPN2
Game 2 - Wed October 17 Indiana at Minnesota 7:00 PM 8:00 PM ESPN
Game 3 - Fri October 19 Minnesota at Indiana 8:00 PM 8:00 PM ESPN2
Game 4 * Sun October 21 Minnesota at Indiana 8:00 PM 8:00 PM ESPN2
Game 5 * Wed October 24 Indiana at Minnesota 7:00 PM 8:00 PM ESPN