Lyttle and McCoughtry Named to WNBA All-Defensive First Team
A panel of the WNBA�s 12 head coaches voted on the WNBA All-Defensive Team, selecting First and Second Teams by position. Coaches were not permitted to vote for players from their own team. Players earned five points for each First Team vote and three points for a Second Team vote.
Lyttle, who tallied 45 points in the voting to finish with the second-most points, earned All-Defensive Team honors for the fifth time, having previously been selected to the First Team in 2012, and to the Second Team in 2009, 2010 and 2011. McCoughtry (30 points) captured All-Defensive Team honors for the fifth time in her career, having previously been selected to the First Team in 2010, 2011 and 2013, and to the Second Team in 2009.
Lyttle, who also finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting, led the Dream and was second in the league in defensive rebounds with 221 (6.5 per game), which was the second-best single-season total in team history. She also averaged 2.2 steals per game and accumulated one more steal than McCoughtry with a league-high 75 � the third-best single-season total in Dream history � while playing in three more games than McCoughtry. She now has 465 career steals, which ranks tied for 16th in WNBA history. She tied a team single-game record with seven steals Aug. 5 at Phoenix, and added 20 blocks this season.
McCoughtry won her second career WNBA steals title, averaging a league-best 2.4 per game. She collected 74 steals, and improved her career steals per game average to 2.30, which ranks third in WNBA history. She also contributed defensively with 109 defensive rebounds, which ranked third on the team, and 12 blocked shots.
It marked the fifth consecutive year that the Dream had at least one player on the All-Defensive First Team, and the sixth straight year that at least two Dream players were on the first or second teams.
Joining Lyttle and McCoughtry on the first team were Phoenix�s Brittney Griner, Indiana�s Briann January and Seattle�s Tanisha Wright. The second team included Los Angeles� Alana Beard, Indiana�s Tamika Catchings, San Antonio�s Danielle Robinson, Chicago�s Sylvia Fowles and Minnesota�s Maya Moore.
The three-time Eastern Conference Champion Atlanta Dream is in its seventh season in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Dream has earned the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference for the 2014 WNBA playoffs, and has qualified for the playoffs in each of the past six seasons, including conference titles in 2013, 2011 and 2010. Playoff packages for the 2014 season, as well as 2015 season tickets, can be purchased by calling (877) 977-7729 or visiting www.AtlantaDream.net. The Dream opens the playoffs on Aug. 22 against the Chicago Sky at 7:30 p.m. ET in Philips Arena. The complete 2014 schedule can be found at www.wnba.com/dream/schedule.