Charles, Stewart share Player of Week laurels

Tina Charles and Breanna Stewart were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week Monday, the third time former UConn alums swept those weekly honors.

Former UConn stars Tina Charles and Breanna Stewart were named the Eastern and Western Conference’s Player of the Week by the WNBA on Monday.

This marks the third time this year that UConn alums swept the weekly honors as Charles and Diana Taurasi were honored on June 4 and on July 16 it was Stefanie Dolson and Stewart receiving the awards.

Since the WNBA went from awarding one player of the week to giving out awards to players in each conference in 2007, this is the 18th time the honorees came from players who attended the same college. On 14 of those occasions, it was a pair of former Huskies getting recognized, led by the duo of Charles and Maya Moore, who swept the awards five times.

Charles and Taurasi were honored during the same week three times. The only other time it happened twice came when former Tennessee stars Tamika Catchings and Candace Parker were so honored on May 27, 2012 and June 24, 2012 and when Charles and Stewart were honored on Sept. 11, 2016 and this week.

Charles was selected Player of the Week for a record 26th time since joining the league in 2010. This is her fifth Eastern Conference Player of the Week honor this season.

Charles led all Eastern Conference players in scoring, averaging 21.5 points per game, was tied for second in rebounding, averaging 8 per game, as New York topped the Eastern Conference-leading Connecticut Sun and Western Conference-leading Minnesota Lynx.

Stewart earned Player of the Week honors for the second time this season and third time in her two-year career. The 2016 WNBA Rookie of the Year guided Seattle to a 3-0 week. Stewart ranked sixth among Western Conference players in scoring (17.7 ppg) and rebounds (9.7), was fourth in blocks (1.67), and tied for fifth in assists (4.0).