Basketball: Loffhagen signs to play in US

Donna Loffhagen

New Zealand women's basketball captain and former Silver Ferns netballer Donna Loffhagen has signed a one-year deal to play for the Connecticut Sun in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) in the United States.

In announcing the deal, Connecticut coach Mike Thibault said Loffhagen was a strong performer as captain of the Tall Ferns.

"This is a player we've tried to sign for a year," Thibault told the Sun's website.

"She was the leading rebounder at the last Olympics, and she has been the glue and the go-to player for the (New Zealand) national team."

The Sun had wanted to sign Loffhagen earlier but she was contracted to play netball with the Southern Sting in last year's National Bank Cup, in which the Sting finished runner-up to the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic.

"Her commitment to netball kept her from coming last year," Thibault said.

"She will give us an experienced frontline player who will help with our rebounding in particular."

The Connecticut Sun signed Loffhagen following strong performances for the Tall Ferns against Cuba last week, where she averaged 14.3 points and 12.2 rebounds over the three games in the Caribbean.

Loffhagen will still play for the Tall Ferns at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne this month before heading to the United States.

"I turned down the opportunity last year because I'd already signed with Sting and I don't think people realise how huge that was to do that," Loffhagen told the Southland Times newspaper.

"People thought I was crazy and I've just been fortunate enough to have another opportunity."

Loffhagen is the second New Zealander in the WNBA, following fellow Tall Fern Megan Compain, who played for the Utah Starzz in 1997.

The Connecticut Sun's season in the Eastern Conference starts on May 20 against New York Liberty.

The Sun won the Eastern Conference in 2005 for a trip to the WNBA finals, where they lost to the Sacramento Monarchs.

- NZPA