LIBERTY HIT THE WNBA BIG TIME

No longer 'looked down upon', the star-studded side are hot pick for first title

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Five years ago, the New York Liberty were used to playing games in a deserted, 2,100-capacity arena out in the suburbs, a world away from the bright lights of the Big Apple.

But when the star-studded Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team step out at a packed Barclays Centre in Brooklyn on Sept 24 (Sept 25 morning, Singapore time), they will do so as one of the hottest tickets in town, as surging interest in women's basketball this season ushers in a new era for the sport.

"I go to a lot of sporting events, and nothing beats the energy here," said long-time Liberty season-ticket holder Lolita Beckwith, a professional photographer who has been following the team since the WNBA was launched in 1997.

Her 27-year allegiance to the Liberty has encompassed the team's early days, when they played games at the legendary Madison Square Garden, to the bleak era when the team were exiled to the suburban city of White Plains, closer to Connecticut than Brooklyn.

"It's just great because for 27 years, it was looked down upon," Beckwith added.

"No one watched, there weren't many fans. It was mostly women and kids. So to see it become what it is now is just absolutely amazing. I wish I had a daughter so I could bring her to the games."