NEW YORK – Tina Charles of the New York Liberty and Maya Moore of the Minnesota Lynx were named the WNBA’s Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Month presented by Samsung, respectively, for games played in July.

The Eastern and Western Conference Player of the Month awards, as well as the WNBA Rookie of the Month, are presented by Samsung and are part of the larger WNBA Performance Awards presented by Samsung program.  This marks the second consecutive season that Samsung, an official WNBA marketing partner, will present the WNBA’s highest individual honors, including the WNBA Most Valuable Player, WNBA Most Improved Player, WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year, WNBA Defensive Player of the Year, and WNBA Rookie of the Year.

For Charles, the Player of the Month award is her first of the season and the fifth of her career.  The 2012 WNBA MVP presented by Samsung led all Eastern Conference players in rebounding (9.5 rpg) during July, ranked second in scoring (19.9 ppg) and minutes (32.5 mpg), and registered the fifth-best field goal percentage (.488, 62-of-127).  Charles helped New York post a 6-2 record, including a 4-2 road mark, as the Liberty vaulted into the top spot in the conference standings.

Now in her sixth WNBA season, Charles paced the Liberty in scoring in seven of the team’s eight games in July.  She scored 14 or more points in all eight contests, with one 30-point game and three outings of 20-plus points.  On the glass, Charles recorded four games with double-digit rebounds, including a season-high 14 boards on two occasions.

The four-time All-Star selection opened the month with a 21-point, 10-rebound effort in a 79-76 win at Washington on July 9.  She then led New York to a 3-0 West Coast road swing, tipping off the trip with 18 points and 14 rebounds in a 75-73 overtime win at Phoenix on July 18 and following that performance with 30 points in an 81-77 victory at Seattle on July 21.  She closed out the trip with 14 points and 14 rebounds in a 59-53 win at Los Angeles on July 22.

Additional highlights of Charles’ play in July included:

• July 16 vs. Connecticut: 22 points and 12 rebounds in a 64-57 win
• July 29 at Indiana: 18 points, eight rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in an 84-72 loss

Moore, the 2014 WNBA MVP presented by Samsung and MVP of Boost Mobile WNBA All-Star 2015, has now captured six of the last eight Western Conference Player of the Month presented by Samsung awards dating to her first such honor, in August 2013.  She also closed out July by winning three consecutive Western Conference Player of the Week awards.

During the month, Moore ranked first among West players in scoring (25.8 ppg) and tied for the top spot in rebounding (8.8 rpg, along with Tulsa’s Courtney Paris).  She also was third in three-point field goal percentage (.419, 26-of-62), fifth in assists (4.1 apg), and sixth in blocks (1.0 bpg) and steals (1.33 spg).

The University of Connecticut product scored 20 or more points in all nine games, finishing as the top scorer in each contest.  Behind Moore, the Lynx surged to a 7-2 mark for the month and took over the top spot in the Western Conference standings.

Moore opened the month with consecutive double-doubles, contributing 23 points and 11 rebounds in an 82-57 win against Seattle on July 3 and 29 points and 10 boards in a 90-83 loss at Chicago on July 10.  From July 14 through July 29, Moore produced five straight games with 25 or more points, including a 29-point, seven-rebound, four-assist, and three-steal outing in an 84-66 win over Chicago on July 17 and a 32-point, 10-rebound, five-assist performance in a 79-72 win at Tulsa on July 19.

Additional highlights of Moore’s play in July included:

• July 14 at Connecticut: 26 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and two blocks in an 85-79 win
• July 22 vs. Connecticut: 25 points, eight boards, and five assists in a 78-77 loss
• July 29 vs. Los Angeles: 27 points, seven rebounds, three steals, and two assists in an 82-76 victory

For more information on this year’s WNBA Performance Awards presented by Samsung, visit www.wnba.com/awards.

2015 WNBA PLAYERS OF THE MONTH PRESENTED BY SAMSUNG WINNERS

Month             East Player                    Team              West Player                      Team

June                Elena Delle Donne         Chicago           Skylar Diggins                   Tulsa

July                  Tina Charles                   New York        Maya Moore                      Minnesota

About Samsung Electronics America, Inc.
Headquartered in Ridgefield Park, NJ, Samsung Electronics America, Inc. (SEA), is a recognized innovation leader in consumer electronics design and technology.  A wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., SEA delivers a broad range of digital consumer electronics, mobile products and wearables, wireless infrastructure, IT and home appliance products. Samsung is the market leader for HDTVs in the U.S and one of America’s fastest growing home appliance brand. To discover more, please visit www.samsung.com.

About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. inspires the world and shapes the future with transformative ideas and technologies, redefining the worlds of TVs, smartphones, wearable devices, tablets, cameras, digital appliances, printers, medical equipment, network systems, and semiconductor and LED solutions. We are also leading in the Internet of Things space through, among others, our Smart Home and Digital Health initiatives. We employ 307,000 people across 84 countries with annual sales of US $196 billion. To discover more, please visit our official website at www.samsung.com and our official blog at global.samsungtomorrow.com.