And in this corner................

By this point everyone has seen the fight between the Shock and the Sparks the other night and everyone seems to have a different opinion on who started it and how bad it was for the league, women, etc.

To be honest Im totally into sports fights whether its in hockey, football, bench clearing in baseball, basketball, etc.... So for me I was totally into it.

Now there is something that I do hate, and that is when people say that female athletes should act like ladies. That seriously irks me. Why can't female athletes act like athletes. Like it or not sports are emotional and ego driven. Whether you are male or female when you are playing a sport you want to win, you do what it takes to win and you should be laying it all out on the playing field or court. And sometimes emotions run a little high and things happen... like fights.

I was actually like damn! now theres some raw, unadulterated emotion spilling out onto the court between players that had been at each other all night. You know there are many critics that say there is no emotion in womens basketball and that they just go through the motion and play by the basics at their simplest form. And the other night all of those same critics seen that womens basketball has that same intensity, the same emotion, the same passion. Was it good for the game? The league? Thats a matter of opinion. I think that showing non womens basketball fans that the passion is there was great, I think the league might actually pick up a few fans even if its based on hoping to see another "cat fight". But after seeing the way DMJ swung on Mahorn with that over head "girl punch" I was just waiting to see hair pulling and scratching lol! That was too funny. BUT ALSO, the only person that clearly threw a punch.

Everyone seen the situation between Parker and Pierson escalating and things were bound to explode. But to be honest, if I was Parker I would have done the same thing. They got tangled and Parker flung Pierson off of her, its almost like a natural reaction, however, what Pierson did afterwards was what triggered the brawl. When Pierson got up she stomped toward Parker knocking her back over with her body and Parker reacted......... just like most people would when emotion is already running high.

I'm not a Sparks fan AT ALL and definitely not a Lady Vols fan, but I can admit that I am a Parker fan and have been for awhile, and I do think that some of the vets are being haters on the kid and in some ways I feel like she has a target on her back. At the beginning of the season I told some friends and some of the other writers here at She's A Baller that Detroit would be the team that laid the smack down on Parker, and well, thats what happened.

All in all, I'm glad Parker stood up for herself and didn't get punked. I don't think Pierson thought that Parker was going to come right back at her. So when Parker did... seriously I jumped up like HELL YEAH! I'm not a pierson fan at all and I don't like the way she plays or the way she flops........

Speaking of flopping, Lisa Leslie. While I do agree that Mahorn should have been more concerned with getting a hold of his own players, I think that the "shove" he gave Lisa Leslie was no where near as dramatic as she made it appear. I feel like she put on an Oscar performance and I think that Mahorn was also in the heat of the moment and just wanted to keep her un-involved any further.

So now we all sit and wait to see what kind of penalties will be handed down and who will all face the suspensions and the fines. There are speculations as of right now but this is something the league wasn't ready to deal with - The Golden Child, Candace Parker getting into a brawl with one of the rougher players of the league.

So now the league has to be careful of how they handle this situation and not give Parker preferential treatment. She is the face of the league now and is taking it to new levels, but what is done is done and she need's to pay the price just like Pierson.

I will be surprised if Parker see's her suspension stretch into after the Olympic break because I believe the league is hoping that Team USA brings home gold and they will definitely want the Spark Olympians on the floor together to show off that medal. But I also feel that she deserves at least 3 games, her and Pierson both.

If it was up to me Parker, Pierson, and DMJ would get a suspension. Cause I know all of you seen DMJ run in there and attempt to hit Mahorn.... not that it did anything to him, but the fact is she swung. And for that matter so did Bobbit so I would at least fine her just for running away like a little sissy after she hit him! .... YES she hit him and ran away like she was getting away with something! WTF was she thinking? She doesn't get to use the 'heat of the moment' excuse, that was just pathetic!

And fines, I would definitely fine Mahorn for not keeping his head together and actually putting his hands on a player in an agressive way. I dont think that he meant for her to lose balance and fall, I think he just wanted her away and there was no malicious intent. Nolan for the great tackle on Parker, and if it was possible I would fine Leslie just for floppin like that!

Maybe I am just trying to make light of this situation because it is normal for scuffles to happen in sports and just because they are women doesn't mean they don't have the same drive, passion, and emotion as their male counterparts. If you are against the aggression and fighting in general then thats fine, but don't be pissed just because they are women. They are athletes.