The Shock's Liz Cambage has returned to Australia to begin rehabbing her injured left ankle. CORY YOUNG / Tulsa World
Liz Cambage's second season with the Tulsa Shock is over.
The 6-foot-8 center departed Wednesday for her native Australia to begin rehabbing her injured left ankle, the Shock announced in a one-paragraph release.
Cambage has missed two games since injuring the ankle for the second time in an Aug. 25 double-overtime loss at the Los Angeles Sparks.
The ankle hasn't healed as expected, the Shock release said.
Tulsa will play its final four games without her, starting Friday when the Sparks visit the BOK Center.
"We're gonna miss her," head coach Gary Kloppenburg said. "It probably would have been different if we were headed for the playoffs, but the doctors are pretty precautionary because it's the same ankle that she sprained badly before."
Tulsa was eliminated from playoff contention with last Friday's home loss to the San Antonio Silver Stars.
Cambage missed eight games after rolling the ankle in a May 31 overtime loss at New York, but came back to play her best basketball of the season.
In a 14-game stretch, she averaged 17.3 points and nine rebounds and was twice named Western Conference player of the week.
Overall, she played in 20 of the team's 30 games, averaging 16.3 points and 8.3 rebounds. She was second in the league in blocked shots with 2.4 per game.
"I told her I thought she had a really good year," Kloppenburg said. "I wish we could have had her healthy for more than about half the season. Sometimes, you just get some bad luck with those injuries."
The overall No. 2 draft pick in 2011, Cambage played her rookie season with the Shock but bypassed last season while helping lead Australia to a bronze medal in the London Summer Olympics.
She has two years remaining on her WNBA rookie contract. Team president Steve Swetoha said "we certainly expect to have her back next year."
WNBA rescinds Johnson's flagrant foul
The WNBA rescinded the flagrant foul called Sunday against Glory Johnson in the final minute of the Shock's 93-88 win over the New York Liberty.
Johnson rebounded a teammate's miss and was whistled after making contact with the Liberty's DeLisha Milton-Jones as she raised her hands over her head to pass the ball.
The play resulted in the Liberty scoring five consecutive points to tie the score at 86, but Courtney Paris' three-point play put the Shock ahead.
"We reviewed the film, and felt clearly that it was not a flagrant foul, based on what we saw on film," team president Steve Swetoha said. "It has been rescinded and does not go against Glory, for which we're very happy."
Mike Brown 918-581-8390
mike.brown@tulsaworld.com
Original Print Headline: Injury sends Cambage home
Pro W Basketball (WNBA)
9 p.m. Saturday
Basketball Australia manager Tamara Sheppard was in town to meet with Shock officials Thursday and discuss the responsibilities of Australian national players in international competition the next three years.
