New York Liberty To Play Outdoor Classic Saturday

July 19, 2008 10:48 a.m. EST

New York, NY (AHN) -- History was made last night in Arthur Ashe Stadium - and no, Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal had nothing to do with it. The U.S. Open venue was converted into a basketball court for one night - and the first outdoor WNBA regular season game commenced.

The New York Liberty will host the Indiana Fever under no roof, Tennis nets safely down, and basketballs bouncing on hard court.

The Liberty practiced for the first time outdoors, to get a feel for the environment. Meanwhile, Indiana, took their practice to the parking lot of their stadium - the Conseco Fieldhouse.

Thursday morning, crews went to work, transferring center court at the U.S. Open into a basketball court. The New York Knicks baseball court has been upped and moved from Manhattan to Queens, while the logos of the Liberty will replace the Knicks.

The only possible risk to the court is rain - there's a 10 percent chance of it, but it would force the game to be postponed until Sunday.

Liberty General Manager Carol Blazejowski has struck gold with this play so far. The crowd for the event has sold 17,000 tickets of a possible 22,000. She's always been on the look-out to find way to promote not only her team, but the WNBA.