Saturday, July 30, 2005 at Mohegan Sun Arena
Detroit Shock 75, Connecticut Sun 66
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| Recap | Box Score |
July 30, 2005
Mohegan Sun Arena
Shock 75, Sun 66 |
| Points: | (DET) D. Nolan, 19
(CON) M. Dydek, 16 |
| Rebounds: | (DET) C. Ford, 13
(CON) K. Douglas, 7 |
| Assists: | (DET) E. Powell, 5
(CON) K. Douglas, 4 |
| Blocks: | (DET) Four tied, 1
(CON) Two tied, 2 |
| Steals: | (DET) B. Farris, 2
(CON) N. Sales, 3 |
| Turnovers: | (DET) Five tied, 2
(CON) Three tied, 2 |
Biggest
Lead: | (DET) 16
(CON) 2 |
Points In
The Paint: | (DET) 48
(CON) 18 |
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POSTGAME QUOTES
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DETROITSHOCK.COM
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PLAYER OF THE GAME |
Cheryl Ford
Points: 13
Rebounds: 11
Blocks: 1
Minutes: 31
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Shock Head Coach Bill Laimbeer
What did you see as the keys to getting the victory today?
�I think our heart played a role today. We played really hard from start to finish and we did what we needed to do. We didn�t turn the ball over, we controlled the glass and we were very patient and that was the key to the ballgame.�
On the play of Plenette Pierson:
�Well that�s why we got her. We have looked at her ever since the draft. We were unable to get her in the draft and took Cheryl (Ford) instead. We have covered her for a long time and today she showed why we liked her.�
Talk about your team�s play down the stretch to hold off the late run by Connecticut.
�We were patient tonight and didn�t panic. We kept our wits about us and we were strong physically.�
On the timeout at the end of the game.
�I wanted to congratulate our team. I thought they had a very fine ballgame and I wanted to call a 20-second timeout to get everybody together. We talked about before the game that we are embarking on a new direction as a ball club today and today is the day to step up and show it.�
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Shock Guard Deanna Nolan
Talk about what this game meant for the team.
�We saw this game as a new start for us. We were just trying to out and play hard and make a push for the playoffs.�
On the end of the game:
�Of course we knew they were going to make their run at the end. The fouls almost hurt us but we made a couple of and ones down the stretch which I think broke their confidence.�
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Shock Forward Plenette Pierson
Why was this game special for your team?
�We definitely wanted to make a statement and we wanted to show everybody we can play basketball and tonight I think we played Detroit Shock basketball.�
You made a lot of key shots down the stretch to slow down Connecticut�s late run.
�That�s my aggressive nature, it�s the key to doing what I do best and that�s going to the basket and try to get easy shots and they happen to fall for me along with a couple of and ones.�
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Connecticut Coach Mike Thibault
On the game:
�I think about 27 % from the floor covers it. We had a bad offensive game. Similar to the half we had against New York in the first half the other night. We had a lot of good open looks and we didn�t make them.�
On taking open jump shots instead of driving the lane:
�At every time out we talked about settling for jump shots. Sometimes it�s really hard because they are so inviting and open. We had really good open shots and its normally a strength of our team but when you combine Katie (Douglas), Nykesha (Sales) and Lindsay (Whalen) shooting 5-30 between the three of them, its hard to win. It�s just hard to win.�
On being disappointed in the defensive effort:
�The big play of the game is that we gambled with about two minutes to go and we didn�t need to. We just needed a solid defensive presence and they end up with a three point play. If we ended up with a stop there, we could have cut it to one or tied the game. It was a tough spot. I was not happy with a couple of those possessions, but give them some credit. They had some people, Nolan, Powell and Pierson who made big shots. Pierson had 17 points in 17 minutes.
On common patterns in three losses to Detroit:
�I don�t know if it�s what they have done. They did get to early leads on us and our perimeter people had bad shooting games. We beat them three out of four last year. Today was the game I was disappointed. I was not disappointed in our last game. The first game we played was the first game of the season on the road at their place. We were a little bit disjointed and didn�t play well. We played very well when we were playing here. I thought we could have a similar performance here today.�
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Connecticut Guard Lindsay Whalen
On the game:
�They took the wind out of our sales. I thought in the second half we got ourselves chances even though we didn�t shoot the ball well. They made some good shots down the stretch that were key. We got to the line in the second half. We got into the bonus with about ten minutes left which was nice but unfortunately we had to hit a few shots from the field as well.�
On shot selection:
�Obviously, we didn�t shoot the ball well at all so no I wasn�t happy with it but there were some shots we didn�t get that we just missed but you have to give them credit for coming here and playing the way they did.�
On losing to Detroit for the third time in one season:
�You never want to lose to a team three times, with the tie breaker and everything. You are not happy with the game but I thought our effort was still there at the end so that was positive. Now we just have to get back to executing and not try to get everything to run great just making a lot of great plays and that is one thing that coach emphasized. It�s a little bit of us, its just a match up that favored them. That�s just the way it went. They outplayed us tonight. I don�t want to say it was a let down, I think it was because of poor execution. If we were to execute a little better, maybe we would have gotten that run. That�s just the way it went today.�
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Connecticut Forward Taj McWilliams-Franklin
On rallying back:
�That�s what we do. When we are down, we fight back. You never want to lose at home especially in front of our fans but we�ll fight back.�
On three losses to Detriot:
�I think there have all been different things. I think it�s just us. It�s definitely just us. I think it�s the same thing that we did against New York, bad shooting. We weren�t playing calmly like we needed to play and it showed. We were down 11 today and we were down 10 against New York, so we need to work on our execution.�
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