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What All-Star players are saying about their teams as the second half of the season gets underway
Second Half Outlooks With Seimone Augustus, Asjha Jones and Becky Hammon

SEIMONE AUGUSTUS:

Second half predictions for Lynx:
“Hopefully we can do better than we did in the first half. Hopefully we can reel off some wins and have some fun in the second half.”

Individual second half predictions:
“Just to stay consistent and do the things I did in the first half. Just be an effective scorer and do what I can to help my team.”

On how the Lynx can recover from rookie point guard Lindsey Harding going down for the season:
“I think a lot of players are going to have to step up. A lot of people are going to have to come off the bench and contribute. It’s a learning process for them, but it’s going to be hands-on learning – they’re going to be out there experiencing what Lindsey had to go through every game. So it’s only gonna help our team be a better team for the future.”

On playing with Harding this year:
“It was exciting. She’s one of the fastest players I’ve played with besides Temeka Johnson. She’s very intense. She goes out there and works really hard, so that’s something I can deal with on a day-to-day basis.”

What does your team need to do down the stretch to make the playoffs or go even further?
“Just a strong push. Continue to be confident in what we can do, play within our team’s system and fight to the end. In this league every game is tough. You have to be able to compete for 40 minutes and not just two quarters or whatever the case may be.”

What it’s like playing on a squad with a bunch of rookies:
“It’s tough at times because sometimes they get down on themselves when they make mistakes. But at the same time it’s very fun because they have so much potential and they don’t even know it and you get to witness it every day. You can only sit there and smile and be confident about what the future holds for us.”


ASJHA JONES:

Can you talk about how fellow All-Star Katie Douglas is playing this year?
“She’s playing well. In the beginning, all of us struggled, but she totally picked up her play. She’s our leader, on and off the court. So she’s totally picked it up and put a lot of responsibility on her back and is taking care of us right now.”

Can you talk about what you guys are looking to accomplishing in the second half of the season?
“Well we’re going to build on what we’ve been doing lately. We’re really playing well. We just had a great stint out West. Now coming off the break we’re just going to continue that roll. We’ve got things going, got our offense flowing. Everyone understands her role right now and we’re headed in the right direction.”


BECKY HAMMON:

Second-half predictions:
"Hopefully -- this is what I'd like to see -- the West finishes up the way it ended the first half. And I think it will end up the same in the East, with maybe a shift here and there on the lower seeds.”

Second-half goals for herself:
“Just to win. That’s all I want to do is win. When you win everything else takes care of itself.”

What does your team need to do down the stretch to make the playoffs or go even further?
“I think we've got all the components we need. Right now we don’t feel like we’ve peaked. It’s all about peaking at the right time and playing your best basketball at the right time. We had a solid half, but we feel like we can still get better and build upon some things. We just want to keep moving in the right direction and just focus on ourselves getting better day in and day out, individually and collectively as a team, and let the rest take care of itself.”

Thursday
April 8
2010 WNBA Draft
3:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2 (first round)
ESPNU, NBA TV (later rounds)
Friday
April 30
2010 Preseason Begins
Chicago @ Minnesota, 11:00 a.m. ET
Concordia University, St. Paul, Minn.
Saturday
May 15
2010 Season Opener
Los Angeles @ Phoenix
2:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2
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