July 16, 2003
Quotes: Silver Stars and Lynx
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Lynx Quotes:
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Silver Stars Head Coach Candi Harvey:
 "We
finally got things started with the run, but they had an answer. This
team (Minnesota) has so much firepower and can make big plays. I thought
we fought so hard to come back, but the back-to-back 'threes' were the
backbreakers. You really just can't let Katie Smith have the ball down
the stretch. She's such an effective player."
"All
of our comebacks came off of our defense and creating shots off
turnovers. But what we are really looking for is a 'W'.
There are no moral victories in this game. We need wins."
"We
played a good game, only having 10 turnovers. That was a great
improvement
for us. I thought Margo played fabulously.
She was aggressive and focused. I'm very happy for her. Adrienne
and Marie also played good games. We just couldn't get stops when
we needed them."
"Teresa
Edwards made some big shots tonight, as did Sheri Sam. Teresa
obviously has control of this team. She does whatever
the team needs. She doesn't need to score. She is just a great
floor leader. It's great to have her in the league. I just wish
she was in the Eastern Conference."
"Gwen
has been a tremendous rebounder for us all year, but this was
her first game back in a week and a half. She had a boot
on her foot for a week. She only had one offensive rebound, and
we're so accustomed to getting more than that. Gwen doesn't have
to score, but she is our leader on the boards. Hopefully we can
get her back to where she was before her injury. But the rebounding
margin definitely hurt us tonight."
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| Jennifer
Azzi:
 "I
think that Minnesota did a great job. When we came back, they held
together. Sometimes when you get on a run, it's hard to turn that
corner… (It's hard) for any team to do that when you're down.
I give them a lot of credit for staying together and playing really
well."
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Margo
Dydek:
 "We
know that even when we are behind in the second half, we can get
back. We can get a run and get back in the game. We have to do
it earlier in the game, and figure out how to finish."
"The
league is tough. On each team some players get double-teamed,
and we're
used to that. We just have to find the open player, because
if somebody is doubled, someone else is open. We just have to play
smart, keep our focus, and find the open player."
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Marie
Ferdinand:
 "I
thought we played well offensively. We played better defensively,
but I thought when we had to make stops -- when we tied the game
and had to make a stop -- we just didn't get those one or two stops
that we needed to get the lead and hold on to the lead. Our rotation
just wasn't there."
"I don't
think it was rust. I thought we played really well tonight. I
thought we played a good enough ballgame to win the
game tonight. We just got beat on the boards. The rebounding cost
us, and we just didn't get those key stops when we tied the game."
"It's not just Katie. Teresa hit some huge three-point shots,
and so did Abrosimova. Tamika played well. She got some huge rebounds.
They outrebounded us big… She (Edwards) still amazes me.
She went in one time and did a reverse layup, and I'm like, 'She's
too old to be doing that.' But she's still a threat out there."
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Minnesota
Coach Suzie McConnell Serio:
 "Having
the high expectations that I always have, I thought we would have 10
wins before the All-Star Break. But obviously
for players who have been here last year, to match the number
of victories from last year is an accomplishment. But we're not satisfied.
We still need
to be hungry for the rest of the season. We have the opportunity
to be a playoff team."
"We didn't take care of the ball -- didn't make good decisions
-- and they capitalized. We got nonchalant. We didn't play smart during
that run. I was very close to calling a second timeout, after we called
the first one when they started the run. But knowing that the next dead
ball would be a media timeout, we walked away with two timeouts. Fortunately
this time it worked out, and we were able to come back and hit two big
'threes'… Katie and Svet, they don't think twice. They're players
that, with the ball in their hands, have the confidence to take
that shot when the game's on the line."
"Sometimes it's hard to match when a team plays
with a sense of urgency. You play at a higher speed, and sometimes
it's very difficult
to play that way for 40 minutes."
"I think it (scoring) is what she (Edwards) is
known for, prior to coming into the WNBA. Teresa Edwards was always
a scorer,
and here she's asked to be a point guard. Tonight they were keying
on our wings,
denying the entry pass, but she was able to penetrate or hit
shots when they left her."
"I'm worried about Katie. I think her not getting a rest over the
All-Star Break… She played 35 minutes, but I wasn't anticipating
her playing that many minutes -- especially with the back-to-back.
But she's a gamer. She's definitely a player we want on the floor
-- we need
on the floor. She's a winner. Every game is important to us. You
can't look at the schedule and say that you can rest a player this
game. But
if Katie is not healthy, then that is just going to give someone
like Shaun Gortman -- who didn't get an opportunity tonight --
a chance to
come in."
"We have the opportunity to avenge an earlier
loss to Cleveland, in a game we didn't play very well. I think it's
a pride thing,
not to go 0-2 against Cleveland."
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| Katie
Smith:
 "It's
one game at a time. We're just trying to keep our position in the West
-- keep going out and playing hard, try to obviously get some respect
and get into the playoffs. Hopefully we'll get 10 more wins."
"You wonder how -- coming into the game with four days off, and
obviously everybody goes their own way -- how to keep their focus. I
think there may have been a little cobwebs. But everybody came out ready
to play. It looked a little rough at times, but we maintained and made
big plays when we needed to. 'T' played well, Sheri, Svet… You
know, we all did. We kind of did our part to keep our poise and
maintain our lead throughout the ballgame."
"She
(Edwards) is aggressive. She penetrated and finished. She just handled
everything.
For her to be aggressive, and looking for her
shot and knocking them down, it really gave her confidence -- and
obviously helped us in big spells. She hit some big ones for
us. Whenever she steps
up, I feel really good. Even if she's not always making her shots,
she going to run the team and get the ball into people's hands.
This was
a teeny-weeny bit of what she can do. She's helping us out a great
deal, and it's a lot of fun to have her out there. "
"We've
got a big game coming up tomorrow (at Cleveland). They came in here
and whipped
us pretty good. They took it at us, so I'm excited
about playing Cleveland tomorrow night."
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Teresa Edwards:
 "It
felt good to get a good one like this. I think it's my job always to
stay in control of the flow of the game as best I can. I was fortunate
my shots went in. I took a little more, and they went in. When my body
feels better and better every game, I'm not going to hesitate to do
what I do out there. I think the better I feel, the more naturally
I play. You can see that. But believe me, I'll relax and let them do
the work if they do it."
"To
me, I knew that if we had good execution of the basketball -- with
our style and
our strength, it was going to be an easy game.
When we have those type of games, we have to put people away. I
had a coaching mentality of getting frustrated that we weren't
putting people
away. We were kind of letting them hang around."
"Being
a competitor, I still want to win and make the playoffs. And certainly
I have goals
for this team. I don't just want to be here
and be a part of the league. I want to be here and make things
happen. I'll do the best I can every time I go out."
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