Postgame Quotes/Notes - Phoenix 73, Storm 61
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TONIGHT'S NOTES | ||
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ANNE DONOVAN:
On the second half:
They hit a couple of big shots and we didn’t do anything defensively to change what they liked to do. We didn’t take them out of their comfort zone at all, and they just picked up their confidence and their momentum. We just never got into a groove offensively.
On the officiating:
It’s horrendous. There’s not question. They had two fouls in the first half, they gave us chippy fouls at the end of that game. It’s horrendous. Twenty-five to two from the free-throw line?
On the rest of the season:
We’re in control of our destiny and we have not defended. We’ve gone from being a very good defensive team to being average to poor. (Phoenix) struggles to score points and tonight they had a field day. We’ve got to get back to basics because we’ve lost our identity. We have to go back to being ourselves as a team.
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BETTY LENNOX:
On the Storm:
We just didn’t play defense in the second half. That’s what’s killing us. That’s what’s been hurting us the entire season. Even when we win, we don’t play aggressive defense. We’ve gotten away from the concepts, from winning, and winning the tough games. We’ve got some games left. The season’s half way over, but the main thing we have to do is remember that we’re not going to win if we don’t play defense. Right now we’re in a slump, and it’s a difficult one, but it’s all related to our defense. Offense will take care of itself.
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LAUREN JACKSON:
On the game:
We played like crap. We shot ourselves in the foot, and we didn’t help ourselves. The officiating was bad. It was really bad. It was bad.
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CARRIE GRAF:
On the game:
That is the victory we have been waiting for. I think it started last night and we really came out and played with energy and passion. We have been struggling to score, but it's been because we haven’t cranked up our defense and really done a good job on the glass and we did that tonight.
On Phoenix's defense:
Defensively, we really shook it up and that allowed us to run and dominating the rebounding allowed us to run to. I think the energy we have been showing on the defensive end and our aggressiveness on the boards has really changed who we are.
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PENNY TAYLOR:
On the second half:
In the first half, we were struggling to find a weakness in Seattle. In the second half, we started going to the hole more, and our jumpers started falling. All in all we just played with more intensity in the second half. We were able to get to the middle and find the open shots on the kick-out.
It also appeared that our chemistry in the second half was great. Maria (Stepanova) stepped up and hit some big shots and got some crucial second chance opportunities for us with her offensive rebounding. I mean we were just blocking shots and getting more boards in the second half, and that helped set up our offense.
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SHEREKA WRIGHT:
On her performance:
I just tried to provide what ever I could to help the team. I have been feeling more confident, and the things we are working on as a team are starting to carry over to games for me. It has been getting more and more fun for me.
On the Mercury:
As a whole this team is looking more confident. Things are carrying over from practice. Our energy is the key. We need to keep coming out with intensity, urgency and more intensity. If we get all those to continue carrying over from practice, then we will continue to respond as we did tonight.
