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Boxscore Recap

TONIGHT'S NOTES

All five of the Monarchs starting line-up including, Rebekkah Brunson, Yolanda Griffith, Nicole Powell, Chelsea Newton and Ticha Penichiero had double figure games. Rebekkah Brunson led the charge with 14 points shooting 2-of-2 from the line and 6-10 from the field. She also grabbed 11 rebounds, which was her 13th career double-double. Nicole Powell, Chelsea Newton and Ticha Penicheiro, each tallied 10 points, while Yolanda Griffith scored 13 points shooting 6-of-10 from the field. Off the bench, leading candidate for the 2007 WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year Award, Kara Lawson scored 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting. The Monarchs outscored the Storm in points in the paint (38-22) and second chance points (24-15). The Monarchs turned the ball over a season-low eight times. On the other hand, the Storm turned the ball over 23 times, which resulted in 26 points for the Monarchs. Betty Lennox led the Storm with 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including 3-of-5 from behind the three point line. Janell Burse tallied a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Also in double figures for Seattle were Iziane Castro Marques with 12 points and Sue Bird with 11 points. After scoring eight points in 14 minutes, Lauren Jackson left the game in the second quarter with a left groin strain. The Storm out-shot the Monarchs in field goal percentage, (48%-43%), three point field goal percentage (53%-33%) and free throw percentage, (86%-68%).

August 3, 2007

STORM COACH ANNE DONOVAN:

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On the key to controlling the game, up until the fourth quarter:
I thought we were in good position but not in control of the game. You can’t have control of the game against Sacramento but we were definitely in the driver’s seat. But in the fourth quarter we let them get away from us on the offensive boards. We missed four to five key shots and we continued to turn the ball over in the second half.

On Rebekkah Brunson’s key rebounds near the end of the game:
She does a great cover of the back boards. She had a lot of rebounds and some great baskets as well. She was certainly instrumental in their win.

On what needs to be focused on if the Storm were to play the Monarchs in the playoffs:
We have to learn lessons. We gave up 16 offensive boards the first time we played them and tonight 18. At some point you have to learn. Hopefully we’ll get a few more wins and get back to Seattle. We have to get back on track.

On Kara Lawson’s ability to come off the bench for the Monarchs:
Kara Lawson is a great player and she gives them a great lift off the bench.

FORWARD LAUREN JACKSON:

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On the seriousness of her injury:
We’ll see – it’s probably going to be day-to-day. I had to leave because of the pain. I just pulled my groin a little bit but I think it will be okay.

On how she feels the Storm performed in the first three quarters:
It was great. Everyone played really well. It’s a shame that we couldn’t pull it out. It’s just one of those tough losses that we just couldn’t finish unfortunately.

On Rebekkah Brunson’s presence in the fourth quarter:
She played really well. Honestly, she’s athletic. She gets on the boards and is powerful. It’s a shame we couldn’t stop her tonight. Rebekkah definitely killed us.

On Kara Lawson’s performance off of the bench:
Kara is definitely a great shooter. She gets things done as well. A lot people can’t play with her. She’s very important – she helped them win a Championship.

GUARD IZIANE CASTRO MARQUES:

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On the game:
I think our players came out ready to play defense and stopped whoever they were supposed to guard. I thought we can always do better during other parts of the game too.

On what would have the difference in the fourth quarter:
Definitely offensive boards. That’s how the Monarchs came back and made it their game. It was the points and the boards. They gave themselves second chances and they were easy buckets for them. They were right under the basket with nobody guarding. That would have been the key.

On Kara Lawson’s performance:
That’s what she does. She's the spark from the bench. She comes on the court and she plays well and that’s what she comes in ready for.

GUARD SUE BIRD:

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On the game:
I think we played well for three quarters and most of the fourth quarter but not well enough in those last few minutes. That’s where you win the game.

On Rebekkah Brunson’s performance:
That’s what she does [rebound]. She’s a great rebounder and that’s what she comes into the game to do. She did it for them tonight again.

On Kara Lawson:
She really ignites them. She comes off the bench and gives them the push. She’s one the best sixth women in the League. She should be a starter. The only reason why Kara’s not starting is because they like to play pressure defense. She could be a starter on any team in this League.

On how her knee has been since the injury:
I had surgery to fix it up and it’s been ten times better since. I’ve been really happy; it feels good.

SACRAMENTO HEAD COACH JENNY BOUCEK:

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On whether she’s relying more on her veterans:
This is a learning process for all of us. So I’m learning my team and they’re learning my system. Hopefully I’m getting more comfortable with them in different situations.

On whether she’s more comfortable coaching on the fly now than she was earlier in the season:
This is not easy, I’ve been on a steep learning curve and so are the players with a new system. We are learning as quick as we can and I know I am. I have a long ways to go but I am learning as quickly as I can so that I can help this team in any way possible.

On the last two games against Seattle:
This is a team that is right on our heels. This is a team that is playing with great urgency right now. It’s a great team; they play great basketball. They can go on a run and win the championship, they’re that good. For us to weather their storm… this is a team in Seattle that can explode offensively. For us to weather that and hold our composure and counter a very good team and pull it out down the stretch, that’s an area that we’ve grown in.

GUARD CHELSEA NEWTON:

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On the last two games against Seattle:
It’s tough, Seattle is a great team, we know that they can score a bunch so it’s a big challenge on our defense. Just playing them back to back, you can tell they obviously had a game plan. Before we kept the ball out of Sue’s hands and let other people run the offense. Today I guess she made it a goal of her’s to get the ball every single time, so it made us work a lot harder.

On what it took for the Monarchs to go on a 9-0 run in the fourth quarter:
We know what it takes to win games, and for us it takes a lot of energy on the defensive end. It takes us playing together, passing the ball, just feeding off of each other, just being explosive. Coach brought that to our attention the first half, we played okay but it wasn’t our level. It wasn’t the way we played basketball.

GUARD NICOLE POWELL:

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On the game:
I’m sure glad we won, it felt good. Everyone stepped in and did their part. The team made a great run to get us back in it, the last five minutes of the fourth quarter was incredible to watch. It was fun

On the last two games against Seattle:
I know that they’re very important games. Good test or not, I can tell that they are a very good team, I think every team that you are going to play is a good team. At this point in the season everyone is trying to make it to the playoffs. Every team is good and every game is going to be very hard. We need as many wins as we can get.

2007 Postgame Quotes/Notes Archive