Tag Archives: New York Liberty

The Daily W, 07/02/2014

 

San Antonio Stars 74 @ Connecticut Sun 71

 

Lineups: Same again for both teams, with Danielle Adams and Alyssa Thomas continuing to retain their spots ahead of former starters Sophia Young-Malcolm and Allison Hightower. Thomas was in a face-mask after breaking her nose in practice the day before.

 

Story of the Game: An utterly forgettable first half saw Connecticut lead for most of the 20 minutes, but not by much. The advantage they had was that a significant portion of their points were coming at the rim, by running out in transition or working on the offensive glass. San Antonio were relying more on jumpers, which typically produce a lower rate of success even with the shooters on the Stars roster.

The third quarter was thoroughly dominated by San Antonio. When they’re in full flow they’re a lovely team to watch on offense. Endlessly unselfish, always willing to give up a good shot for a great one, they took apart a Connecticut team that looked like they’d taken a nap at halftime and not woken up in time for the restart. Becky Hammon, Danielle Robinson and Kayla McBride were the key players doing the scoring, moving the ball beautifully and exploiting Connecticut’s overplaying defenders by getting in behind them. With everyone on the floor a threat to score, bar Jayne Appel, San Antonio have the luxury of not having to run plays for anyone in particular. They can put all the pieces in motion, watch the defense bend or break, and then take whatever gap opens up. Connecticut both left shooters open and gave up lanes to the basket in the third quarter, and San Antonio moved ahead by double-digits.

But it wasn’t quite over. Katie Douglas played the central role in dragging Connecticut back into the game, attacking the basket on drives rather than settling for jumpers. San Antonio had become a little too one-on-one offensively, losing the team flow from earlier, and a Kelsey Bone layup eventually tied the game with under three minutes to play.

Then it was San Antonio’s turn to bounce back. They scored the next seven points of the game, on a rare Appel post move, a McBride three off a nice staggered-screen play drawn up by Dan Hughes in a timeout, and then free throws once Connecticut started fouling to extend the game. At the other end, San Antonio’s 3-2 zone had the desired effect of slowing the Sun down, forcing a 24-second violation. Then Bone barreled over Young-Malcolm on a post move for another turnover, and the Stars were back in charge. Between Hammon, Robinson and McBride they were 8-8 at the foul line in the closing moments, helping San Antonio hold on despite some late threes from the Sun.

 

Key Players: The perimeter trio of Hammon, Robinson and McBride did most of the work for the Stars, especially in their push in the third quarter. That’s two wins out of two for San Antonio since losing Jia Perkins to her hamstring injury, both featuring strong performances from the remaining perimeter players. It’s a small sample-size to this point, but they’ve stepped up when they needed to without the usual burst of scoring from Perkins off the bench.

Douglas and Bone were the main weapons for Connecticut, although Bone would’ve been more efficient if not for several missed layups. It was a disappointingly quiet night for Chiney Ogwumike, and she’s had a couple of those lately. It’s always hard for rookies to keep playing to their absolute potential throughout their first professional seasons. They’re not used to playing this often, or against this level of competition night-in and night-out.

 

Notes of Interest: Bone was drawing a double-team from the Stars in the low post, which was interesting. There aren’t too many players around the league who gain that kind of respect, but clearly Bone’s offensive game is starting to earn it for her. The defensive end is still where she needs to put in the most work.

 

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Tulsa Shock 74 @ New York Liberty 90

 

Lineups: As expected for both teams. Riquna Williams didn’t even travel with the Shock due to her knee problem. Anna Cruz was playing with strapping on her left hand after dislocating a finger during New York’s previous game.

 

Story of the Game: The opening stages were a joy to behold for Bill Laimbeer and Liberty fans – this was the Tina Charles that they’d been waiting for all season. Charles was in the low post, demanding the ball, and then making aggressive moves towards the basket rather than drifting away from it. That led to baskets, fouls, free throws, and general positive outcomes for New York. Tulsa made things a little easier by trying to single-cover her most of the time, but the effort and method of attack was all Charles.

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The Daily W, 07/01/2014

 

Connecticut Sun 65 @ New York Liberty 67

 

Lineups: Both teams used the same starting lineups we’ve seen in recent games. So Allison Hightower continues to come off the bench for Connecticut since returning from her knee problem.

 

Story of the Game: This was not an offensive showcase, by any means. Credit the defenses to some extent, but basically both teams struggled to hit shots all afternoon. Connecticut in particular had problems knocking down anything from more than two feet, but compensated to some extent by working harder than New York in transition and on the offensive glass. It was a little embarrassing for the Liberty how often Connecticut produced layups simply by beating their opponents down the floor.

After her first ever zero-point game in the WNBA on Friday night against Chicago, Cappie Pondexter still wasn’t afraid to let fly, and hit a few shots in the first half. Also, with the addition of Charde Houston and incremental development of Sugar Rodgers, for the first time it seemed like New York had a bench group that might help them rather than lead to a collapse. It all balanced out to a fairly even first half.

New York crept ahead by as many as nine points in the third quarter, without seeming to do anything particularly special. Connecticut still couldn’t hit a shot unless they were right at the rim, so breakaways and offensive rebounds remained their only forms of attack with any real success. Tina Charles was drawing all kinds of attention whenever she touched the ball in the low post, but still not seeing enough of it down there. New York need to realise that even if she doesn’t score, when the ball reverses out of there they’ll generally get great shots. They often seem to start games and second halves by looking for her inside, and then she drifts away as the play progresses. But she did at least produce a few finishes for the Liberty to help the offense in the second half.

With Katie Douglas and Alex Bentley finally starting to make a few shots – Douglas’s first bucket came on a deep three when New York ignored her, and she almost seemed to shoot out of disgust – Connecticut made it a game in the fourth quarter. It was a one-point game for almost the entire last two minutes, while both sides traded misses. A dismal ‘play’ from Connecticut in the final seconds saw Bentley go nowhere, eventually reverse the ball to Douglas, who had to force up a three that never had a chance. After Anna Cruz added a free throw for New York, another Douglas heave was nowhere near at the buzzer, and New York had clung on.

 

Key Players: Pondexter and Charles led the scoring for New York with 14 apiece, without either playing particularly well. Plenette Pierson and Rodgers had productive appearances off the bench. But the game was won with their team defense and the awful shooting from Connecticut.

Chiney Ogwumike finished 8-14 for 22 points and 17 rebounds, including 8 offensive boards. Between her and Kelsey Bone the Sun thoroughly outworked New York on the glass and in running the floor, but it just wasn’t quite enough without their teammates being able to hit anything from outside. Ogwumike herself repeatedly turned down the mid-range jumpers that New York were offering her all afternoon. She’s extending her range – as all posts working under Anne Donovan are generally tasked to do – but for now she’s much more comfortable doing her work right around the rim.

 

Notes of Interest: Essence Carson didn’t make it off the bench at all, drawing her first ‘Did Not Play – Coach’s Decision’ for a long time. While Anna Cruz and Alex Montgomery have started to become more effective offensively as role players, the complete lack of production from Carson this season has been a major problem for New York. She was meant to be the third wheel for Pondexter and Charles, even if she wasn’t entirely back from her ACL tear. Instead she’s gotten progressively worse, and finally fallen off the end of the rotation. Hopefully she rebounds next year.

 

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San Antonio Stars 73 @ Washington Mystics 65

 

Lineups: Dan Hughes changed up his lineup for the first time in a while, with Danielle Adams supplanting Sophia Young-Malcolm in San Antonio’s starting lineup. Adams has been finishing plenty of games ahead of Young-Malcolm, but it still sends something of a message to remove the veteran from her long-established starting spot. Coming off her own ACL tear, Young-Malcolm hasn’t been as poor as Essence Carson in New York, but there hasn’t been that much in it. The Stars were also without key reserve Jia Perkins, who’s out for at this road trip after straining her hamstring in the game against Atlanta on Thursday night. Washington opened with the same group we’ve seen in their recent games, and had Kara Lawson available again off the bench after missing one game due to dehydration/flu.

 

Story of the Game: The main difference for much of this game was simply shooting. Emma Meesseman produced some points early for Washington, while Ivory Latta drives and Stefanie Dolson finishes added on later in the first half, but San Antonio consistently out-shot them from the perimeter. The ball movement to create the looks for the Stars was pretty good, but having people like Becky Hammon who are a threat to drill threes as soon as they cross half-court was the key element. She had four triples in the first half, three of them from so deep that normally you wouldn’t worry about the player letting fly. But Becky Hammon isn’t exactly a ‘normal’ player, even in the midst of – for her – a pretty mediocre season.

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The Daily W, 06/28/2014

 

Phoenix Mercury 81 @ Indiana Fever 76

 

Lineups: Phoenix stuck with the big lineup that’s been working for them lately, but Indiana made yet another switch to their starting lineup, this time specifically tailored to the Mercury. Former Phoenix center Krystal Thomas, who’s barely played for most of the season in Indiana, came in to start the game and guard Brittney Griner. Karima Christmas dropped to the bench, while Erlana Larkins slid over to power forward.

 

Story of the Game: Indiana were in front and on top for the vast majority of this game, but could never quite kill it off. They played with fantastic energy in the first half, doubling and rotating when they needed to on defense but recovering well to challenge every shot. They got caught out a couple of times with Candice Dupree scoring over smaller defenders in the post after switches, but in general they kept Phoenix very quiet.

On offense, the Fever did a good job of attacking the rim and maintaining their aggression despite the Mercury’s size and length. Obviously, that was easier when Griner was resting, but they kept it up even when she was in the game. Marissa Coleman was also having one of those nights when pullup jumpers and fadeaways were dropping, which helped boost the offense.

Thomas had the first half of her WNBA life, playing effective defense against Griner and the Mercury drivers in the paint, and even chipping in with a couple of buckets when the ball fell her way. She was getting lots of help whenever necessary, and Phoenix struggled to get Griner the ball in the first place, but when Lin Dunn dreamed how inserting Thomas into the lineup would play out, that first half was almost exactly it. Indiana led by nine at the break.

The Fever looked outstandingly well prepared for playing Phoenix, knowing where the holes in the Mercury’s defense were going to crop up before they showed themselves. But Phoenix wouldn’t go away. They still had Dupree finishing plays inside, and Penny Taylor helped in the third quarter as well with her familiar tricky spinning drives into the lane. Phoenix were also starting to shoot a heap of free throws, with Diana Taurasi leading the way after being antagonised by Briann January’s physical defense earlier in the game. Opponents often find they don’t like Diana when she’s angry.

January had a poor game, and was the central figure in the turnover problems that seriously damaged Indiana in the second half. Too many passes went flying out of bounds, or hit a teammate in the feet rather than the hands. And in the final period Phoenix finally completed the comeback. Indiana’s offense had tired and stagnated, while the Mercury were still energised by their charge back into the game. DeWanna Bonner – whose defense has been deservedly castigated here many times in recent years – had two crucial steals in the latter stages. The first created four points because it led to a clear path foul, the two resulting free throws, and then a Dupree finish in the lane. The second came on the ensuing inbounds play, just to further demoralise the Fever.

Indiana were given a chance when Taurasi fouled Shavonte Zellous on a late three, with the resulting foul shots making it a one-point game. But Sandy Brondello drew up a beautiful play in the timeout that followed, confusing the Indiana defense and leaving Taurasi open for three. She drilled it, and that was just about the end of Indiana’s chances.

 

Key Players: Dupree was the most consistent threat for Phoenix over the course of the night, but Taylor’s ‘old man game’ moves helped drag them back, and Taurasi’s driving and big-shotmaking finished it off. Griner was swallowed whole by Indiana’s defense and faded from the game badly, which was a discouraging sign, despite her six blocks.

Indiana actually played a heck of a game, but just couldn’t keep it up for all 40 minutes. After recent close losses to Tulsa and Minnesota, they’ll be very disappointed to let this one slip away as well. Thomas did what was asked of her on the defensive end, and may well have earned more minutes even against other opponents. Lynetta Kizer is the far more talented offensive player, but Thomas is the vastly better defender. Coleman and Zellous did most of their scoring, with some help from Larkins and Christmas, but it was a collective effort that nearly held off one of the better teams in the league. Unfortunately, ‘nearly’ doesn’t count for anything in the standings.

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The Daily W, 06/23/2014

 

Tulsa Shock 105 @ Chicago Sky 99 (OT)

 

Lineups: Same starting groups for both teams, although Riquna Williams was available again for Tulsa off the bench. She didn’t play much after two hideous turnovers late in the first quarter – both on pathetically lazy underarm ‘passes’. Maybe she wasn’t really ready to play, although the problem looked like it was more in her head than her knee.

 

Story of the Game: The defense in the opening stages of this game was flat-out embarrassing at both ends of the floor. Chicago were repeatedly giving up dribble penetration right into the heart of their defense; Tulsa’s rotations to cover after simple picks and passes were desperately slow or occasionally nonexistent. It provided a lot of points for the national audience on ESPN2, but some dismal viewing for the basketball purist.

It didn’t get a great deal better as the game wore on, although the teams tried to cover up their holes. After Roneeka Hodges had been smoking hot from outside to open up a lead for Tulsa, Allie Quigley starting draining threes for Chicago to turn it around. It helped that the Shock were barely bothering to even recognise she was on the floor, never mind defend her. Chicago led by 10 at halftime.

The Sky had Jessica Breland back in top form, being left in far too much space and adding some one-on-one moves to the free throw line jumper she’s been hitting all season. Pokey Chatman also got her team to start overwhelmingly collapsing into the lane to cover for the dribble-penetration. If you drop five defenders into the paint whenever anyone even looks like being beaten off the dribble, at least there’ll be a lot of traffic in the way when they try to get to the hoop.

With Skylar Diggins pushing the offense, and Glory Johnson picking up some scraps in her battle with Breland, Tulsa kept hanging around in range in the second half. They couldn’t quite get enough stops to complete the comeback, until the last few seconds of regulation. Jordan Hooper hit a three for Tulsa, Johnson finished off a nice feed from Diggins, and then Johnson drove from the elbow through contact for a three-point play with 19 seconds left. That tied up a game that Chicago had led for every second since early in the second quarter. It also picked up Breland’s fifth foul. Chicago had a chance to win it, but Epiphanny Prince’s pullup jumper off a high Markeisha Gatling pick was short, and Breland’s putback attempt hit the side of the backboard. Extra basketball.

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The Daily W, 06/21/2014

 

New York Liberty 64 @ Atlanta Dream 85

 

Lineups: Same again for both teams. So recent additions to the starting lineup in New York, Alex Montgomery and Avery Warley-Talbert, retained their spots ahead of Essence Carson (poor performance) and Plenette Pierson (semi-injured). Atlanta continue to start Jasmine Thomas at the point, sliding Shoni Schimmel and Celine Dumerc in during the course of the game.

 

Story of the Game: By some distance, this was the most comprehensively we’ve seen a team approach New York with a “someone other than your stars must beat us” attitude this season. Every time Cappie Pondexter used an on-ball screen, the two defenders involved both went to her, trapping the ball out of her hands. Similarly, double-teams dropped down on Tina Charles whenever she touched the ball inside, although she had trouble converting anything all night even when she got shots up before extra defenders arrived. Atlanta trusted their defensive rotations and help behind the traps to cover the gaps, and understandably felt they were better off conceding good looks to Montgomery, Warley-Talbert, Anna Cruz and the other role players – rather than letting Pondexter or Charles carry the offense. Other teams have beaten New York without being quite so overt in their efforts to limit New York’s stars, but essentially the plan worked. Pondexter kept passing, Charles either missed or disappeared, and Atlanta moved in front.

Angel McCoughtry drove much of Atlanta’s offense in the first half, although once again she was a little too focussed on her own scoring. But she was attacking the rim, always giving the Dream an option offensively if nothing else presented itself. They had better energy than New York, better ball movement, and their defensive intensity fed into their offense, which has always been the case when Atlanta are at their best. Aneika Henry had another strong half as well, in what’s becoming a legitimate three-post rotation, rather than Sancho Lyttle, Erika de Souza, and hoping you can find some rest for that pair. Atlanta led by 14 at halftime, despite dismal outside shooting. They were getting to the rim and the free throw line more than often enough, while dominating the glass, and the Liberty couldn’t keep up.

Both teams went deep into their benches in the second half, when Atlanta’s lead was rarely threatened. These teams are on very different paths at the moment, with Atlanta winning their sixth straight while New York lost their eighth in nine games. It was pretty easy to tell which was which from their confidence levels and performance on the floor.

 

Key Players: McCoughtry led Atlanta’s scoring, but needed 19 shots for 18 points, and was benched in the second half when Michael Cooper seemed to tire of her selfishness as much as I did. She finished with six assists, which shows how far her game has come in the last couple of years – she still makes passes and finds her teammates, even when it feels like she’s hogging the ball a little during the play. In years past, she’d have had one assist in a game like that, on an airball that the scorer generously counted as a pass.

Tiffany Hayes had fantastic energy throughout the game, throwing herself around the court as usual. It’s not a real Hayes game unless she hits the floor at least four or five times – which unfortunately leads to too many problematic little injuries. But for now, she’s settling into her starting role, bringing the same fire that she used to add from the bench. It’s Schimmel who’s taken on that sixth woman role now, and she had some of her typical highlight-reel passes, while shooting pretty poorly.

New York had nothing much offensively from anyone, although Montgomery shot pretty well when she occasionally let fly. We’d see more teams approach playing them this way – with an overwhelming focus on defending Pondexter and Charles – if the Liberty were playing well enough for opponents to feel they needed to bother adapting that heavily.

 

Notes of Interest: While it would’ve made little difference for this game, it’s hard to understand why Charles and Pondexter are ever on the bench at the same time. This is a team built around two stars, with other players essentially told they’re supporting acts from the start. Surely it’s possible to stagger the rest for Charles and Pondexter so that one of them is always on the floor to help her teammates? They seem to rest simultaneously for stretches of every single Liberty game.

 

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Washington Mystics 65 @ Minnesota Lynx 75

 

Lineups: There was good news for Minnesota before tip-off, with Seimone Augustus returning to the starting lineup after missing a game due to bursitis in her left knee. The Mystics started the same group that we’ve seen in recent games. Washington’s Tayler Hill has now had her baby, and is apparently expected to return before the end of the season – but obviously was still unavailable for this game. Minnesota are down to just one player still out due to preseason knee surgery, with Rebekkah Brunson still on the sidelines.

 

Story of the Game: Augustus didn’t look like someone worrying about knee pain, with a three and a spinning drive into the lane in the opening minutes. Maya Moore joined in the scoring and the Lynx took control of the game late in the first quarter and early in the second. A stretch of three cheap Washington turnovers, while Minnesota hit three jumpers at the other end before rounding it off with a transition layup, left the Lynx up by 17.

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The Daily W, 06/19/2014

 

Washington Mystics 73 @ Atlanta Dream 83

 

Lineups: Same starting groups as in recent games for both teams, so the same initial matchups we saw when these teams met on Sunday night in Washington.

 

Story of the Game: There wasn’t much between the teams in the first half, but Washington held a narrow lead for most of it. They had the majority of their success from beyond the three-point line, which has been a rarity for the Mystics this year – they’ve been shooting the worst percentage in the WNBA on threes. Bria Hartley and Ivory Latta led the barrage, with Atlanta collapsing to protect the paint, Washington moving the ball back out, and knocking down the open looks.

The Mystics also managed to stay even with Atlanta on the boards, where they’d been destroyed by the Dream on Sunday night. And while Angel McCoughtry was aggressive and broke down the Washington defense off the dribble repeatedly, she wasn’t converting her drives at the rim very often, which kept Atlanta’s offense in check. The Dream were always in touch, but trailing.

Atlanta came out with better energy for the second half. Center Erika de Souza seemed a little banged up, and Michael Cooper subbed her out early to put in the slighty more mobile Aneika Henry, which gave the Dream better coverage and rotation defensively. It worked, and several steals led to Atlanta points. Alongside the defense, better conversion from McCoughtry and more of those offensive rebounds that helped them beat the Mystics on Sunday allowed Atlanta to turn the game around and take the lead. Turnovers have been a problem for Washington in many games this season, and it’s especially dangerous to give the ball away against a team that enjoys running as much as the Dream.

Atlanta didn’t exactly take control and charge away into the distance in the fourth quarter, but they did enough. Washington hit an offensive drought, where they failed to score a point for nearly six minutes while a series of jump shots bounced off the iron, and that killed their chances. Mike Thibault got so desperate that he even went super-big for a couple of minutes, with Emma Meesseman, Stefanie Dolson and Kia Vaughn all on the floor simultaneously. It didn’t work at all, and merely signalled how emphatically they’d run out of answers.

 

Key Players: This was one of those Dream games where McCoughtry was front and center from the start, and refused to be anywhere else all afternoon. She finished the game 10-22 from the field, while none of her teammates attempted more than nine shots. She gave them impetus when they needed it, and she’s been a much improved passer the last couple of years, but there was maybe a little bit too much of the old greedy-McCoughtry on show. Still, they got the win, and she carried the scoring load. You can hardly complain too much.

Henry had a useful game off the bench, and it’s a good sign for the Dream that Cooper’s realising she can be effective in slightly different ways from de Souza, so can sometimes be a necessary alternative.

Hartley and Meesseman led the scoring for Washington, who rather lost their way once those threes stopped dropping. They were 5-6 from beyond the arc in the first quarter, but only 3-11 the rest of the game (with just one make in the entire second half). They couldn’t contrive enough points via other avenues to keep up with Atlanta in the second half.

 

Notes of Interest: Teams continue to pick on Shoni Schimmel’s defense when she enters games, which is probably the main reason that her minutes have dwindled since she exploded onto the scene in her opening games as a pro. She’s getting better, but it’s veteran French point guard Celine Dumerc who’s most likely to take Jasmine Thomas’s spot in the starting lineup at some point, rather than Schimmel. With the Dream having won their last five games, Cooper probably won’t be changing anything any time soon.

 

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New York Liberty 100 @ Chicago Sky 105 (OT)

 

Lineups: New York had Plenette Pierson back in uniform after she missed a game with another knee problem, but Avery Warley-Talbert stayed in the starting lineup while Pierson came off the bench. Bill Laimbeer finally bit the bullet and relegated Essence Carson to the bench, making the switch to Alex Montgomery at small forward. As mentioned here after the Liberty’s loss in Connecticut on Sunday, that’s a swap that had been coming for a while.

The Sky were still without Elena Delle Donne due to illness related to her past Lyme disease issues, but had power forward Jessica Breland back from her shin problem. She went straight back into the starting lineup, moving Gennifer Brandon to the bench (and Brandon stayed there most of the afternoon – Tamera Young was the makeshift backup power forward when Breland rested).

 

Story of the Game: Tina Charles destroyed Chicago in the paint in the early stages of this game. The Sky tried single-covering her, and neither Breland or Sasha Goodlett could do anything to stop her. When they finally started sending some double-teams, it didn’t seem like there was any kind of plan. The extra defender just wandered over from whatever direction she felt like, which didn’t help much. When Sylvia Fowles isn’t around, there needs to be a better concept of how to deal with Charles before the game begins.

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The Daily W, 06/17/2014

 

Apologies for this post not arriving until now. The WNBA tends to take Mondays off, and occasionally I follow suit. Analysis of all Sunday’s action below, along with previews for tonight’s matchups.

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Phoenix Mercury 80 @ Minnesota Lynx 72

 

Lineups: The starters were as expected for Minnesota, but Phoenix promoted Penny Taylor for the first time this season, with Erin Phillips dropping to the bench. It was more to shift Sandy Brondello’s rotations than a benching of Phillips. The big perimeter of Diana Taurasi, DeWanna Bonner and Taylor have too often been playing together when Brittney Griner rests this year, highlighting their defensive deficiencies. Starting all three put Griner behind them immediately, helping to cover for them. Minnesota had sixth woman Monica Wright in uniform and available to play for the first time this season after recovering from her knee surgery.

 

Story of the Game: After winning their last 14 encounters with the Mercury, it’s fair to say the Lynx were strong favourites for this game. But it was Phoenix who dominated the first half. They outplayed Minnesota in virtually every area. They moved the ball better, and hit the shots they created around the perimeter. They attacked quickly when they had the chance, with the Lynx transition defense leaving a lot to be desired. They played good enough defense, leaving Minnesota mostly settling for jump shots, which weren’t dropping with their usual rate for the star perimeter of Lindsay Whalen, Seimone Augustus and Maya Moore. And at the head of it all, Diana Taurasi was leading the way, hitting shots, drawing fouls, and flashing the ball around the floor for her teammates to score as well. The Mercury led by 19 at halftime.

It was an odd, unfortunate combination of issues for Minnesota. Sometimes they looked like they were playing in a rush, firing up shots quickly rather than working their offense and picking Phoenix apart as they’ve done in the past. Sometimes they looked lifeless, the ball failing to move around the floor enough to open up the defense. Griner hadn’t even managed to finish any of her efforts in the paint and was barely a factor offensively in the first half, limited by Janel McCarville’s physical defense. Griner finally got involved in the third quarter, especially once McCarville was on the bench and Devereaux Peters was trying to defend her. Peters looked thoroughly overmatched.

There was no real hint of a comeback until late in the fourth quarter, by which stage Cheryl Reeve had given up on all her big names. Rookie big Damiris Dantas was the only starter left on the floor, with Wright making her first appearance of the season with under six minutes left in the game. Phoenix looked nervous in the final stages, almost shocked that they were on the brink of finally beating Minnesota, and unsure of how to finish it off. But ultimately the gap was just too big, and six points was a close as the Lynx came.

 

Key Players: Taurasi was at her imperious best, while Candice Dupree continues to play with her trademark smoothness and happily knocks down the open shots teams keep offering her. That’s how it’s supposed to work for this team on offense – put so many dangerous weapons on the floor that the opponent has to pick their poison, and then you kill them with whatever’s left open. The big starting group clearly worked, and Brondello will probably stick with it for the forseeable future. It’ll be interesting to see if it’s as effective against teams that start quick, nippy little guards, rather than the big, physical perimeter players that the Lynx use.

It was a pretty miserable game all around for Minnesota. None of their star scorers ever really found a flow, and it took players like Tan White and Asia Taylor to really give them any impetus. It’ll be a matchup of two teams trying to regain their energy and end ugly runs when they face the Sparks tonight in LA.

 

Notes of Interest: Griner finished with a +/- of -7 for the game, showing that much of Phoenix’s lead was built when she was on the bench. That’s a big positive for a Mercury team whose defense has been falling to bits when Griner rests for much of the season. They were flowing so nicely by the time she sat that the offense kept going and Minnesota never took advantage.

Reeve picked up two technical fouls, but didn’t get ejected. How did that happen? Well the first was a ‘non-unsportsmanlike’ technical for leaving the coaching box, similar to a delay of game, defensive three-seconds or hanging on the rim technical for a player. The second was the more traditional mouthing-off tech. Those don’t add up to ejection, under the rules, so Reeve got to stay.

 

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New York Liberty 72 @ Connecticut Sun 76

 

Lineups: Plenette Pierson was out for New York, after the renewed knee injury she picked up against the same opponent on Friday night. Avery Warley-Talbert stepped into the hole. Connecticut were also missing their starting power forward, with Chiney Ogwumike attending her graduation ceremony at Stanford. Kelsey Griffin filled that spot, with Alyssa Thomas continuing to start as well due to Allison Hightower’s knee strain keeping her out again.

 

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The Daily W, 06/14/2014

 

Chicago Sky 68 @ Washington Mystics 79

 

Lineups: Chicago had the same major injury problems as Tuesday night, with Elena Delle Donne (illness related to Lyme disease) and Jessica Breland (shin) joining Sylvia Fowles (hip) as absentees. Gennifer Brandon started at power forward again, while Epiphanny Prince got her first start of the season after her strong finish to the Seattle game on Tuesday. Allie Quigley went back to the bench.

Washington promoted Monique Currie back into the starting lineup, moving Tierra Ruffin-Pratt back to the bench.

 

Story of the Game: It was a scrappy first half, with Washington eventually developing a small lead via a few transition baskets in the second quarter. Emma Meesseman’s interior passing was an early highlight, while Kara Lawson came in and got the ball where it needed to be later in the half. Her shooting touch is still proving pretty elusive, but she’s an experienced guard who can run the team as well.

Chicago had Prince breaking down the defense early on, but it failed to result in many points. Quigley hit several shots once she came off the pine, which kept the game close. Washington weren’t really moving the ball well enough as a team to exploit all the holes in Chicago’s defense that Seattle had illustrated in their previous game.

Mike Thibault keeps talking in interviews about how they need Meesseman to be a more forceful player offensively, to look to score and be a central figure for them when they have the ball. She’s young and doesn’t have the selfish personality to make her naturally want to do that, but maybe Thibault reinforced the message again at halftime. We saw more aggression from Meesseman in the second half, finally going right at defenders like Brandon who really can’t guard her. When Brandon sat, Tamera Young was the emergency power forward, which gave Chicago even less chance of surviving inside.

The Mystics finally started to take over the game early in the fourth quarter, perhaps awakened by the scare from Chicago taking a brief lead. Washington used Meesseman and Tianna Hawkins together in the post for that stretch, a pair we haven’t seen much this season (they usually sub in and out for each other). They were both too big and too quick for the Chicago options. On the perimeter Washington had rookie guard Bria Hartley providing a scoring balance, and also ran a couple of plays specifically designed to get shots for Lawson – and she actually knocked them down.

After growing tired of the ineffectiveness of both Courtney Vandersloot and backup Jamierra Faulkner, Chicago had Epiphanny Prince playing as a virtual point guard for much of the second half. Just setting a high pick for Prince and letting her try to make something happen was typically a better option than trying to run an offensive set. It worked for a while, but didn’t hold up in the fourth, and Washington held on for a relatively comfortable final few minutes.

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The Daily W, 06/11/2014

 

New York Liberty 57 @ Tulsa Shock 72

 

Lineups: As expected for both teams, with both trying to build on big wins – New York in a blowout over Washington on Sunday, Tulsa with their first victory of the season over Phoenix on Friday.

 

Story of the Game: After a desperately scrappy opening – often the case in these day games that take place before players’ body-clocks say they should be playing – it was Tulsa who eventually got themselves into gear and took control of the first half. It was mostly on jump shots from their perimeter players, but with enough drive-and-kick beforehand, or the occasional post-up or offensive rebound from Courtney Paris and Glory Johnson, to keep the defense honest.

New York weren’t hitting shots like they did in the first half against Washington, so nothing looked as smooth. Paris did a decent job contesting against Tina Charles in the paint early on, and then the turnover issues started kicking in. It’s been a recurring problem for New York over the last couple of years, but generally not too bad in the early games this season. They were just sloppy, in a game where they should’ve been taking advantage of one of the weaker defenses in the league. The answer they tried for their misfiring offense midway through the second quarter was to post-up Cappie Pondexter, and it actually worked a couple of times. But a gimmick like that isn’t going to salvage your whole performance, and the Liberty trailed by 13 at halftime.

New York dragged themselves back within four points in the third quarter, as Tulsa started firing up a lot of bricks from mid-range. With Tulsa largely leaving Paris to guard Charles on her own, rather than sending the endless double-teams that come from many opponents, Charles became more aggressive and started carrying the Liberty offense.

But in the fourth quarter, Tulsa took the game back. Skylar Diggins’s one-on-one attempts to prop up her team’s offense were more successful than Pondexter’s at the other end, with a series of drives and pullups from Diggins creating the points they needed. Pondexter couldn’t convert her attempts, going 0-7 in the period, and that was the game.

 

Key Players: Paris was solid for Tulsa, doing a decent job for much of the afternoon battling Charles without a great deal of help. Paris also came up with 16 rebounds, often out-fighting Charles for them and showing more desire to claim the ball. Beyond that Diggins was the key figure for the Shock, being a willing passer for most of the game but stepping up late as a scorer, and continuing to play with increasing confidence. Odyssey Sims gets the primary defensive assignments – in this case Pondexter – but Diggins has been the superior offensive force in most games this year.

Charles finished 11-19 for 25 points and 10 boards, but didn’t get a lot of help. Pondexter’s shot wasn’t falling, and the supporting players continue to disappear for the Liberty. Essence Carson has been MIA for a while now, Plenette Pierson was invisible, and rotation pieces like Anna Cruz and Alex Montgomery are sometimes a little too comfortable fading into the background. The roster was built around two stars with a supporting cast, but the players can buy into that format a bit too much at times. It’s hard to win games with only two real threats on the floor, especially when both rarely hit form on the same night.

 

Notes of Interest: Maybe that dominating first half against Washington really was just a fluke. Sometimes that first swallow flying by was just lost.

 

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Phoenix Mercury 81 @ Washington Mystics 66

 

Lineups: As normal for the Mercury, with Bria Hartley coming back into the starting lineup for Jelena Milovanovic for Washington.

 

Story of the Game: It felt like Phoenix were in control for most of the first half, but they never managed to convert it into a significant advantage on the scoreboard. They were moving the ball well, and finding open shooters off pick-and-roll actions, with Brittney Griner, Candice Dupree and even DeWanna Bonner all producing points. But it wasn’t efficient enough to pull away.

Washington got a nice run of points from Emma Meesseman in the opening period, but otherwise spent too much time firing mid-range jumpers and missing most of them. An 8-2 advantage on the offensive glass, and the resulting edge in second-chance points, helped them keep up with the Mercury. Tianna Hawkins, the young power forward acquired from Seattle in the Crystal Langhorne trade, played a central role in that and continues to produce well on a per-minute basis (but not play that many minutes). Even with the desire to feature Meesseman (who mostly plays the same position), if Hawkins keeps performing they’ll have to find more playing time for her.

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The Daily W, 06/09/2014

 

Washington Mystics 64 @ New York Liberty 81

 

Lineups: New York started the same as in other recent game. Washington went back to the lineup they used the last time they played the Liberty, nine days earlier. That meant Tierra Ruffin-Pratt sliding to shooting guard, and Jelena Milovanovic coming in at small forward. Bria Hartley went back to the bench. It worked last time against New York.

 

Story of the Game: Nothing worked this time for the Mystics. This game was essentially over by halftime, as Washington floundered and were blown off the floor by a Liberty team that suddenly found their stride. New York scored the first 10 points of the game, largely on jump shots from Cappie Pondexter and Essence Carson, while Washington forced up a lot of jumpers at the other end and hit nothing. The Mystics eventually found a few points when Kara Lawson came off the bench and showed some signs of the Lawson of old, who’d barely made an appearance this season. She hit a three on a kick-out, a pullup three in transition, and then capped off the first quarter with a last second steal and bomb from about 30 feet. All that only allowed the Mystics to stay within five points at the end of the opening period.

Without any more Lawson heroics in the second quarter, New York blew the game open. Some of the Liberty’s success was simply down to one of those freak exceptional shooting nights. They only scored six points in the paint in the second quarter, but totalled 32 behind the jump shots raining in from all over the floor. But you also have to give credit to the Liberty for the pace they played at, the way they moved the ball and exploited the opportunities presented to them, and the energy and enthusiasm they carried through the game. They created good shots, which always increases your chances of a night like this where the basket looks a mile wide. They were up by 22 at halftime.

There was never even a hint of a comeback in the second half, and the entire fourth quarter was garbage time. New York shot 26% in the second half, scored just eight points in the fourth quarter, and yet it was probably the most relaxing 20 minutes of basketball for Liberty fans all season.

 

Key Players: Cappie Pondexter was a ridiculous 10-11 from the field, with the only shot she missed all day a forced three under heavy pressure to beat the shot clock. Not a single one of the 11 attempts came from within 12 feet, as she just dropped in jump shots at will. If that Cappie showed up every night this team would not be 3-5 and looking up at most of the Eastern Conference. Anna Cruz and Alex Montgomery had nice games alongside her as well, with Tina Charles not needing to be any more than solid.

The whole game was an example of how easy basketball can seem when your shots are dropping, because the Liberty looked like a completely different animal from what we’ve seen for most of the season. But they were never tested. There was never a period of adversity that posed any tough questions for them, or forced them to keep their heads up while things looked like they might be going wrong. It takes more than one swallow to make a summer, so let’s see if any more come flying by before we get too excited. But that very first swallow can sometimes be a lovely sign of things to come.

Washington are going to have games like this. They’re solid, and organised, and they can beat anyone on a given day, but they’re not super-talented and sometimes teams will just out-play them. The solitary positive for the Mystics from this game was that Lawson hit some shots. Just like with the Liberty, we don’t know yet whether that was a fluke or a sign of future continued success, but it’s a damn sight better than all the bricks she’s been throwing up in previous games.

 

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Minnesota Lynx 85 @ Los Angeles Sparks 72

 

Lineups: Same group for Minnesota that they’ve been using all season. After dropping to the bench for one game due to her ankle problem, Candace Parker was back in the starting lineup for LA, with Jantel Lavender back on the bench. The starting perimeter was Lindsey Harding, Alana Beard and Armintie Herrington again, leaving Kristi Toliver to continue coming off the bench. This was expected to be Toliver’s final game before rejoining the Slovakian national team for their remaining EuroBasket Women 2015 qualifiers.

 

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