Sacramento Monarchs-New York Liberty gamer for the Sacramento Bee
Monarchs fall into a hole early
By Denis Gorman - Special To The Bee
Published 12:00 am PDT
Monday, July 9, 2007
Monarchs head coach Jenny Boucek screamed at her team during a second-quarter timeout, sarcastically asking, "Can we hold them under 50?"
And Sacramento did, limiting the New York Liberty to 48 points in the first half.
If you're looking for a bright spot in the Monarchs' 71-61 loss to the Liberty on Sunday at Madison Square Garden, that was it.
Boucek repeatedly challenged her team during the first half, at one point noting the Liberty was "going to have 130 points (at the end of the game). Figure it out."
Later, in exasperation, she said, "We'll start over. I don't care if we lose the game; I just want us to play better."
That didn't happen. Following Chelsea Newton's free throw to give the Monarchs (12-7) an 8-7 lead with 6:34 left in the first quarter, New York went on a 41-20 run to end the first half.
"We just wanted to play our game. We came out and obviously started the game well," Liberty forward-center Janel McCarville said. "Our shooters hit shots, and we rebounded and played well in the first half."
The Liberty (10-8) had four players in double-figure scoring, led by Cathrine Kraayeveld and Erin Thorn with 13 apiece. The Monarchs' Rebekkah Brunson led both teams with 18.
Before Sunday's matinee, the Monarchs had won 10 of their past 14 games, averaging 76.2 points while allowing 71.5. And it could have been argued the defensive numbers were somewhat skewed by two double-overtime losses in June, in which they gave up 96 points to the Los Angeles Sparks and 92 to the Chicago Sky.
Then came Sunday's game. New York jumped to a 32-12 first-quarter lead, forcing the defense-oriented Monarchs to try to play catchup.
"New York played really well -- they came out really sharp," Boucek said. "I don't think we came out like we needed to come out. We cannot ever give up that many points.
"One quarter we did not play well defensively; that's the story of the game. In the first quarter, they kicked our tails."
The difference between the 2007 Liberty and last year's 11-23 squad is that the 2006 team, with Becky Hammon and not much else, relied too greatly on a perimeter game. This year's version -- without Hammon, now playing for the San Antonio Silver Stars -- boasts an inside-out game.
Of the Liberty's 71 points, 20 came in the paint. When the Monarchs doubled New York's interior players, they kicked the ball out to guards for open jumpers.
"Offensively, we are hitting shots," said Thorn, who had five assists and seven rebounds. "Everybody's hitting shots, so we're hard to guard."
http://www.sacbee.com/100/story/263147.html
By Denis Gorman - Special To The Bee
Published 12:00 am PDT
Monday, July 9, 2007
Monarchs head coach Jenny Boucek screamed at her team during a second-quarter timeout, sarcastically asking, "Can we hold them under 50?"
And Sacramento did, limiting the New York Liberty to 48 points in the first half.
If you're looking for a bright spot in the Monarchs' 71-61 loss to the Liberty on Sunday at Madison Square Garden, that was it.
Boucek repeatedly challenged her team during the first half, at one point noting the Liberty was "going to have 130 points (at the end of the game). Figure it out."
Later, in exasperation, she said, "We'll start over. I don't care if we lose the game; I just want us to play better."
That didn't happen. Following Chelsea Newton's free throw to give the Monarchs (12-7) an 8-7 lead with 6:34 left in the first quarter, New York went on a 41-20 run to end the first half.
"We just wanted to play our game. We came out and obviously started the game well," Liberty forward-center Janel McCarville said. "Our shooters hit shots, and we rebounded and played well in the first half."
The Liberty (10-8) had four players in double-figure scoring, led by Cathrine Kraayeveld and Erin Thorn with 13 apiece. The Monarchs' Rebekkah Brunson led both teams with 18.
Before Sunday's matinee, the Monarchs had won 10 of their past 14 games, averaging 76.2 points while allowing 71.5. And it could have been argued the defensive numbers were somewhat skewed by two double-overtime losses in June, in which they gave up 96 points to the Los Angeles Sparks and 92 to the Chicago Sky.
Then came Sunday's game. New York jumped to a 32-12 first-quarter lead, forcing the defense-oriented Monarchs to try to play catchup.
"New York played really well -- they came out really sharp," Boucek said. "I don't think we came out like we needed to come out. We cannot ever give up that many points.
"One quarter we did not play well defensively; that's the story of the game. In the first quarter, they kicked our tails."
The difference between the 2007 Liberty and last year's 11-23 squad is that the 2006 team, with Becky Hammon and not much else, relied too greatly on a perimeter game. This year's version -- without Hammon, now playing for the San Antonio Silver Stars -- boasts an inside-out game.
Of the Liberty's 71 points, 20 came in the paint. When the Monarchs doubled New York's interior players, they kicked the ball out to guards for open jumpers.
"Offensively, we are hitting shots," said Thorn, who had five assists and seven rebounds. "Everybody's hitting shots, so we're hard to guard."
http://www.sacbee.com/100/story/263147.html
posted by Denis P. Gorman at 11:32 AM
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