Just the Facts, Ma'am: A pair of scintillating performances by Rutgers alumnae bookended the New York Liberty's 71-67 victory over the Chicago Sky. Kia Vaughn had 11 of her 15 points in the first quarter, while Essence Carson had 12 of her 14 in the fourth to fuel a fourteen-point comeback. Cappie Pondexter led the team with 19 points. For Chicago, Sylvia Fowles had 22 points and eight rebounds, but Epiphanny Prince was the only other Sky player to break double figures, with 15 off the bench.
For Monty Python references, shiny outfits, some unexpected swearing, and the banks of the old Raritan, join your intrepid and relieved blogger after the jump.
This team is going to kill me one of these days. And if they don't, these damn youth teams will. Look, would it be so hard to get your seats together and not near season ticket holders so you're not standing in our way and having conversations across us? You might not care about the game, but we do.
Our defense is keeping us in this game. That's the only explanation. We can't hit water falling out of a boat, which says something in New Jersey these days.
Kym is shiny tonight. “They said I'd have 45 seconds. /looks up at clock Yeah. Right.” /highlights play “Damn, I was slim back then!” (Yes. Yes, you were. And you were a brick house in more ways than one, bow-chicka-bow-bow.) She has a lot of thank-yous. I can't believe she got away with saying that the team doesn't make money. I think she managed to thank anyone who was any degree of separation from the team.
Seriously, though, if Tari Phillips doesn't get in, there are going to be torches and pitchforks, because I will be holding them.
I have no idea what part of their ass they pulled this out of, and I neither care or regret my use of such language. I think “pulled it out of our ass” is the most accurate possible assessment of this game, and in the interest of journalistic integrity, I have to use the most accurate assessment.
Oh. Coach Donovan was over here. She just passed through the Ice Lounge.
Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton appears to have fallen off the face of the earth. I'm surprised, because she's been an excellent hustle player for them. But maybe that's because Cathrine Kraayeveld is doing the thing where she gets the rebounds and sets the screens, even if they are not the Screens of Death I remember so fondly from when she wore a different shade of blue. She was really looking to get into it with Plenette Pierson at one point, which is an interesting experiment that would probably fail but would be fun to watch from a safe distance. Carolyn Swords was very big, and hey, she played Kara Braxton to a draw. For what that's worth. Has anyone explained the meaning of the phrase 'shot selection' to Epiphanny Prince? Because she appears to be under the impression that it means 'select every shot', and I don't know how far Chicago can get in future years with her throwing up everything that passes through her head. At best, they can be Atlanta, and she and Angel McCoughtry can take turns driving their fans insane. She really should not be taking more shots than Sylvia Fowles in fewer minutes. She took a lot of risks defensively, and sometimes they paid off and sometimes they didn't. Courtney Vandersloot showed some of her court vision and ball awareness, which was nice, and she looked like an average veteran out there, which is a good sign for a rookie. But I don't know if she's the kind of point guard who benefits from watching the flow of the game before getting into it, or if she's the kind of point guard who needs to be in the game to feel the flow of it.
Michelle Snow was a non-factor, except for bouts of defensive holding interspersed with kvetching. It's a shame, because I like when she does heinous things, because then I can drag out her full name from the depths of the WNBA Guide and Register for great mockery. Erin Thorn did her best to try and kill us again, but her teammates didn't get her the ball when she was open. Given that she was the biggest reason they won on Sunday, I'm really surprised by both the lack of adjustment by New York and the lack of awareness by the Sky. Tamera Young, I like your enthusiasm, but projectile should not be the word that comes to mind when I watch you on defense. At least she's gotten some of that horrible hitch out of her shot. It used to make me shudder. I don't know when Dominique Canty took up either masochism or drama lessons, but whichever it is, she needs to not demonstrate it on the floor. She had a couple of spectacular falls that I'm not sure were dives or not. But she's starting to look like a player who's been in the league since 1999. Which, more power to her, and there's something to be said for long runners, but she might need to hang it up soon. Oh, yes, and then there was Sylvia Fowles, Big Syl doing her thing in the middle. I think the thing that amazes me most about her is her vertical. It's really not fair. She's already six-six. What does she need with a vertical like that? She only really needs to get that much higher if she's facing Alison Bales or Liz Cambage! Feed the beast, Chicago. It's not rocket science.
I have no idea why Kara Braxton played so much. I didn't think Whiz was the kind of guy to get distracted by her huge... tracts of land. She hit one of her chippies, and we all reacted like she'd reenacted Spoon's Shot. Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but it was after she'd blown a couple of easy shots, done a ballerina impression (which is sure to raise the hackles of some old-school Liberty fans to whom the name Bethany is an expletive), and idly watched a ball trickle out of bounds. Kara, there are a thousand undersized post players out there who would happily perform some sort of macabre surgery to use that six-six body that you can't be bothered to keep in shape or use to its fullest potential; do you really want one of them figuring out how to take it? Quanitra Hollingsworth was shaky defensively- sometimes well-positioned, sometimes woefully out of place- and her shooting could use some work, but her rebounding was on point. Alex Montgomery had a better game than the box score would indicate; I thought she played good defense, and except for the one pass that was meant for Calvin Johnson instead of Plenette Pierson... and the shot clock violation she caused by passing off to Kia Vaughn with 2 on the clock... she didn't look horribly lost on offense- at least, no more than the rest of the team did. Every superhero needs her theme music, and Essence Carson's should be “Right on Time”. She was deathly quiet until the fourth quarter, and then it was like she looked at the scoreboard and the out-of-town scoreboard and said, “F*** this, we're not getting any help, we need to win this game.” So she started hitting shots and coming up with loose balls, steals, and rebounds. I think all her stats came in the fourth quarter, or if not all of them, most of them.
I think Nicole Powell's hurt, and I'm not just talking about that shot to the eye that gave her a passing resemblance to a younger Katie Douglas. She wasn't moving well during the game, and it seemed like every time she was coming out, she was having a compress put on her back. (Well, either that, or she was trying to combine cosplay with her uniform; bustles don't mix with sweatpants, Nicole.) Leilani Mitchell couldn't hit a shot, and she had a couple of good looks, but her hands were active on defense. I love a point guard with quick hands. Kia Vaughn started the game on fire- she had 11 of the Liberty's 20 first-quarter points- but after Whiz sat her down, she wasn't the same. She still played well. I don't know if it's a sign of good defense or bad defense, but you could see how hard she was working against Big Syl. It was almost stylized defense. Plenette Pierson was steady when she was in, except for one sequence when it looked like she was going to lose her temper in the third quarter. Whiz pulled her out, and I was worried that he'd left her out too long- maybe he'd misjudged, maybe he wasn't happy with her for some other reason- but things ended up working out for the best. Cappie Pondexter is going to get a lot of credit for this win, and she definitely did her part in the run- but putrid decision-making in the first half helped put the team in the hole in the first place. She was taking bad shots and forcing passes. It wasn't pretty.
Whiz, whatever you say to them in the locker room at halftime, don't say it. Just skip to whatever you say at the quarter break. And stop playing someone who's getting treatment after every appearance. Nicole wasn't doing anything out there, and playing her hurt couldn't possibly help.
It just goes to show that sometimes referees' reputations get ahead of them. When they announced the crew, I freaked out. Of course, part of that was because I misheard Tim Greene as Jim Breeding and nearly had a heart attack because that was the guy Lin Dunn almost hauled off and slugged one game. But Michael Price is a name that strikes fear into the heart of any well-read WNBA fan, and Felicia Grinter has a habit of following the other refs' lead. But the game was fairly well-called as these things go. Chicago had a strangely high number of continuations, but that's as much on the Liberty's stupidity in fouling jump shooters as it is the refs' loose definition of continuation. They let a lot of procedural stuff go, which I mostly didn't mind.
Can I just say that I hate when kids will scream and dance and shout for the camera's attention or for a t-shirt, but they look at you like you've got three heads when you're actually into the game?
Also, Pru Center: bigger signage to delineate section 8 versus section 9, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE. I am so tired of being an auxiliary usher, explaining to people that they are in fact in section 9, no, really trust me on this one, I have season tickets, even if you don't believe me THERE IS A SIGN ON THE SEAT NEXT TO YOU.
Shoutout to the free throw contest winner and her two hundred dollars. I love a clutch shooter who can hit the money ball.
I'm going to exhale very slowly, and then I'm going to devoutly hope that when I blink, the score still has the Liberty on top.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
August 30th, 2011: Chicago at New York
Sunday, August 21, 2011
August 21st, 2011: Atlanta at Connecticut
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Atlanta Dream started off strong, but the Connecticut Sun surged back from a twelve-point deficit and fended Atlanta off all the way to earn a 96-87 win. Connecticut had five players in double figures, led by Renee Montgomery's 21 points and eight assists, and Asjha Jones's 18 points and 10 boards. Angel McCoughtry led all scorers with 22 points and added nine rebounds.
For ridiculous checking, style points, clashes of not titans, histrionics, high-strung people everywhere, and a much better game than these noodle implements would suggest, join your intrepid and unusually punctual blogger after the jump.
Good afternoon, everyone, and coming to you quasi-live from Geno's Fast Break, it's the Game Notes of Doom!
We just ran into the Atlanta Dream coming from the hotel. Looked up from cashing out what was left of our stake, and there were a whole bunch of tall people in powder blue coming towards us. Not the first time I've seen it- it was much more unexpected at MSG all those years ago- but I find that to be one of Atlanta's more interesting quirks.
I do love Mohegan Sun's wi-fi. This is a good idea, Prudential Center, and you should follow it. I shouldn't have to ask for the press password.
I'm trying an experiment today- not wearing any Lib gear. I want to see if I'm treated less antagonistically if I'm neutral. So I'm currently wearing an extremely nerdy t-shirt from the Museum of Science and Industry, and if people treat me like crap I will assume that they're Trekkies.
Well, there was some slight antagonism from the bag check guy (no, sir, I do not think I am going to check my clipboard, given that half the reason I brought it was so that I could put small things into it), but I was also less willing to fight their stupid rule about no laptops unless you're media. So I'll call it a wash.
Great anthem, though I think the singer could have used a little less Loreena McKennitt in her library.
I think the women in front of us didn't like our commentary. They moved after halftime. Hey, ladies, we were cheering for your team. Of course, we were doing so because it was in the best interest of our team, but does that really matter? We were calling out McCoughtry's shenanigans and the refs' inability to count how long deSouza spent in the lane.
I'm starting to wonder about Coco Miller. She seems to enjoy hitting and being hit. Which, hey, whatever floats one's boat. That's really all I remember her for. Alison Bales brought a pretty little jump shot and her 6-7 frame along for the ride. Courtney Paris... um, she's really nice, and doesn't bat an eyelash at strange behavior, but she's as slow as molasses, and the only use she has is to fill space. Iziane Castro Marques is either hurt or has greatly angered the Meadors, because she only played at the end of the game, odd for someone who was starting early on. Sandora Irvin... is Sandora Irvin. Her only contribution to the box was a foul.
Angel, shut up. Sorry, reflex. McCoughtry spent most of the game diving, simulating, whining, taking shots, taking cheap shots, and arguing with anyone within audio range- including Marynell Meadors at one point... while Atlanta was on offense. She took the entire play off to have it out with her coach. Something tells me this relationship isn't much longer for the world. Érika deSouza spent a lot of time in the lane- no, seriously, a lot of time, and she was overpowering on the offensive boards. I love her awareness of her teammates' inability to hit jump shots and free throws. I'm a fan of Sancho Lyttle finding her offense, but inside the paint, not beyond the arc. She's aware that those shots were pretty much luck, right? That she's at her best when she's out-pacing slower forwards and cutting to the hoop? Or hitting the midrange J? Not the long-range one? Lindsey Harding didn't seem to be as much of a factor in this game as the box score suggests- well, in the first half, she was, but they seemed to have gone away from having her run the show in the second half. Of course, by then, they had given up the pretense of an organized anything. I love what Armintie Price brings to the floor: springs-in-her-heels, jump through the roof athleticism, a willingness to try and make big places, acrobatic ability that's like something out of an NBA highlight reel, tough defense. I hate what Armintie Price brings to the floor: the inability to hit a simple lay-up, the gambling on defense that leaves a man open.
Marynell. I say this as a fan of the game, a fan of the old school, and a dressmaker's daughter. Whoever is telling you that those jackets look good on you is lying to you. The cut makes you look like a chicken. Please have Carol Ross take you shopping unless she's the one telling you about the jackets.
Jessica Breland sighting! She totally should have gotten free throws! People need to make it less of a deal that Kara Lawson's not starting, because she's playing the minutes when they count, except when she's getting punched in the stomach. She hit the big shots and kept a steady hand on the offense when they needed to slow things up. Jessica Moore gave solid minutes, giving Jones and Charles rest when the biiiiig posts came in for Atlanta. She had her share of stupid mistakes, but that's why she's on her fourth team. (Well, that, and one of them sort of doesn't exist anymore. Damn you, Robert Johnson! Damn you to hell! You blew it all up!) Tan White's shot is back! And so is her sense of timing! I was very surprised there wasn't at least one “Tan White!” thread over on Rebkell's, for some of her acrobatic plays. Allison Hightower, no matter how good she is defensively, is a wee bit out of her league when it comes to guarding Angel McCoughtry one on one. Just saying. Kelsey Griffin has fallen off the face of the earth. Shouldn't she have hit the rookie wall last year?
Renee Montgomery looked like a woman who wanted to prove herself to her coach. She hit the big shots, she played the defense, she found the open players. Kalana Greene had a bit more luck guarding McCoughtry than Hightower did, but I suppose she has more experience at it. She really needs to pick up a bit of shot selection, though. Asjha Jones more than made up for her 9-24 game against New York. Lyttle and deSouza were more worried about Charles, and she found her spots. Tina Charles did her work, and a lot of her damage, on the offensive glass. It's nice to see a young player with that kind of nose for the offensive glass. That's something that usually needs more time to develop. She's going to be unbelievable when she really hits her prime. I have nothing to say about Danielle McCray, because she did nothing worth talking about.
Mike Thibault spent a lot of time hot under the collar. At one point, after Lawson got hit and was clutching her stomach with no call, we think he might have directly called out Meadors.
The officials let things get out of hand in the second quarter, but they were able to more or less get it all back under control in the third before things got chippy again in the fourth. For some reason, I get the idea that these two teams don't like each other. McCoughtry was flirting with a technical- Lamont Simpson warned her a couple of times, it looked like. There was a lot of dramatic begging for calls from refs from both sides. Build a bridge and get over it, kids, the officials in this league are kind of legendary. At least Penny Davis's only problem is that she blows late whistles, but she makes the right call.
The game for the autograph section was a large round of musical chairs. I think they might want to invest in sturdier chairs- the person who won did so by stealing the chair out from under the other player! Fun concept, though.
Your noms tip of the day: do not order pizza with a topping at Geno's, because they charge full pie price for two slices. The pepperoni ain't that good. Stick to the Kara Wolters or the two slices plain.
Shoutout to the six bucks I went up on Little Green Men before playing it back down to a buck-fifty in profit. Also, in case we don't have the opportunity to go up for playoff games, shoutout to Golden Global, the official Connecticut travel provider of the Game Notes of Doom- prompt service, fair treatment, reasonable prices, and dinner! What's not to like?
I sort of hope this is the last time Connecticut wins while I'm there, because, well, the next time I come up isn't going to be on a Chinatown bus, and it's going to be via Foxwoods.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
August 18th, 2011: Connecticut at New York
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The New York Liberty stormed back from a 19-point deficit to take a three-point lead in the last minute and held on in overtime, 84-81, to beat the Connecticut Sun. Cappie Pondexter had 27 points for the Liberty, while Essence Carson had 19 and Kia Vaughn had 17 points and 11 rebounds. Connecticut's Tina Charles led all players with 29 points and 14 rebounds.
For a studied lack of swearing, bobble-goggles, the Usual Suspects, and illegal drugs, join your intrepid and maybe amusing blogger after the jump.
Stupid bus. Stupid dress code. Stupid evil HR woman. The only reason I saw intros was because I was sitting with my mother for part of the first quarter, before realizing that I missed my regulars in section 9 and heading back across the way.
It's 40-39 Connecticut here at halftime, and our court has been taken over by a large group of dancers who are not completely awful. We've gotten lucky on leaving McCray and Montgomery open for threes that they've missed, but it's also burned us. We're not hustling after loose balls and we're not rebounding, and for some reason Nicole Powell is sitting out. (I toldyou she was hurt last game, Whiz. I know what I'm talking about sometimes.)
The crowd is sparse and dead. I'm getting really tired of people turning around to stare at me when I start chanting DE-FENSE.
This “Remember When” is making me miss Loree and Ashley.
Third quarter interlude: whatever John Whisenant is saying in the locker room at halftime, he needs to stop saying. I've fled to the Ice Lounge to recharge my laptop and keep from swearing at everyone and anyone in sight. Scott Twadorski is acting like Essence Carson personally told him he couldn't have one of her bobble-heads- she's taken three hits to the floor and gotten no calls in her favor- gotten called for the foul on one of them, even.
And apparently whatever was said at the quarter break needs to be said a lot more often. What a comeback! What a defensive stand! What an amazing cluster of officiating incompetency in the last few seconds of overtime!
Tan White showed a distressing tendency to go for a player's injured body parts in the fourth quarter- I'm pretty sure she got in a cheap shot on Plenette Pierson that caused Plenette to hit the deck for the second time. I like her fire, but sometimes it's much of a muchness. There were brief Alison Hightower sightings. I don't remember whether they were relevant to the flow of the game or not. Kelsey Griffin was brought in mostly for defensive purposes, which seemed uncharacteristic. I think the bulk of her minutes were while I was hiding in the lounge, recharging my computer and swearing at our inability to get a rebound. Kara Lawson brought the big offense off the bench.
Tina Charles is a beast, and I have the sudden urge to go strangle Carol Blazejowski. I've missed that feeling. It's been months since I've had it, but watching Charles disassemble our front line reminded me that we could have had her if we didn't trade our first-round draft pick for a player who Los Angeles probably would have had to cut anyway. But I'm bitter, and digressing. Asjha Jones went quietly about her business, scoring with occasional bouts of violence. She's a great complement to Charles, though I wouldn't necessarily call it a Batman-and-Robin relationship. Maybe more Iron Man and Rhodey. Renee Montgomery took a lot of shots, some of which she had no business taking and some of which she had no business hitting. I didn't appreciate some of her theatrics, though. That went double for Kalana Greene, whose blatant dive could have given the Sun the game if they had been able to convert on the possession. She showed an old knack for being in the right place much of the time. Danielle McCray was a threat early, and showed some nice play-making abilities, but didn't seem to be in as much down the stretch.
Someone is going to end up hitting Kara Braxton upside the head by the end of the season. Yes, yes, I know, I know, this is nothing new and nothing to be surprised at, and anyone who's ever seen her play and knows anything about the league knows how inconsistent and lazy she can be. However, she's never done it in New York, and even in New Jersey, we're not exactly gentle. She keeps blowing lay-ups and committing stupid fouls, she's going to hear it from the fans. That all being said, I liked her as a defensive presence tonight. She's good at filling space, even if she's not always sure where that space is supposed to be. She's not afraid to play big, which is rather useful for a post. Sydney Colson had a brief cameo and did not do anything that I recall. Ta'Shia Phillips is not as quick as her teammates think she is. Alex Montgomery saw a lot of time because of our short bench (Nicole Powell was out with what texting and Twittering informed me was a bruised knee) and while she's a nice piece to have, I don't know if she's ready to play high rotation minutes yet. She looked like she was in over her head.
I don't like Cappie Pondexter. Never really have, probably never really will. We all know this and have incorporated the existence of this bias into our readings of my blog, right? However, if she continues to make the laws of physics go away so she can hit big shots, and if she continues to win us games by dint of sheer effort... that's what we brought her in for, and I can respect her talent and appreciate her work. No, seriously, the three that gave the Liberty the lead near the end of the fourth quarter was something out of the Matrix. Whoa. Leilani Mitchell's three-point shot is starting to wander back to her, a message of which I heartily approve. However, her teammates appear to be taking sadistic pleasure in throwing passes that she has to leap to catch in the corner. Guys, there's a reason we call her the fluffy little bunny. Plenette Pierson took a beating late in the game, but she put in work- she was at least following shots, unlike some people I could name. She needs to realize that not all chicks dig the long ball, though. Go towards the hole. Kia Vaughn put in work on the offensive boards. I don't know why she spent so much time sitting in the fourth quarter, unless Whiz was that certain that we were going to need her in overtime... of course, possibly putting her in a little earlier might have meant that we didn't need to take it to overtime, but I'm willing to grant that he's a championship-winning coach and I'm an amateur raconteur in section 9. Essence Carson stepped up bigtime for Nicole- she hit the big shots, she made the spectacular interceptions, she took the hits, she got the final steal.
So much offense from Rutgers players. Somewhere, C. Vivian Stringer is clutching her pearls and wondering where she went wrong.
FOLLOW YOUR SHOTS. If there is one thing I would be screaming at them right now, that would be it. I can't count the number of times that Kara, or Kia, or Cappie, stood and watched a shot that had no chance of going in. FOLLOW YOUR SHOTS. Follow ALL the shots. And chase the loose balls. You can't give a Thibault team extra possessions. You can't give Kara Lawson extra possessions.
These refs. My goodness. My section was overreacting to every call by the end of the game (yes, Plenette, if you stick your foot out and someone stumbles over it, that's a trip; yes, Kia, if you bang your hip into someone it is a foul), but there were some horrible, reprehensible calls. Essence got banged around repeatedly with no call. Plenette took shot after shot with no call. I wasn't the only one questioning the officiating, either; one gentleman on the train remarked that he thought #8 was high; the frightening part was that I thought Humphrey was the best of the lot.
The reviews at the end of the game were enough to drive a woman batty. About the first call, it looked like it went off Tan White, but I'm not completely certain. I don't think there was enough evidence to overrule, but I won't argue too much. And I certainly agree on the second review that Plenette Pierson was clearly out of bounds with the ball. I do, however, think it is germane to the matter that the cause of Plenette being out of bounds was Asjha Jones's arms around her waist, pulling her down in a fair impression of Michael Strahan dealing with an opposing quarterback not named Brett Favre. And by the third review, there was much swearing about the land; sure, Essence can't get a call all night and they finally decide to call a foul for her as the horn sounds and we're all thinking, “Great, we can go home!” Which would be less hair-tearing-out-of if this hadn't been exactly how the Washington game ended TWO BLEEPING DAYS AGO, with the same margin and the same result.
There is what I hope is an unfounded rumor going around about a season subscriber renewal gift being a Pondexter throwback jersey. I don't think I have to tell you why I would start seeing blood at the sight of a black #23 jersey with a name other than Wicks on it. If it weren't for the commute, I'd have been tempted to renew just to set the thing on fire.
I have mentioned I don't like Cappie, right? And that Sue is one of my all-time favorites?
Protip, Port Authority and folks at Newark-Penn Station: do not start pulling a PATH train out of the station, stop it, and hold it for five minutes after a game that went into overtime and was rife with reviews. You will be snarked.
I'm very tired, but I'm glad to be home with the win. Now it's time for ADVENTURE! Go Liberty! Get well soon, Quanitra and Nicole!
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
August 16th, 2011: Washington at New York
Just the Facts, Ma'am: Cappie Pondexter's 26 points, including the lay-up that gave her team the lead, led the New York Liberty to a 69-66 victory over the Washington Mystics. New York led by as much as 16 in the game. For Washington, Crystal Langhorne had 25 points and six rebounds.
For tackling, pushing, shoving, glassware, point guards, shenanigans, and things we'd like to never see again, join your intrepid and absent-minded blogger after... oooh, shiny object!
There are words I can use to describe this game accurately and succinctly. Unfortunately, none of them are suitable for the family audience that Swish Appeal is looking for, so I have to find paragraphs and not be succinct. But what else have you come to expect from your intrepid blogger? Surely not brevity!
You're not going to get any cool pregame shenanigans, other than my joy at discovering that with all connections coming through loud and clear, I can make it to my seats at about ten to seven. Of course, that's with minimal delays on a bus and three different trains run by two different transit authorities- and with me cheating out of work three minutes early to catch the early bus. These results are about as normal as Nakia Sanford hitting a three.
I like that the Liberty have upped the number of giveaways available to season subscribers. I like seeing loyalty rewarded. I also love Liberty glassware- it goes with the rest of the house. (And thanks to Melissa for letting me pick up my mom's, too. I'm giving it to her at Thursday's game. She was under the weather. {Well, so am I, but priorities. If I can go to work, I can make the game.})
Lacey really tightened up her rotation. Not that it had much room to be tightened, but Dunlap didn't play and Kerri Gardin only had a couple of sequences. Gardin was mostly matched up with Kara Braxton in Braxton's original role as first post off the bench; Lacey abandoned that matchup when the situation changed. Jasmine Thomas saw a lot of time down the stretch, and while her three-point shot was falling, she wasn't an asset to the rest of the offense, or primarily to the defense. I'm really not sure whether Lacey's doing this to temper her for the future or simply because she's an idiot. On the one hand, if you're playing for the future, and you don't care if you're winning games now, it's a good idea to get your rookie some crunch-time reps. On the other hand, since losing games now gains you nothing except the undying gratitude of the Minnesota Lynx, you might as well try to win now. On the other hand, you'd have to run the table to reach .500, so what does winning games get you other than pride? On the other hand, where did all those hands come from? As for DeMya Walker, she looked slightly less washed up than she did against Connecticut, but she was up to her old tricks: the Sacramento step-through, the traveling, the flopping, and the theatrics. She's pretty much been the same for 11 years. If you're reading this blog, you know DeMya Walker's game.
Nicky Anosike doesn't seem to like us for some reason. I can't possibly imagine why. It's not like she has any past history with any of our players or anything. In any case, she kept making with the grabby hands, and occasionally she even got called for it. Matee Ajavon was her usual ballhogging self. I really only wanted to strangle her once, when she hit the three to give Washington the lead. Well, no, I wanted to strangle her on the flop on the Mystics' first possession, too. Kelly Miller was fairly steady- wasn't awful, wasn't great, and was certainly better than Jasmine Thomas. Marissa Coleman played decent defense, was at least a threat (even if an empty one) from the perimeter, and did a nice job boxing out. But honestly, Crystal Langhorne needs to slap them all upside the head and ask them when she's going to get some help, because she can't do it alone. What amazes me about the way she does it is that she's as glamorous as an R train doing it; she doesn't go on runs and make you whistle in awe. She just keeps going and suddenly she has 25 points.
No, seriously, this exchange occurred with one of my neighbors.
“Who's #1 for Washington?”
“Crystal Langhorne.”
“She has 21 points,” said in a tone of stunned awe.
Kara Braxton, we need to have a long talk. No, not about those, though I'm fairly certain they should be be credited with a block (and if they're not, Thomas should be). I'm talking about your inability to hit a lay-up, despite being the tallest person on the floor. I'm talking about your inability to look over a defense, despite being the tallest person on the floor. I'm talking about your inability to hold on to the damn ball. Honestly, she'd be close to a double-double if she could just get it together. And we needed her to step up- at least she did on defense in the crunch, when we needed her to be a big presence in the middle so the Mystics couldn't steal the game. Now, if she could just hit a damn basket... ahem, moving right along. Ta'Shia Phillips saw one extended run, did not do anything of note, and disappeared off the face of the earth thereafter. Alex Montgomery played excellent defense and lousy offense. Team ACC really brings out Alexandria's Georgia Tech tendencies, doesn't it? Essence Carson played decently, though you'd think she'd know Ajavon's tendencies by now. I mean, it's not like they're from the same draft class, or played four years at the same school, or anything like that.
Cappie Pondexter stole this game for us with shots that flat-out defied the laws of physics, but I still can't get past her forgetting which basket we were at to start the game, which led to us committing an over-and-back violation on the first possession of the game. Why, yes, I did yell “Partial qualifier!” at that play. Some things you just have to heckle, no matter whether they're your team or not. Kia Vaughn must be kicking puppies in her spare time (has anyone heard from @KV15NYCsToes, anyway?) to have earned the foul calls she got. The sixth foul was a legit call. The three before it, I'm not so sure about. She started off well, and then got derailed. Plenette Pierson was on fire in the first quarter, then let it get to her head. And then she got hot again, so it was okay. She brought a little bit of a nasty edge that we needed, given the nastiness that Walker and Anosike were dishing out. A hip check from Anosike did something to Nicole Powell's leg- she was moving gingerly after she took the hit, and sat out a long stretch of the second half- but she wasn't exactly making herself useful before that, either. I don't know how she wangled all the assists. Leilani Mitchell played better than the box would suggest, but I can't put my finger on it. Maybe she's healed up a bit and that's what I'm seeing.
You would have gotten halftime notes, but your intrepid blogger needs to eat, so your halftime notes are as follows: the chicken tenders at the Prudential Center are excellent, but the fries they come with are beyond awful. The ratio is unfortunately tilted towards fries, as well. These have been your halftime notes.
The child in the Essence Carson gear during the dress and dribble should have taken her shooting tips from Essence, not Plenette. That baby hook doesn't work for Plenette, it's not going to work for an itty-bitty.
Dear Prudential Center, please please please clarify the signage for your sections. I'm really tired of telling people, “No, this is section 9, section 8 is on the other side of the aisle, now please get out of my seats, yes, really, I know where I sit, I have season tickets, SECTION 8 IS OVER THERE.”
If Sue Wicks's hair gets any darker, I'm going to have to stop differentiating the Sues by hair color and start calling Bird the short one. (These are the perils of being friends with UConn fans; we mean different people when we squee about Sue.)
These refs. My goodness. I'll grant to the Mystics fans that the three calls at the end of the game favored the Liberty (though I think we would all have preferred if they'd waved off the last foul on Coleman). However, there was a fair amount of contact by the Mystics that wasn't called (I'm looking at you, DeMya- nice job flat out shoving Kia to the ground there) and some ticky-tack stuff that was called on the Libs that seemed to be missed at Washington's end (travel upon travel). We were fairly apoplectic by the middle of the third quarter. I'm also curious to know how holding a ball between one's legs counts as a kicked ball (while it might be a violation, I don't think Roy Gulbeyan asked the ball to point on the dolly where the bad woman touched it). Between the hair and the questionable calls, I was starting to wonder if Angelica Suffren was related to Trudi Lacey.
Screw up this badly at Carnesecca Arena. I dare you. Because you will hear me, and you will have no grounds to have me ejected, because I can let you know what you messed up without resorting to profanity or coarse language.
There was a quite a contingent from St. John's around- our point guard and what appeared to be her whole family. (I think I scared her. She changed sections at the half. Damn it, Nadirah, you knew about us before this.)
If you were in section 9, and you know who the very tall young woman was who swung by to say hi to someone at the start of the fourth quarter, please let me know, because I felt like I should have recognized a well-built 6'3” or so young woman.
There were autographs of some kind after the game, and someone who was there can tell me who was signing, because I was too busy tracking down my umbrella and trying to get home, because it's a long haul from Newark to Queens.
After you read these notes, forget this game ever happened. You'll be saner for it.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
August 13th, 2011: Washington at Connecticut
Just the Facts, Ma'am: The Connecticut Sun pulled away late in a tight game to beat the Washington Mystics 82-75. Tina Charles and Renee Montgomery each had 16 points to lead the Sun, while Washington's Crystal Langhorne had 17.
For vendettas, incompetence, and a lot of people who have some explaining to do, join your intrepid and congested blogger after the jump.
Okay, Mohegan Sun. The gauntlet is down. The gloves are off. And you are really going to thank your lucky stars I didn't get the names of the security people working the Sky Entrance at this game.
If you are going to have a policy that states that laptop computers are not allowed at games, you damn well better put it in writing. And when someone presents you with a list of your own policies, including prohibited items, your response should not be, “Where did you get this?” in a tone that suggests that you think the answer is “Microsoft FrontPage” or “my imagination”. I did my best to be polite, and I was treated as if I had attempted to smuggle in knives and nuclear fuel. After showing them the list of their own policies, security decided to be obnoxiously perfectionist, up to and including searching a purse approximately the size of an iPod Classic. And really, I didn't need the escort to bag check.
Oh, and thanks to the carelessness of their bag check people, my new headphones are missing. Not that I'm accusing them of anything but incompetence...
Okay, you want actual game notes, right? Not me kvetching about people who (judging from this runny nose) are going to be suffering bronchial karma in about four days?
The anthem was amazing, other than the vocalizes at the very beginning.
It looks like Connecticut is getting rid of their stash of Orender-signed balls by giving them away in the ball exchange. Quite clever of them.
Victoria Dunlap doesn't look ready for prime time yet. We'll see if that comes with time, or if she's just a talented tweener who doesn't have a position in the league. Of course, we might also see if young players escaping Washington have a chance to make something of themselves the way young players escaping Charlotte once did. Jasmine Thomas is a better defensive player than offensive player right now, but that's damning with faint praise. She hasn't learned how not to telegraph everything she's doing- and I mean everything. She's faster than greased lightning, but that doesn't help much when the savvy veteran in front of her knows what she's going to do before she starts doing it. And she needs to understand that that finger roll isn't going to go in all the time. The glass is rarely so kind. Kerri Gardin played defense and not much else. DeMya Walker played heavy minutes, and when she was able to get a shot up, it was a good shot- but she was painfully, ploddingly slow coming up the floor, and she dropped a couple of easy to catch passes.
Kelly Miller looked about ready to strangle her teammates for most of the game, and that's the kind of emotion I don't expect to see from her. Tears of frustration, yes. Homicidal urges, not so much. (Tackles worthy of the Washington Redskins, not so much but I'm getting used to seeing those from her.) Nicky Anosike was not really a factor- her defense was irrelevant and she wasn't able to look for her offense. Crystal Langhorne went about her business, but some oddities with the foul count had her out for a key portion of the second half. She does have a way of getting things done that's quite impressive, though. Matee Ajavon... she's never seen a shot she doesn't like and she likes to get fancy with her dribbling, and I don't think that's changed since she wore #22 red for Rutgers. Marissa Coleman's shooting early kept the Mystics in the game, and she hit the boards hard, but she went cold in the second half.
Washington flat-out fell apart in the last few minutes of the fourth quarter. It was like they realized they had a chance to win the game and that was simply unacceptable. Their shot selection went out the window, they missed open plays, they tried to commit stupid fouls, they did commit stupid fouls, Lacey's rotations were jacked up... no one knew what they were doing out there, and it made me sad.
Allison Hightower sighting! Jessica Moore sighting! Not that they were all that crucial to the game, but they did get into the game. I rather thought putting Hightower on Gardin was a waste of a defender, but I'm not Mike Thibault. I have far too much hair for that. Tan White did a nice job on loose balls and long rebounds, though I had no idea just how ubiquitous she was until I looked at the box score. Kara Lawson brought the offense at crunch time. Kelsey Griffin was not memorable, except for the duct tape on her elbow sleeve. Seriously, what gives with the tape?
Danielle McCray set the tone in the first quarter, hitting almost everything she looked at and forcing Washington to respect the perimeter- which meant that there was room for Asjha Jones and Tina Charles to operate. They took some contested shots, and the percentages weren't great- but they had lots and lots of opportunities. There was a lot of volleyballing going on with rebounds. Renee Montgomery tried to throw a lot of crap at the basket to see if she could get a call, and it didn't really work.
Connecticut did a nice job capitalizing on Washington's mistakes and errors in judgment. Getting to the line a lot certainly helped, too.
The foul differential is nuts, but it's pretty well warranted. Washington does a lot of dumb things. So do the Mystics. *rimshot* There was the usual amount of no-calls and things that make you go hmmm, but it seemed fairly even-handed. So Connecticut fans really needed to stop booing the calls.
I just get the feeling that Washington is being hamstrung by their coaching. Someone's not paying attention on the bench. Maybe it's the players, maybe it's the coach, but simple and basic things are being missed.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
August 9th, 2011: Seattle at New York
Just the Facts, Ma'am: Cappie Pondexter's 19 points led all scorers in the New York Liberty's 58-56 win over the Seattle Storm. Sue Bird led Seattle with 17 points, 12 in the first half.
For pink, lost signs, training, more pink, temporal anomalies, missed connections, and protestations of innocence, join your intrepid and easily distracted blogger after the jump.
I'm a little worried about this three-point halftime lead. We've given Seattle too many chances and developed too much of a habit of leaving Sue Bird open. You cannot leave Sue Bird open. I didn't think it was rocket science, but apparently it is. Seriously, guys, rebound the ball. Just because your jerseys are pretty doesn't mean you should stand around and be decorative.
Also, Tanisha Wright? Kia Vaughn will probably splatter you across the court the next time you go knee-to-knee on anyone, especially Cappie Pondexter.
Rebecca Lobo didn't speak a lot, though she did say that now her kids have proof that she played in the WNBA. I have to say, she looks damn good, all things considered. (She appreciated my jersey for some reason. I can't imagine why. ;) I didn't have the heart to tell her that VJ and Sue were my favorites, or that I voted for Tari.)
Seattle has their players well-trained. You don't even have to ask for an autograph; if they see you, they'll come over. I'm not sure if it's because they're such a veteran team, or because they have such a veteran coaching staff with experience in the earliest days of both the WNBA (Darsch with the Liberty, Boucek with the Rockers) and the ABL (Agler with the Quest). Though Allie Quigley also mentioned that she got yelled at for missing someone once, so maybe they also have especially intense training.
I thought we saw a lot of the deep Seattle bench in the first half and never again, but I hallucinated Belinda Snell. Ewelina Kobryn had a little bit of physical presence, but looked lost on the floor. This is what happens when you don't give your reserves real playing time, Coach Agler. Le'Coe Willingham got the bulk of the minutes off the bench for Seattle, and used her lower body effectively inside. She's got a deceptively quick first step for a woman of her size. Katie Smith got the bulk of the rest of the minutes, and I don't care how old she is, you don't leave Katherine May Smith open for a jump shot. She's been hitting those since the Paleozoic Era, you might want to guard her. She also got into it a little bit with Plenette Pierson; between one thing and another, and one player and another, it got awfully Detroit Shock out there at times.
(Please note: Paleozoic Era is a slight exaggeration.)
Foul trouble kept Camille Little and her tush from being a major factor. She got around us a couple of times, but I think our height bothered her. And while the topic of guarding people who are good at hitting jump shots is in the general vicinity of discussion, who in their right mind leaves Sue Bird open? Don't you know what her nickname is? Don't you know what she does to Dick Fain's pants? (Oh, God, that did not come out right, but if you heard his call of Seattle and Connecticut...) This goes double for point guards who grew up in Washington State during Bird's career, Leilani Mitchell. And for Big East players who might have heard of this UConn chick, Essence Carson and Cappie Pondexter. I was surprised she was looking for her offense as much as she was, but I guess that had to do with taking what the defense gives her. It also didn't help that Tanisha Wright had it in her head to go after Pondexter instead of the basket. Seriously, I have no idea when their paths crossed, or whether Cappie has made a practice of kicking Nittany Lion cubs in her spare time, or what happened there, but Wright spent a lot of time throwing shoulders at Pondexter. When she went knee-to-knee with her in the first half, I thought someone was going to splatter her across the stanchion, because that's dirty. It's not a good idea to do crossovers in front of her, though. Swin Cash hit a couple of big shots and got in on the boards, but also spent a lot of time whining about calls. It's not an attractive look for you, Swin. Ashley Robinson's height was a defensive factor, but it didn't feel like she was using it as effectively as she could have. I'm not feeling the hair, either. Sorry, Ashley.
Someone please get Kara Braxton a decent sports bra. Please. I cannot take a month of her running up and down the floor with those things flying loose. Part of Breast Health Awareness should be awareness of how to keep them from bruising oneself or other people. Save the ta-tas, my fellow fans. Save the ta-tas.
Okay, I'm sorry, substantive game analysis will now resume. I should have known better than to believe Whiz when he said Kara wouldn't play tonight. She played, and she played extensively, though there might have been other factors at play. She looked as lost as one would expect of a player who had only shown up the other day. (Plans that will not end well: over-the-top, high passes to Leilani Mitchell. Leilani hops pretty good, but Liz Cambage might have had a spot of trouble corralling that thing.) She needs to be more aggressive on defense, more assertive on offense, and more aware of what's going on. Many things are possible, and I'm hoping one of them is Kara settling in. Quanitra Hollingsworth was shackled by some of the physical play in the post, but she came up with a couple of big plays. Essence Carson's offense was AWOL, but all things considered (all things translating to “that stuff of Sue Bird to save the game”) I think I can live with that. Alex Montgomery hit a couple of shots ,but was otherwise a non-factor.
This was one of those games where Cappie Pondexter did what she gets paid to do- she did just enough to help us win the game. It wasn't spectacular, and it wasn't pretty, and it wasn't a great VGM line, and the free throw shooting was embarrassing, but she did what she had to do, and it was enough. Leilani Mitchell had a small flurry of offense, and kept a steady hand on the distribution, but she was getting eaten alive on defense and wasn't able to rotate properly. Plenette Pierson was getting clobbered out there, and she couldn't get a call for anything short of being strangled. I consider it a minor miracle she was able to come close to a double-double. That might have been why she was backing off a little bit on defense, too. No, seriously, Willingham all but used her as a vaulting horse on one play with no call. Kia Vaughn must have gotten hurt or something, because while she wasn't all that effective (ahem, Kia, you are not Nicky Anosike, do not cheat out on Sue Bird on the perimeter), I'd rather have her in the game down the stretch than Kara when Kara doesn't know the plays and has a tendency to throw really dumb passes. The fact that Kara was in the game late, when we needed a big body, makes me think something happened to Kia. Nicole Powell wasn't much of a factor, and if she was, it wasn't in a good way. She looked frustrated for most of the night.
Hit your free throws, New York. This game would have been a lot easier to win if you weren't going 1-2 all of the time.
It was a very physical game- it got pretty Detroit out there, and not just because of all the Shock players. It felt like Seattle was given every chance to win the game in the last seconds, with some dicey out-of-bounds calls and oddities with the clock, plus it took Plenette all but getting strangled for her to get a call in her favor. Horse-collar tackles are not legal in basketball, Felicia Grinter. Other than those two trends, the officials weren't too bad.
Storm fans showed out, and only a couple of them in Bird gear. I appreciate that aspect of Storm fandom, which is why one lucky fan got the Wheaties box I'd brought with me. (The box was either going to get given to a Seattle fan or signed and used as a gift box. I have others at home, so I wasn't keeping it.) However, someone woefully misinformed the fans with the large Tanisha Wright sign regarding the location of the visiting bench; it's sort of tacky to wave large signs cheering the road team in front of the home bench.
We had pretty good music, what with the operatic anthem and the kid violinists who performed at one of the quarter breaks. I approve this message.
Some crazy woman bid up the “honorary coach for a day” package to $2000. This after they couldn't budge the Chicago road trip package past the opening bid of $800.
(A moment here to give the Mystics their due: they have traditionally done the best BHA auctions, as chronicled by the DC Basketcases, with a lot of action and the players getting very involved to ratchet up the bidding. I always enjoy reading those accounts.)
Ring of Honor nights bring out the best jerseys. Do you know how rare a 2006 Sherill Baker jersey is? Or the 2000/2001/2002 home whites? (Of course, you have to imagine me telling everyone, “This is not my fault! I voted for Tari!” when I get looks at my Lobo jersey.) Sigh. I miss the black-era jerseys.
My throat still hurts a little, but not as much as you might think. I spent two and a half years in improv theater, where I learned breathing exercises and how to project. I don't know if that's what Mr. Solkoff had in mind. “Take a deep breath, in through your nose... now let it out on a DE-FENSE! sound.” Despite the fact that it was an out-of-conference game, this was one of the more important games of the season for us so far, and the fact that we pulled it out says a lot about us.
Monday, August 1, 2011
July 31st, 2011: Atlanta at Connecticut
Just the Facts, Ma'am: 36 points from Angel McCoughtry wasn't enough for the Atlanta Dream, as the Connecticut Sun put up 33 points in the fourth quarter for a 99-92 comeback win. Renee Montgomery led four Connecticut players in double figures with 19 points.
For delicious and not so delicious food, rules lawyering, incense and peppermints, and Renee Montgomery doing amazing things, join your intrepid and sneaky blogger after the jump.
Good evening, everyone, from beautiful, lilac and urine-scented southbound I-395! If you're wondering why your welcome isn't coming from Mohegan Sun, well, their security is awfully inconsistent. Three games in June, I brought this bag and this computer and went through security without a problem. I even used it in the stands during the Tulsa game, because I remember Tweeting in rage when Cambage went down. Today, they decided that it was prohibited. I just went on the site, and nothing is said about laptops. Ruthie? Jay? Please feel free to contact me and explain the rationale behind making me check my belongings. Thank you.
Anyway, moving on from personal vendettas and crankiness. For a little positivity, major props to the pickup game going on by the bus pickup in Flushing. It might not have been West 4th level, but it was pretty damn good. When you've got guys canning NBA threes and running plays in a pickup game, you might have something good.
This was autism awareness day, so it was a very nice touch that one of the security guards was wearing a puzzle-piece tie. I've said this before and I'll say it again: Atlanta is one of the most approachable teams in this league. Everyone stops, everyone signs, they'll chat if you approach them with chatting in mind. I do think that harks back to Meadors being an inaugural coach.
Who in their right mind thought it would be a good idea to dress a teenage dance troupe in tied-up white blouses and schoolgirl skirts for the halftime show? Is it even legal to watch this sort of thing?
I don't think Angel McCoughtry approves of this bench concept and wishes to inform Marynell Meadors that this must not happen again. She'll shoot you into a game and back out of it with equal alacrity, but this was one of her good days. Sancho Lyttle looks a bit like she's coming back from the injury, but I don't like her emphasis on playing more with her lower body. With knees and ankles being more of a concern in the women's game than the men's, that goes from being physical to being reckless, dangerous, and dirty. I love her offensive game, but her defensive game terrifies me as a fan of women's basketball. Courtney Paris had one series (maybe two?) and looked... out of shape and like she and Danielle Adams did their jersey shopping together. (Adidas, perhaps you need to look into bigger sizes.) Shalee Lehning looked good until her right knee went into the stanchion. We feared the worst when she couldn't put weight on it and went right back to the locker room, but when she came back out onto the bench, we felt a little better for her. Still. Get well soon, Shalee! Sandora Irvin committed some dumb fouls, but now I know what the Dream fans are talking about when they talk about her hair. It's cute. Reminds me a little of Charde Houston about four styles ago. When did Coco Miller become a star? Seriously, she was coming up so ridiculously clutch in the second half that it wasn't funny. She also appears to have taken courses at the Mery Andrade School of Drama, because some of those flops were inspired.
Iziane Castro Marques was actually on today. She looks like she's lost a little of her speed, which could be a problem, since that's an important part of her game. Alison Bales was good at being tall, and showed off her outside jumper a bit, but was otherwise not an effective complement to the other Atlanta posts. Érika deSouza was a force inside, and she's getting a little better about planting herself in the lane. Lindsey Harding still looks like she's not sure what she's doing with these people. Be careful what you wish for? It's pretty clear that she wants to run, and heaven knows McCoughtry and Castro Marques want to run, but Bales and deSouza aren't running posts. There were plays when Atlanta was shooting and Bales hadn't even crossed halfcourt. Armintie Price took a couple of hard hits, including one to the tailbone, and was all over the place in both good and bad ways.
Allison Hightower! Long time no see! Nice little offensive explosion there! She could have used a little more practice in the defensive scheme, but it was nice to see her play and play well. Jessica Moore decided to demonstrate blatant fouling after a sketchy call went against Connecticut, and that was the extent of her contributions to the game. Kelsey Griffin put in work on the offensive boards and on the pass coverage. Kara Lawson's shooting chose opportune times to reappear, and she flirted with a Penicheiro double-double. Tan White had the opportunity to be more of a factor in the game than she was, given the pain Price was playing through, but she didn't have to be in the end.
Danielle McCray saves all her good performances for when I show up. I really appreciate it, Danielle. She was shooting lights out. Tina Charles seemed a little intimidated by deSouza's size, because she was taking a lot of bad shots, but she still got her double-double, which is pretty impressive. Kalana Greene brought her usual defense and hustle. Asjha Jones was steady and consistent, but we did worry about her for a while after that elbow from deSouza; she went down hard, stayed there a while, didn't look all that coherent while she was down, and looked like she needed some kind of medical attention- but since she was allowed to go back into the game, I guess there was no permanent damage. And then there was Renee Montgomery and her excellent sense of timing. She hit the floor a lot. We're talking Debbie Black levels of floor burn here. Of course, it doesn't hurt my impression of her game that the end of the third quarter was her time, plain and simple; her lay-up, followed by, oh, a halfcourt three that was nothing but net, turned the tide for Connecticut. It's not a coincidence that Connecticut took the fourth quarter by ten points.
I loved watching these two coaches work against each other. You could see the moves and the countermoves being put into place. I think where Meadors fumbled was in the third, when she had Price hobbled by the tailbone, Bales shaking off a minor hand injury, and Castro Marques pulling on her shorts, and didn't bring the subs for a good three minutes after I thought she should have. Connecticut didn't press the issue as much as they could have, but they pressed it enough that the way was paved for Montgomery's shots.
I loved the way that all the Connecticut players were diving for the ball. Montgomery was first and foremost on the list, but everyone got some floor. (Well, except for Jessica Breland, who didn't play, but does that count?) And the crowd appreciated it too. The place was rocking and the fans were loud. Sun crowds can be hit or miss, but this was definitely a hit.
The officiating in this game was... interesting. On one hand, the refs let the physicality get out of control early in the game; on the other hand, the calls were fairly evenhanded, and the refs recognized when to allow a no-call as retaliation for a previous no-call; on the disembodied hand, that gave people the idea that it was okay to retaliate in the first place, and that's not the lesson we're trying to teach here, right?
Things I highly recommend: Sol Toro. Yes, they're expensive, but they're so worth it- and remember, if you picked match play coming off the bus, you have $20 to play with there. We had a full dinner for two, including a beer, and paid $60 out of pocket with tip. The flautas are excellent, and the quesadilla picante is tiny but fierce.
Things I do not recommend: the Johnny Rocket's in the Hall of Lost Tribes. Lousy fries and the chicken tenders were too salty. Shake was tolerable, though.
We ended up waiting an hour and a half for standby seats (thanks, line-cutter!), which ended up being the last row on a bus with dicey air conditioning and a backed up toilet. Which, once the tour guide sprayed it with perfume, the door was wedged closed, and the emergency hatch was opened periodically for ventilation, was mildly tolerable, though unpleasant... until, on the freakin' Whitestone Bridge, someone decided he needed to use the bathroom. Just as a reference point, the Whitestone Bridge is about fifteen minutes from the end of the route. And there's a 24-hour Burger King one block over from the stop. Seriously, man, you couldn't have held it? Especially since the door kept opening while you were in there? If I had an ear for languages, I think I would have learned how to say “You idiot!” in Chinese.
So, around the bits and pieces of people screwing with me, it was a great day. But come August 13th, I'm bringing the printout of the list of prohibited items.