August 3rd, 2003: Cleveland at New York

New York Liberty 60, Cleveland Rockers 48

Lindsey Yamasaki can't defend Penny Taylor, Louisiana Tech alumnae run amuck, and Richie Adubato really is dense.


Richie must have been pissed after last game; my friend said that he saw about half the team going *out* of the Garden at eleven or twelve. And apparently Miko went shopping. (I guess she was getting bad vibes from her gear. We’ll see if her new stuff is any more in tune with the harmonics of the universe.) Tari was wearing braces on her ankles or… something… they looked like kneepads, but Tari’s not quite that weird.

Whoever said that Penny Taylor was injured ought to be taken out back and given forty lashes. She’s fine. In more ways than one, at least according to Hair Ruffle. I wonder if Pollyanna Johns Kimbrough ever feels like she’s going around in circles; she’s gone from Charlotte to Cleveland to Miami to Charlotte to Cleveland. They do a big group shimmy when the lights go out.

Penny is polite. There’s a difference between nice and polite, and she’s got them both. While she was signing, she asked “How are you?” Many things I’ve heard and seen in the middle of one of these, up to and including a Sharpie attack, but that’s not usual. And I was forgiven for a spaz act on all counts. And hanging out with LibertyMascot and ImissKym was fun. Queens people are everywhere!

Richie has lost his patience with Elena; Miko is starting once more. Gee, that didn’t last long. K.B’s got the black slacks and a white blouse going on. Becky’s all in white, behind the scorer’s table. I saw her come in. She’s walking really well for someone who busted her knee a little more than a month ago.

Sally Bell is reffing. Shit. Oh, and the Rockers have the same tradition as the Storm do (or used to- no estoy segura)- they stand until the first point. Penny Taylor just set a really nice screen for Helen Darling.

Crystal just airballed a three. Crystal has no excuse for missing an open three when Tari is screening for her. This makes me annoyed, and I’m not in the best mood with Ms. Robinson right now. I am amused; they’re playing “I’m The Only One” at the end of the timeout.

Kate! You missed a Lindsey sighting! I don’t believe this! Next time, forget your stupid family and come to the game! (Speaking of Lindsey, if anyone has a spare of her new card, she might be tickled pink by it; she certainly got a kick out of the one she signed for me.) We’ve had a DJ inflicting “music” on us right now, and I’m glad that it ended. Unfortunately, the Lindsey sighting has her playing defense on Penny Taylor; the first defensive possession, Taylor had a perfect dish to LaToya Thomas. We can’t do that. We need Linda on her, or someone… no offense, Lindsey and Lindsey fans, but her defense has been lacking sorely, and the last person I want her on is the other team’s best player.

Nice catch, Ali. *grins* Go bench! Cleveland just called a twenty after a free-throw-line-extended jumper by Fro’ and a three by Elena. Our bench has been wonderful. Lindsey scored on a drive into the paint, Erin tossed up a couple of lay-ups, Fro’ had the jumper, and Elena had the three.

Halftime now, Liberty by ten. Those were some sloppy thirty seconds right there. Balls going everywhere possible. Stupid baseball pass by Tamika; I thought the point of calling a timeout was that you could get the ball at halfcourt. We’ve got a biddy game going on right now. As for the big girls, every Liberty player but Spoon has scored. Everyone’s been impressive really, showing hustle and interest in playing defense. They have one more rebound than we do, 14-13; seven of theirs are on the offensive glass. We haven’t has as many chances for offensive rebounds, though; our shooting is a lot better than theirs. What I’ve noticed is that there’s a lot of respect between these two teams. They shake hands and they treat each other like colleagues instead of as enemies. Oh, and the Gardenvision just wished Blaze’s kids a happy birthday. Squee and such.

VJ’s injured; they’re looking at her left foot. They’ve got the costumes out now, and there’s three of them dressed as refs with cane and dark glasses. The real refs and the Rockers seem amused by them. Undersandable. I stood up and applauded them. About damn time someone spoke out on the appalling refereeing in this league. Erin’s been fabulous. VJ’s coming back in, but I don’t know if that’s a good idea. Richie, don’t be a jackass, at least not more than you already are.

The Lil Torches are most costumed. They look adorable. C-Rob just airballed an NBA three; hon, you don’t have to stay that far from the basket. Linda’s in the game now. Have I ever mentioned how creepy it is when Betty Lennox and Spoon and VJ are all on the same court. They look so similar it’s scary. Meanwhile, Erin dished and Elena swished. They may be rocking, but we’re rolling over them. (Sorry. Can’t resist the bad puns.)

We’ve got yet another Lindsey sighting. Oh, Kate, I wish you were here. :-) You’d be so proud of her. Except for the time she left Taylor wide open beyond the arc. Oh, and when she dropped the ball. That’s not supposed to happen.

Aw, adorability. A small child in the front row got his hands on the ball and wouldn’t give it back. Someone of a parental nature finally forced him to give it up. He’s going to grow up to be an NBA star, you know. ;-)

Penny hasn’t done very much for Cleveland. LaToya Thomas has impressed me very much, as has Chasity Melvin on the glass. The Rockers seem to have found a second gear on defense as we speak; they’re hustling and pressing and generally making the Liberty’s life a living hell. Say what you will about Cleveland, but they bring it all the time.

Crystal’s hurting. She’s holding her stomach and grimacing. And meanwhile Teresa was tackled by Helen Darling- which finally stopped the FUCKING CLOCK because Richie’s too dense to call timeout. Asshole. God, C-Rob looked like she was going to pull a Jessie Hicks and puke right on the floor. Spoon’s back in the game, but Lindsey’s in for Crystal. Now everything’s straightened out and we still have a ten-point lead. Christ, Darling plays like a football player- she just tackled C-Rob, and she nailed Spoon before.

Erin- a Thorn in every opponent’s side. Spoon, we’ll miss you when you go, but you’ll have to go after this season. Tari notched a double-double tonight, and she did it in very impressive fashion. VJ, despite now having a bad foot, a bad calf, and a bad shoulder, was all over the place. Tamika should learn from them. Spoon notched three free throws, so all nine active players scored. Go all of them! Show your benchies some lurve!