Big Game

It’s nice to finally be back in my normal routine. After going to the Hall of Fame and NBA draft in between trying to do my regular work as a Sun beat writer, being here early on a game night with not too much other stuff on my mind is a good feeling.
As always, tonight should be a good one considering it’s Connecticut and Detroit. I’m looking to it since I missed the first meeting between these clubs earlier in the season.
Tonight would be an opportune time for the Sun to put together that elusive complete game Mike Thibault has been searching for. He’s also been seeking quality wins in a playoff-type atmosphere, something that should also exist tonight. The Sun pulled it off against Houston and tonight is another chance. With Indiana 24 hours from now, a win against Detroit in something the Sun need in this ultra-tight race for first in the East

My Big Return

After two weeks out of the country at the World Cup, with a few days to recover before returning to work, I’m now back on the Sun beat.
My return has been anything but seamless, since the past two days have provided their fair share of curveballs. Tuesday saw me drive to Springfield, Mass., for the unveiling of a UConn basketball exhibit followed by a trip to Mohegan Sun Arena.
At least the Sun made my job a little easier with a 16-point win over Houston. They still didn’t look great at times – Houston managed to play terrible virtually the entire night – but the Sun are clearly among the WNBA’s elite.
After sending in my last of three stories Tuesday at around 10:30 p.m., my editor told me that a quick change in plans called for me to cover tonight’s NBA Draft in New York. I never mind a trip to the Big Apple, but I also had a UConn media day in the early afternoon for Geno’s incoming freshmen, meaning my work day will easy eclipse 12 hours.
But after all that, I’m here at the Garden with less than an hour before the Draft starts. I’ve spent some quality time doing my research on all of UConn’s draft eligible players – this required some real homework since I don’t cover the men – and I feel prepared for the night. Of course, you can’t feel too prepared at a draft since anything and everything is bound to happen.
We got our first bombshell a few hours back when reports started coming in of Sebastian Telfair’s trade from Portland to Boston in exchange for the No. 7 overall pick. So much for the belief that UConn’s Marcus Williams might be the next point guard of the Celtics.

Bad start to a tough week

A tough loss for the Sun. I don't know if there is any other way to describe it. Last night's game was the start of a week where the Sun would face several playoff contenders.

What stands out to me is, at least on paper, the Sun are a far superior team to the Mystics. All it takes is one bad half and being a better team on paper is all you have.

-Joe

Mystified

The Sun head to Washington today where they will face the Mystics on Sunday.

Things have changed since the last time we saw Washington. For starters, the Mystics have closed the gap in the standings. That was made possible in large part due to the two games Connecticut lost on their recent road trip.

One thing has stayed the same, though. That is Washington's lack of consistency. On day, they look ready to challenge the Sun for conference supremacy. The next, they drop games to teams like New York.

Washington is not a very good road team, so the fact Sunday's game is being played on the Mystics' home court should present a big challenge to the Sun, who are seemingly forever on the road.

-Joe

Close Call

Whew!

The worst possible scenario nearly played out on the court in Chicago Friday night. The Eastern Conference Champion Sun found themselves trailing the expansion Sky with under a minute to play.

That's where Connecticut's experience and leadership comes into play. Taj McWilliams-Franklin scored a key bucket and the Sun nailed four free-throws to secure the win.

These are the games that really build additional character, especially for the players who haven't been in the league too long.

-Joe

Nice win

It was great seeing the Sun put together another strong effort. Hopefully wins against lesser teams like Charlotte, Minnesota and hopefully tonight against Chicago, Connecticut can build some momentum for next week's games against tougher competition.

Lindsay Whalen provided a spark for the team in the first quarter when they were trailing 9-2 and looked flat. Ashja Jones' contributions cannot go unnoticed. She along with Taj McWilliams-Franklin were very active Thursday.

One thing that I found curious was Laura Summerton being the first one off the bench. Not that I have anything against her, because I don't. I think coach Mike Thibault in effect, rewarded Summerton for all of the hard work she is doing. She's really progressed in recent weeks.

Let's see what happens tonighthicago!

Until next time....
-Joe

Ending on a good note

Whew! It was good to see the Sun pull off the win at Charlotte tonight. What I was most impressed about was the dominance of the Sun on the boards. Coach Mike Thibault got the team back to basics for the game and it paid off. Sometimes the best way to tackle adversity -- including a road trip that didn't look too warm and fuzzy, is keeping things as simple as possible.

The team gets Wednesday to rest and return to Connecticut. They will host the Minnesota Lynx at Mohegan Sun Arena on Thursday night. Don't forget to come out and support the Sun.

See you soon!

-Joe

Tough road

Last night's loss at Phoenix is tough. Simply put, the Sun were outplayed in the second half. Let's not get this twisted: the Mercury are a good team despite their record.

After starting 0-4, they have won three of their last four, including a wins over Detroit and Minnesota, who comes to town Thursday. Phoenix is a young team with new faces still trying to adjust to each other. I expect them to see the playoffs this year in a very tough Western Conference.

Tonight's game against Los Angeles will be a bigger test on several fronts. First, it is the second game in two nights. But the Sparks' front line, especially Lisa Leslie and Chamique Holdsclaw, will test the Sun. A big defensive game from Margo Dydek is going to be needed.

-Joe

Ramblings

Hi again...its Joe. Sorry to disappoint. LOL.

Anyhow, I was at the Sun's practice today at Conn College. Coach Mike Thibault had the team focusing on protecting the ball. When you think about, with the team on the verge of facing two teams that aren't short on firepower like Phoenix and Los Angeles, turnovers are more likely to haunt you.
What Thibault did towards the conclusion of practice was tell them the session wouldn't end until the team went five posessions without a turnover. Trust me, the Sun players were happy when the final whistle blew.

The league announced its All-Decade team. The format was different from what I expected. Instead of one team of five and maybe a sixth player or a first and second team, there was a team of 10 and an honorable mention.
There were surprises. First I figured Teresa Weatherspoon would have made the team of ten. Secondly, I was shocked that Diana Taurasi was named at all. Don't get me wrong, she's got game. But after two years? Two years? I just don't see how she can get honorable mention and players like Nykesha Sales and Natalie Williams (anyone remember her?) don't get a sniff. Thibault, in Wednesday's paper, says it best. Why should someone receive this honor based on what they did in college.

That's all for tonight.

See you soon!

-Joe

Filling in

Hi, everyone! This isn't Arthur, but instead Joe Perez. Consider me Arthur-lite for the next two weeks or so.

Today's Sun game against the Washington Mystics was the second opportunity I've had to cover the Sun for the Bulletin. I'm sold. Even without Taj McWilliams-Franklin, the Sun found ways to pull past a decent Mystics team. Once again, Katie Douglas and Nykesha Sales had virtuoso performances. Plus, Douglas gave me a good chuckle when she described herself after the game as the "Energizer Bunny."

On another note, the WNBA should be releasing their All-Decade team pretty soon. I'm curious as to who you, the fans, think should be on the team. I'll give you my picks, by position. Let me know what you think.

F Sheryl Swoopes, Houston
F Yolanda Griffith, Sacramento
C Lisa Leslie, Los Angeles
G Cynthia Cooper, Houston
G Teresa Weatherspoon, New York

This was tough. There are a few people who I regretfully left off the list. Tina Thompson and Katie Smith are two names that are deserving, as is Dawn Staley.

Until next time...

-Joe

A Temporary Goodbye

I’ll be absent from my blog and the Sun for about two weeks for my vacation, which will be spent attending the World Cup in Germany and traveling to some other European countries. The site will updated occasionally by reporters filling in for me, but I apologize.
In the meantime, please feel free to check out by blog for the Bulletin during my European journeys at bulletinworldcup.blogspot.com

Catching Up

From a reporter’s standpoint, I think having Barbara Turner back in town Friday night only made me miss her more.
She’s still a pleasure to talk with and still a great quote. I say talk with opposed to interview because Barbara doesn’t make the process feel trying or one sided. She seems to enjoy the questions and answers — if she doesn’t, boy can she fake things well — and knows how to tell a story in the most engaging of ways.
Among the best excerpts from the interview not to make the paper — you could write til no end when talking with her — were how she’s still a jokester like in her days at UConn (coach Anne Donovan called her a ‘Nut’ in a recent birthday card, which Barbara took as a term of endearment) and the headband she wore opening night. It hasn’t reappeared after she got plenty of heat from all of UConn’s coaching staff, although she claims that was the point of the fashion statement.
Also, as a testament to her relationship with UConn players, Barbara told us before tip that all 12 members of the current team were coming to the game. I didn’t catch all of them, but on the way out, myself and two other reporters who also cover the UConn women and Sun bumped into six members of next year’s sophomore or junior class.

My Day At MSG

For everything Madison Square Garden offers, the wireless Internet provided didn’t allow me to post on my blog. I had planned to update once before the game and once after.
So here are the two updates I wrote with the times they were supposed to go up.

10:12 a.m.
This is a first
Outside of conference tournaments in college basketball, it's rare to see sporting events starting at this early juncture. But that's what we get today at MSG, where the Sun take on the Liberty.
It felt a little strange waking up at 7:25 a.m. at my buddy's apartment so I could shower, pack and make the subway in time to be here for media access at 9 with time to spare. Considering I'm always the one out of my friends with the strange hours — but the perks are, generally, getting to wake up late — fastening my tie as my friend was just rolling out of bed was a new one for me.
After a slight snag getting my press pass, things are going pretty well here. I just caught up with Ashley Battle — the details of that interview will be divulged in my next Sunday notebook — and now it's off to check out the breakfast spread.
Still waiting to see how 4,000 kids in the crowd affects the atmosphere. Hopefully, I won't walk out this afternoon with a terrible headache.

1:48
Interviews are all through, although I found myself chasing people a bit more than usual. That’s pretty common when comparing road to home games because you’re out of your element a bit.
My halftime routine, which usually consists of grabbing a bottle of water and maybe having seconds of the provided meal, was altered so I could be the halftime guest of Sun radio play-by-play man Bob Huessler. The news came as a surprise to me less than an hour before tip, but I always enjoy doing radio interviews.

As for my other thought of the day — by the way, the kids in the crowd were terribly loud and now I hate the person who created thunder sticks — watching Erin Phillips and Sherill Baker of the Liberty match up made me think of what the future of this rivalry might someday be. They are both talented rookie guards who come off the bench and the pair went at each other constantly when they shared the floor.
When I told Phillips of my thought, she didn’t seem too adverse to the idea.
“Why not?” she said. And maybe we’ll both be correct in our views a few years down the road.

Something New

This is a first.
Outside of conference tournaments in college basketball, it's rare to see sporting events starting at this early juncture. But that's what we get today at Madison Square Garden, where the Sun take on the Liberty.
It felt a little strange waking up at 7:25 a.m. at my buddy's apartment so I could shower, pack and make the subway in time to be here for media access at 9 with time to spare. Considering I'm always the one out of my friends with the strange hours —— but the perks of, generally, getting to wake up late —— fastening my tie as my friend was just trolling out of bed was a new one for me.
After a slight snag getting my press pass, things are going to pretty well here. I just caught up with Ashley Battle —— the details of that interview will be divulged in my next Sunday notebook —— and now it's off to check out the breakfast spread.
Still waiting to see how 4,000 kids in the crowds affects the atmosphere. Hopefully, I won't walk out this afternoon with a terrible headache.

Something New

This is a first.
Outside of conference tournaments in college basketball, it's rare to see sporting events starting at this early juncture. But that's what we get today at Madison Square Garden, where the Sun take on the Liberty.
It felt a little strange waking up at 7:25 a.m. at my buddy's apartment so I could shower, pack and make the subway in time to be here for media access at 9 with time to spare. Considering I'm always the one out of my friends with the strange hours —— but the perks of, generally, getting to wake up late —— fastening my tie as my friend was just trolling out of bed was a new one for me.
After a slight snag getting my press pass, things are going to pretty well here. I just caught up with Ashley Battle —— the details of that interview will be divulged in my next Sunday notebook —— and now it's off to check out the breakfast spread.
Still waiting to see how 4,000 kids in the crowds affects the atmosphere. Hopefully, I won't walk out this afternoon with a terrible headache.

Big Day

It's nice to back in New York, where I'm from. I have to admit, I'm looking forward to tomorrow's game more than most considering it will be my first time at Madison Square Garden as a member of the media.
Growing up on Long Island and being a sports fans, I always had an affinity for the Garden. I've been to numerous sporting events there -- even the circus -- but tomorrow should be special.
As for the 4,000-plus kids attending the morning game for School Day, I'll be sure to let you know how that experience goes.

Be A Fan

The locker room was abuzz, but it had nothing to do the Sun’s fourth victory this season.
With a TV showing the end of New York’s dramatic home win over Los Angeles, Connecticut’s players were fixated on the screen as the final moments of regulation ticked away. When Catherine Kraayeveld hit the game-tying 3 with three seconds to play the locker room exploded with noise.
Katie Douglas jumped out of her seat to declare, ‘I feel like I’m at the Garden.’
It was a nice scene, a snap shot of what this league means to its players.
As she field questions about the Sun’s victory, Nykesha Sales was directing other media members out of the TV’s view to keep up with the game’s final moments. Always focused on her team, she was confused why teammates were cheering for the Liberty’s shot considering they are supposed to be a conference rival.
On a day the league’s 10th anniversary season was celebrated at Mohegan Sun Arena, the players of Connecticut found a perfect way to cap the day.