Reminder

[wire chief]

Well, in this world of multitudinous stimuli, responsibilities, and breakneck schedules, SOMEBODY
should point out that the 3-headed Huskies and supporting Liberty guys are on tonight at 7 PM EDT.

 

[VAUConnFan]

Pressure is on the #1 seed. I still cannot figure out Indiana's success.

 

[wire chief]

Pressure is on the #1 seed. I still cannot figure out Indiana's success.

That's just because you don't want to grant that a Vol can be a superstar.

 

[VAUConnFan]

To borrow from Jane Austen,"but who are her teammates, who are her supporting cast?. Do not imagine me ignorant of their abilities, or my perceived lack thereof."

 

[Orangutan]

Indiana is just rock solid. There's no real weak links. January, Larkins, Coleman, and Johnson are are all good players for their position. And when it matters Catch can turn back the clock.

Stephanie White is as good a coach as any in the league, as well. I still think Chicago wins that series if you flipped the coaches.

 

[VAUConnFan]

Indiana is just rock solid. There's no real weak links. January, Larkins, Coleman, and Johnson are are all good players for their position. And when it matters Catch can turn back the clock.

Stephanie White is as good a coach as any in the league, as well. I still think Chicago wins that series if you flipped the coaches.

So, in your opinion it comes down to coaching? You are suggesting, then, that Chicago played poorly in their deciding loss to Indiana? That Chicago just did not bring it? Were poorly coached?

 

[Orangutan]

So, in your opinion it comes down to coaching? You are suggesting, then, that Chicago played poorly in their deciding loss to Indiana? That Chicago just did not bring it? Were poorly coached?

I think Stephanie White won the coaching chess match with Pokey Chatman and that was a big part of it.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Also been the 3 headed Rutgers show - Piph, Carson and Erica Wheeler as a short term replacement for injury. I don't see Erica on the WNBA Liberty roster page, although a Rutgers source cites her as still there.

 

[wire chief]

Also been the 3 headed Rutgers show - Piph, Carson and Erica Wheeler as a short term replacement for injury. I don't see Erica on the WNBA Liberty roster page, although a Rutgers source cites her as still there.

Too true, Piph & Essence count big time.

 

[CocoHusky]

Also been the 3 headed Rutgers show - Piph, Carson and Erica Wheeler as a short term replacement for injury. I don't see Erica on the WNBA Liberty roster page, although a Rutgers source cites her as still there.

Erica pictured next to Kiah & Carson recently.

 

[VAUConnFan]

I think Stephanie White won the coaching chess match with Pokey Chatman and that was a big part of it.

Nice words, but I hardly know what that means and I have been around the game the better part of my life. Going into Game 2 of their playoff series with Indiana, Chicago had beaten Indiana 7 straight times going back to last year's playoffs. Are you saying that it took 5 meetings with Chicago for Coach White to finally figure out how to move her pawns to free up her queen? Chicago in its deciding game loss shot 57%. Explain how a team that shoots 57% loses a game due to coaching or how the coach of a team whose opponent shoots 57% gets credit for her team's victory?

 

[Orangutan]

Nice words, but I hardly know what that means and I have been around the game the better part of my life. Going into Game 2 of their playoff series with Indiana, Chicago had beaten Indiana 7 straight times going back to last year's playoffs. Are you saying that it took 5 meetings with Chicago for Coach White to finally figure out how to move her pawns to free up her queen? Chicago in its deciding game loss shot 57%. Explain how a team that shoots 57% loses a game due to coaching or how the coach of a team whose opponent shoots 57% gets credit for her team's victory?

By chess match, I mean adjustments and counter-adjustments.

Chicago's regular season wins against Indiana mostly came against weakened versions of Indiana.
June 5: no Catchings
June 14: no Catchings, no Larkins, no Howard
June 26: no Larkins, no Clarendon, Zellous

They were mostly at full strength for the Aug. 4 game--missing only Clarendon vs. Dos Santos being out for Chicago. That game was just one of those games where everything went wrong, though. Chicago made everything (63%). Indiana made nothing (34.7%). Zellous got ejected off of two technicals she acquired protesting spurious calls against her.

So I don't think Chicago ever got the "real Indiana" during the regular season. After game 1, I felt like Pokey got out-coached (she let them take away EDD too easily, for one thing) but Chicago survived thanks to Sloot, Quigley, and poor Indiana shooting on quality looks.

Yes, Chicago shot 57% in game 3, but Indiana shot 58%. Some of that is on Pokey. Indiana made 10 threes but Tamera Young barely played and Betnijah Laney didn't play at all. I don't think it's a coincidence that Chicago got torched from the perimeter while their best perimeter defenders sat on the bench. Bless their hearts, but a Sloot, Cappie, Quigley backcourt is a defensive atrocity waiting to happen in the playoffs.

Cappie and Young had played similar minutes in game 2. Young was -1 while Cappie was -12. Yet Cappie still played 30 minutes to Young's 6 in game 3.

Anyhow, it's just my feeling that Chicago could have won that series with better coaching. I can't support it particularly rigorously. That's just how I feel.