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Message: [QUOTE="eebmg, post: 2862472, member: 7548"] One player improving by leaps and bounds. :) [URL="http://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/24824706/breanna-stewart-steps-lift-us-women-fiba-world-cup-semifinals"]Ever the MVP, Stewart steps up to lift U.S. to World Cup semis[/URL] Stewart finished with a game-high 19 points, going 7-of-8 from the field with three rebounds and five assists. "Stewie's been tremendous for us. So Stewie's someone we need on the floor a lot," USA coach Dawn Staley said. "I think she played the longest stretch of any player throughout the game, but that was out of necessity." This is the role Stewart wants, because that's her mentality. Over the years, as much as Team USA has been stocked to the roof with talent, certain players just always seem to have that extra something that lifts even their fellow superstar Staley said after Friday's game she traces Stewart's preparation for this national-team role back to the 2014 World Cup, when Stewart was just a rising junior at UConn. She didn't play much for Team USA then, taking just eight shots total. But she watched and learned. She was in a bigger role by the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, averaging 8.1 points per game. And now she's at the top of the totem. "You have to prep for that," Staley said. "You can't just think you can come in and have the type of impact that she's having. You have to mentally and physically and spiritually prepare for that, and she didn't take that time lightly. [/QUOTE]

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