Comets host Sun
Note: With the Sacramento Monarchs' 77 to 74 win over the Seattle Storm late Tuesday night, the Comets were officially eliminated from the 2008 playoffs.
Post-Game Quotes for Houston Comets vs. Connecticut Sun – September 9, 2008, 7:30 p.m. CT at Reliant Arena
Houston Comets Head Coach Karleen Thompson
On the importance of tonight’s win
“I think we just had to regroup and come out and play with some pride. We knew what we had to do and we knew our game plan; it had been good to us before the break. We had to just come out and play hard and not just want it but go get it!”
On the play of Matee Ajavon in the first half
“Matee loves coming off of the bench. She loves it and we love it because she gives us our spark. Today at shoot around I told the guards to just attack the basket. I wanted them to just play free and play their game.”
Houston Comets guard Matee Ajavon
On coming into the game with a sense of urgency
“Coach just told us to be aggressive and that was the game plan. So we just tried to do the best we could and get a win.”
On gaining the win tonight
“Like you said it was a sense of urgency.”
Houston Comets guard Tamecka Dixon
On executing the game plan
“Our game plan was just to execute defensively. We did that, we limited them to one shot per possession for the most part. We ran it up and back so we were able to score. It was a good game for us.”
Connecticut Sun Head Coach Mike Thibault
On the game
“They just played better than us. They shot a better percentage than us; we shot poorly, particularly in the second and third quarter. I thought that [Tamecka] Dixon and [Matee] Ajavon were huge, I always know what Tina [Thompson] is going to do, but they were focused and they outplayed us. They made tough shots, they out worked us on some loose balls, they’re trying to stay alive and we didn’t match it.”
On what to take to the next game
“I don’t want to take much from this game. We got into some trouble in July where we were turning the ball over and rushing shots, tonight we had 18 turnovers and they had 22 points off of it and we can’t win a lot of games from that.”
Connecticut Sun forward Asjha Jones
On focusing on shooting
“We focused mostly on ourselves. It’s our last stretch going into playoffs and we wanted to come out making our shots. We didn’t though; I don’t think we got the shots we really wanted to get tonight.”
On the next game
“Between the last two games, we want to take a combination of things to the next game. We want to make more shots and be more aggressive on defense.”
Connecticut Sun forward Tamika Whitmore
On tonight’s performance
“We just got outhustled, plain and simple. We were lethargic from the beginning, we didn’t take care of the ball and it’s hard to recover from that.”
Final: Comets 75, Sun 68. Box score.
The Houston Comets (15-17) kept their slim playoff hopes alive with a 75 to 68 win over the Connecticut Sun (20-12) in front of an announced crowd of 5,769 fans.
Three Comets scored in double-figures. Tina Thompson scored 21 points (7 for 16 from the field including 3 for 6 on threes); rookie Matee Ajavon (7 for 16 from the field) scored 15 points off the bench and veteran Tamecka Dixon chipped in with 14 points on 6 for 13 shooting.
Now the Comets wait to see if the Sacramento Monarchs defeat the Seattle Storm later tonight. If the Monarchs win, Sacramento would clinch the fourth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
2:41 left in the Fourth Quarter: Comets 70, Sun 62.
The Comets got a big break as Asjha Jones' fouled out with 3:00 left in the ball game. Jones picked up fouls 5 and 6 in a matter of seconds. Jones scored 22 points on 10 for 17 shooting from the field and 2 for 2 from the foul line.
The Comets have kept the Sun at arms' length for the last few minutes of the ball game.
Tina Thompson leads the Comets with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
5:50 left in the Fourth Quarter: Comets 64, Sun 54.
The Comets answered yet another run by the Sun with a run of their own. The Sun trimmed the Comets' lead to eight points (59 to 51); however, the Comets increased the lead to 13 points (64 to 51) with a quick 5-0 run.
Tina Thompson leads the Comets with 16 points. Matee Ajavon has 13 off the bench and Tamecka Dixon has added 12 points.
Connecticut has been led by Asjha Jones' 20 points and Tamika Whitmore's 12 points.
End of the Third Quarter: Comets 55, Sun 41.
The Comets played a very active zone defense in the third period; and, the Sun simply did a poor job attacking the zone. The Sun did not score for more than six minutes until Asjha Jones scored a putback layup with less than one minute left in the third quarter.
The Comets shot 5 for 15 in the quarter while the Sun shot 5 for 17 in the period.
Tina Thompson scored eight points in the quarter.
4:39 left in the Third Quarter: Comets 49, Sun 39.
Both teams are 4 for 10 thus far in the third quarter. Tina Thompson just capped off a three-point play with a driving left hand lay-up which spun into the basket. Thompson drew a foul by Tamika Raymond.
Tamecka Dixon has scored 4 of Houston's 10 third quarter points.
Connecticut's Asjha Jones leads the Sun with 14 points; but, Jones also has four fouls; and, she's now sitting on the bench.
Halftime: Comets 39, Sun 31.
A brutal final 2:38 by both teams. No points were scored; the two teams combined to miss nine shots and turn the ball over four times.
2:38 left in the Second Quarter: Comets 39, Sun 31.
The Comets answered a 6-0 run by the Sun with a 7-0 run to take a 39 to 28 lead before Lindsay Whalen banged in a three-point shot.
Matee Ajavon leads all scorers with 13 points. Asjha Jones leads Connecticut with 10 points.
6:58 left in the Second Quarter: Comets 31, Sun 22.
Matee Ajavon's eight points thus far have sparked a 10 to 4 Comets' run to help Houston stretch the lead to nine points. Ajavon has made 5 of her 7 field goals thus far including drawing a flagrant 1 foul on Connecticut's Amber Hold. Ajavon drew an "And 1" on the play and the Comets will keep possession of the ball.
Comets are 13 for 23 (56.5%) from the field and Connecticut is 8 for 21 (38.1%).
End of the First Quarter: Comets 21, Sun 18.
Balanced scoring (five players scored in the first period) and rebounding (10) helped the Comets to lead at the end of the first period. Tamecka Dixon and Shannon Johnson each scored six points in the period. Asjha Jones scored six points to lead the Sun.
Pts in the Paint: Comets 6. Sun 4.
2nd Chance Points: Comets 4. Sun 6.
Fast Break Points: Comets 0. Sun 5.
4:55 left in the First Quarter: Comets 11, Sun 7.
Despite a poor start, the Comets 5 for 8 field goal shooting has the team ahead with about one-half of the first quarter remaining. Connecticut is just 3 for 10 (30.0%) from the field.
After the team committed three turnovers on their first three possessions of the game, Comets' center Michelle Snow (2 fouls) was taken out of the game 90 seconds into the game. Mistie Williams replaced Snow.
Houston's Tamecka Dixon leads the Comets with four points.
HOUSTON, TX -- The Houston Comets (14-17) will try to snap a five-game losing tonight -- as well as stave off elimination from the WNBA playoffs -- versus the Connecticut Sun (20-11). The Comets "tragic" number is one which means another loss by the Comets or simply one win the Sacramento Monarchs eliminates the Comets from the postseason.
The Sun lead the Eastern Conference and have won seven of their last eight ball games.
Tonight's Starters and Officials
Connecticut Sun
#15 Asjha Jones
#00 Tamika Whitmore
#41 Kerri Gardin
#1 Amber Holt
#13 Lindsay Whalen
Inactive Players: Danielle Page and Jamie Carey.
Houston Comets
#15 Roneeka Hodges
#7 Tina Thompson
#2 Michelle Snow
#20 Tamecka Dixon
#41 Shannon Johnson
Inactive Players: Sancho Lyttle and Hamchetou Maiga-Ba.
Officials
#6 Bonita Spence
#50 Shelley Nakasone
#4 Sua Blauch
Post-Game Quotes for Houston Comets vs. Connecticut Sun – September 9, 2008, 7:30 p.m. CT at Reliant Arena
Houston Comets Head Coach Karleen Thompson
On the importance of tonight’s win
“I think we just had to regroup and come out and play with some pride. We knew what we had to do and we knew our game plan; it had been good to us before the break. We had to just come out and play hard and not just want it but go get it!”
On the play of Matee Ajavon in the first half
“Matee loves coming off of the bench. She loves it and we love it because she gives us our spark. Today at shoot around I told the guards to just attack the basket. I wanted them to just play free and play their game.”
Houston Comets guard Matee Ajavon
On coming into the game with a sense of urgency
“Coach just told us to be aggressive and that was the game plan. So we just tried to do the best we could and get a win.”
On gaining the win tonight
“Like you said it was a sense of urgency.”
Houston Comets guard Tamecka Dixon
On executing the game plan
“Our game plan was just to execute defensively. We did that, we limited them to one shot per possession for the most part. We ran it up and back so we were able to score. It was a good game for us.”
Connecticut Sun Head Coach Mike Thibault
On the game
“They just played better than us. They shot a better percentage than us; we shot poorly, particularly in the second and third quarter. I thought that [Tamecka] Dixon and [Matee] Ajavon were huge, I always know what Tina [Thompson] is going to do, but they were focused and they outplayed us. They made tough shots, they out worked us on some loose balls, they’re trying to stay alive and we didn’t match it.”
On what to take to the next game
“I don’t want to take much from this game. We got into some trouble in July where we were turning the ball over and rushing shots, tonight we had 18 turnovers and they had 22 points off of it and we can’t win a lot of games from that.”
Connecticut Sun forward Asjha Jones
On focusing on shooting
“We focused mostly on ourselves. It’s our last stretch going into playoffs and we wanted to come out making our shots. We didn’t though; I don’t think we got the shots we really wanted to get tonight.”
On the next game
“Between the last two games, we want to take a combination of things to the next game. We want to make more shots and be more aggressive on defense.”
Connecticut Sun forward Tamika Whitmore
On tonight’s performance
“We just got outhustled, plain and simple. We were lethargic from the beginning, we didn’t take care of the ball and it’s hard to recover from that.”
Final: Comets 75, Sun 68. Box score.
The Houston Comets (15-17) kept their slim playoff hopes alive with a 75 to 68 win over the Connecticut Sun (20-12) in front of an announced crowd of 5,769 fans.
Three Comets scored in double-figures. Tina Thompson scored 21 points (7 for 16 from the field including 3 for 6 on threes); rookie Matee Ajavon (7 for 16 from the field) scored 15 points off the bench and veteran Tamecka Dixon chipped in with 14 points on 6 for 13 shooting.
Now the Comets wait to see if the Sacramento Monarchs defeat the Seattle Storm later tonight. If the Monarchs win, Sacramento would clinch the fourth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
2:41 left in the Fourth Quarter: Comets 70, Sun 62.
The Comets got a big break as Asjha Jones' fouled out with 3:00 left in the ball game. Jones picked up fouls 5 and 6 in a matter of seconds. Jones scored 22 points on 10 for 17 shooting from the field and 2 for 2 from the foul line.
The Comets have kept the Sun at arms' length for the last few minutes of the ball game.
Tina Thompson leads the Comets with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
5:50 left in the Fourth Quarter: Comets 64, Sun 54.
The Comets answered yet another run by the Sun with a run of their own. The Sun trimmed the Comets' lead to eight points (59 to 51); however, the Comets increased the lead to 13 points (64 to 51) with a quick 5-0 run.
Tina Thompson leads the Comets with 16 points. Matee Ajavon has 13 off the bench and Tamecka Dixon has added 12 points.
Connecticut has been led by Asjha Jones' 20 points and Tamika Whitmore's 12 points.
End of the Third Quarter: Comets 55, Sun 41.
The Comets played a very active zone defense in the third period; and, the Sun simply did a poor job attacking the zone. The Sun did not score for more than six minutes until Asjha Jones scored a putback layup with less than one minute left in the third quarter.
The Comets shot 5 for 15 in the quarter while the Sun shot 5 for 17 in the period.
Tina Thompson scored eight points in the quarter.
4:39 left in the Third Quarter: Comets 49, Sun 39.
Both teams are 4 for 10 thus far in the third quarter. Tina Thompson just capped off a three-point play with a driving left hand lay-up which spun into the basket. Thompson drew a foul by Tamika Raymond.
Tamecka Dixon has scored 4 of Houston's 10 third quarter points.
Connecticut's Asjha Jones leads the Sun with 14 points; but, Jones also has four fouls; and, she's now sitting on the bench.
Halftime: Comets 39, Sun 31.
A brutal final 2:38 by both teams. No points were scored; the two teams combined to miss nine shots and turn the ball over four times.
2:38 left in the Second Quarter: Comets 39, Sun 31.
The Comets answered a 6-0 run by the Sun with a 7-0 run to take a 39 to 28 lead before Lindsay Whalen banged in a three-point shot.
Matee Ajavon leads all scorers with 13 points. Asjha Jones leads Connecticut with 10 points.
6:58 left in the Second Quarter: Comets 31, Sun 22.
Matee Ajavon's eight points thus far have sparked a 10 to 4 Comets' run to help Houston stretch the lead to nine points. Ajavon has made 5 of her 7 field goals thus far including drawing a flagrant 1 foul on Connecticut's Amber Hold. Ajavon drew an "And 1" on the play and the Comets will keep possession of the ball.
Comets are 13 for 23 (56.5%) from the field and Connecticut is 8 for 21 (38.1%).
End of the First Quarter: Comets 21, Sun 18.
Balanced scoring (five players scored in the first period) and rebounding (10) helped the Comets to lead at the end of the first period. Tamecka Dixon and Shannon Johnson each scored six points in the period. Asjha Jones scored six points to lead the Sun.
Pts in the Paint: Comets 6. Sun 4.
2nd Chance Points: Comets 4. Sun 6.
Fast Break Points: Comets 0. Sun 5.
4:55 left in the First Quarter: Comets 11, Sun 7.
Despite a poor start, the Comets 5 for 8 field goal shooting has the team ahead with about one-half of the first quarter remaining. Connecticut is just 3 for 10 (30.0%) from the field.
After the team committed three turnovers on their first three possessions of the game, Comets' center Michelle Snow (2 fouls) was taken out of the game 90 seconds into the game. Mistie Williams replaced Snow.
Houston's Tamecka Dixon leads the Comets with four points.
HOUSTON, TX -- The Houston Comets (14-17) will try to snap a five-game losing tonight -- as well as stave off elimination from the WNBA playoffs -- versus the Connecticut Sun (20-11). The Comets "tragic" number is one which means another loss by the Comets or simply one win the Sacramento Monarchs eliminates the Comets from the postseason.
The Sun lead the Eastern Conference and have won seven of their last eight ball games.
Tonight's Starters and Officials
Connecticut Sun
#15 Asjha Jones
#00 Tamika Whitmore
#41 Kerri Gardin
#1 Amber Holt
#13 Lindsay Whalen
Inactive Players: Danielle Page and Jamie Carey.
Houston Comets
#15 Roneeka Hodges
#7 Tina Thompson
#2 Michelle Snow
#20 Tamecka Dixon
#41 Shannon Johnson
Inactive Players: Sancho Lyttle and Hamchetou Maiga-Ba.
Officials
#6 Bonita Spence
#50 Shelley Nakasone
#4 Sua Blauch
posted by Kris G @ 7:10 PM
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