Sacramento Monarchs Weekly Update

August 2, 2005 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Sacramento Monarchs News Release


Outlook for the Week

Tuesday, August 2 @ San Antonio Silver Stars, 5:00 P.M. PDT at SBC Center

Thursday, August 4 @ Charlotte Sting, 4:00 P.M. PDT at Charlotte Coliseum

Sunday, August 7 vs. Houston Comets, 6:00 P.M. PDT at ARCO Arena

*All games can be heard on Sports 1140 KHTK with Jim Kozimor and Krista Blunk calling the action.

Recent Transactions
8-1-05: Placed guard Miao Lijie (lumbar strain) on injured reserve and activated guard Sui Feifei.
7-25-05: Placed forward DeMya Walker (right medial collateral ligament sprain) on injured reserve and guard Sui Feifei (left Achilles strain) on injured reserve and activated center Olympia Scott-Richardson and guard Miao Lijie.

7-18-05: Placed center Olympia Scott-Richardson (left knee strain) and guard Miao Lijie (lumbar strain) on injured reserve and activated forward/center Erin Buescher and guard Sui Feifei.

Did you Know?
Monarchs have the Best Start in Franchise History
Sacramento is off to their best start in franchise history at 17-7, surpassing the previously held best record 24 games into the season (15-9, 2000).

Monarchs for Three (since 1999)
Sacramento has made at least one, 3-pointer in every game since the beginning of the 1999 season.
That's 220 consecutive games that the Monarchs have netted a 3-pointer, at least once, from behind the arc.

10 and Counting
Nicole Powell has scored at least one three-pointer in 10 consecutive games this season (July 1-present). Earlier this season she had 10 consecutive games in which she scored on or more three pointers (May 21-June 17). The current record is 32 games with a three-point field goal made, held by Katie Smith of the Detroit Shock (July 31, 2002-August 2, 2003).

First to Score
In 2005 the Monarchs are 11-3 when they score first and 6-4 when their opponent scores first.

Double Digits

- Yolanda Griffith has scored in double figures in 19 of 24 games and has been the high-scorer for the Monarchs 10 times.

- DeMya Walker has scored in double figures in 19 of 19 games and has been the high-scorer for the Monarchs eight times.

- Nicole Powell has scored in double figures in 13 of 24 games and has been the high-scorer for the Monarchs seven times.

Monarchs Approaching Milestones
Rebekkah Brunson - 80 minutes away from her 1,000th
Yolanda Griffith - 11 assists away from her 300th

- 181 rebounds away from her 2,000th
- 6 steals away from her 400th

Ticha Penicheiro - 37 steals away from her 500th
- 4 free throws away from her 500th
Kara Lawson - 16 games away from her 100th

- 88 minutes away from her 2,000th

Seeing Double-Double
Yolanda Griffith has posted five double-doubles in 2005. She has totaled 77 double-doubles in her WNBA career.

Griffith WNBA's All-Time Offensive Rebound Leader
Yolanda Griffith is the WNBA's all-time offensive rebound leader. She currently has 789 career offensive rebounds (as of 7/31/05).

Penicheiro WNBA's All-Time Assist Leader
On June 17, 2004 at Minnesota, Ticha Penicheiro became the WNBA's all-time assist leader. She currently has 1,540 career assists (as of 7/31/05). On July 1, 2005, Penicheiro dished out her 1,500th career assist as the Monarchs defeated the Detroit Shock, 80-63.



Next Game:
Vs. San Antonio Silver Stars, August 2, 5:00 P.M. at SBC Center
Sacramento will travel to San Antonio for the first of a two-game road trip. The Monarchs are 2-0 this year against the Silver Stars. Sacramento also leads the all-time series, 17-13 (10-5 at home and 7-8 on the road).

2005 vs. San Antonio
May 27 Friday Sacramento won, 71-67, at SBC Center
July 14 Thursday Sacramento won, 72-61, at ARCO Arena
August 2 Tuesday Sacramento at San Antonio, 5:00 p.m. PDT
August 18 Thursday Sacramento vs. San Antonio, 7:00 p.m. PDT

Regular Season Series Notes
Largest Sacramento victory: 107-69, 6-24-99 @ Sacramento (38)
Largest San Antonio victory: 69-57, 7-14-01 @ Utah (12)
Most Points, Sacramento: 107-69, 6-24-99 @ Sacramento
Fewest Points, Sacramento: 57-60, 6-24-02 @ Sacramento (twice, most recent)
Most Points, San Antonio 97-89, 8-14-99 @ Sacramento
Fewest Points, San Antonio: 55-82, 8-15-98 @ Sacramento
Longest winning streak, Sacramento: 4 games, 9-20-04 through present
Longest winning streak, San Antonio: 3 games, 7-31-99 through 6-26-00
Monarchs last home win: 7-14-05, 72-61
Monarchs last road win: 5-27-05, 71-67
Current streak: Monarchs won 4, last loss 5-28-04 (72-63)

Quotables
San Antonio Silver Stars Head Coach Dan Hughes, July 14, 2005 at Sacramento:
"I think their bench played strong. I thought we did a pretty good job with some of their special players, but their depth hurt us. I need to give credit to their defense. We turned it over too much, but part of that was the way they defend. I think they put a lot of pressure on you to run your offense. If you told me we'd come into the game and shoot 46 percent and outrebound Sacramento, I'd feel pretty good about our chances."

San Antonio Silver Stars Head Coach Dan Hughes, May 27, 2005 at San Antonio:
"Yolanda Griffith is the player that was the difference maker. She's a big time player. She is hard to guard and plays with a lot of pride."

Sacramento Monarchs Head Coach John Whisenant, May 27, 2005 at San Antonio:
"We felt fortunate to get out of here with a win. We didn't play our best, but I was proud of my team and they competed hard. Yolanda Griffith showed why she's an Olympian and future hall-of-famer in the WNBA. If we didn't have Yolanda, we wouldn't have traded Chantelle Anderson here (San Antonio)."

San Antonio Silver Stars forward LaToya Thomas, September 2, 2004 vs. San Antonio:
"Sacramento has a great team, they have the best front line.... They're a talented team and if they're on fire its hard to stop them."

Monarchs/Silver Stars Connections

Silver Stars center Chantelle Anderson (2003-2004) and guard Edna Campbell (2001-04) are both former members of the Monarchs.

Silver Stars guard Nikki McCray ('95) and forward Shyra Ely ('05) and Monarchs guard Kara Lawson ('03) all graduated from Tennessee. Ely and Lawson were teammates for two seasons 2001-03.

Forward Wendy Palmer-Daniel ('96) of the San Antonio and Sacramento forward DeMya Walker ('99) both graduated from Virginia and were teammates for one season (1995-96).



Upcoming Games:
Tuesday, August 2 @ Charlotte Sting, 5:00 P.M. PDT at Charlotte Coliseum
The Monarchs travel to Charlotte for their final regular season game against the Sting. The Monarchs won the first match in Sacramento one week ago, 65-54.

2005 vs. Sting
July 26 Tuesday W, 65-54 @ Sacramento
August 4 Thursday at Charlotte, 4:00 P.M. PDT

Regular Season Series Notes
Largest Sacramento victory: 76-60, 7-5-03 @ Sacramento (16)
Largest Charlotte victory: 85-61, 8-1-97 @ Charlotte (24)
Most Points, Sacramento: 85-82, 6-24-01 @ Charlotte
Fewest Points, Sacramento: 50-58, 6-27-98 @ Charlotte
Most Points, Charlotte 85-61, 8-1-97 @ Charlotte
Fewest Points, Charlotte: 54-65, 7-26-05 @ Sacramento
Longest winning streak, Sacramento: 6 games, 7-27-98 through 6-24-01
Longest winning streak, Charlotte: 3 games, 8-14-97 through 7-10-98
Monarchs last home win: 7-26-05, 65-54
Monarchs last road win: 6-24-01, 85-82
Current streak: Monarchs won 1, last loss 9-9-04 (69-74)

Quotables
Sacramento Monarchs Head Coach John Whisenant, July 26, 2005
"We'd given them 15 points in the first five minutes. From that point on we held them to eight points for the rest of the half. That was our defensive alertness. We got back control of the game, but we still had a hard time. I have to give them credit though. They have some really nice players there."

Sacramento Monarchs guard Kara Lawson, July 31, 2004
"We were down nine, and we kept shooting ourselves in the foot. It felt like we were missing all of the easy shots, but we knew that if we locked in defensively that we could get turnovers and easy buckets offensively."

Charlotte Sting Head Coach Trudi Lacey, July 31, 2004
"We turned it over five out of six times down the stretch. We basically gave the game away. Our game is making people play against our half court defense, and we did a pretty good job at containing Sacramento's transition game. But it was our turnovers, they scored 19 points on our 22 turnovers and you just can't have that many turnovers with a team like that."

Monarchs/Sting Connections
Tangela Smith was drafted by the Monarchs in 1998 and played for Sacramento for seven seasons before being traded to Charlotte at the beginning of the 2005 season for Nicole Powell, Erin Buescher, and Olympia Scott-Richardson.

Monarchs guard Chelsea Newton and Sting center Tammy Sutton-Brown are both graduates of Rutgers University. Newton graduated this year and Sutton-Brown graduated in 2001.



Sunday, August 7 vs. Houston, 6:00 P.M. PDT at ARCO Arena
The Houston Comets will travel to Sacramento for the third and final regular season meeting with the Monarchs this year. The 2005 series currently stands at 1-1, with both teams winning at home.

2005 vs. Comets
June 13 Monday W, 74-68 @ Sacramento
July 19 Tuesday L, 54-58 @ Houston
August 7 Sunday vs. Houston, 6:00 P.M. PDT

Regular Season Series Notes
Largest Sacramento victory: 68-48, 9-18-04 @ Sacramento (20)
Largest Houston victory: 75-44, 7-18-98 @ Sacramento (31)
Most Points, Sacramento: 78-76, 7-10-01 @ Sacramento
Fewest Points, Sacramento: 44-75, 7-18-98 @ Sacramento
Most Points, Houston 89-61, 7-12-97 @ Houston
Fewest Points, Houston: 48-68, 9-18-04 @ Sacramento
Longest winning streak, Sacramento: 4 games, 6-25-04 through 6-13-05
Longest winning streak, Houston: 7 games, 7-11-99 through 6-23-01
Monarchs last home win: 6-13-05, 74-68
Monarchs last road win: 9-16-04, 71-62
Current streak: Monarchs lost 1, last win 6-13-2005 (74-68)

Quotables

Sacramento Monarchs Head Coach John Whisenant, July 19, 2005 at Houston:
"I need to give the Houston Comets a pat on the back. We haven't played against a team this year where we weren't able to force double-digit turnovers. That's how we create shots when we are having hard shooting nights like we did tonight."

Sacramento Monarchs guard Kara Lawson, July 19, 2005 at Houston:
"They came out with a lot of intensity which we expected coming into their place. We didn't handle that intensity well in the first half. We're a team that always believes if we can stay in the game, we can come back and win. We settled down offensively and were more patient in the second half and then our defense kicked in in the middle of the second half."

Houston Comets Forward Sheryl Swoopes, July 19, 2005 at Houston:
"This was a huge win for us. We knew coming into the game the type of style of basketball they were going to play. In the 1st half, we didn't allow them to do what they did to us in the first game in Sacramento. We made a concerted effort to not give up points and keep them off the board, which are their strengths. I think our defense, especially in the first half, was some of the best defense I have ever been a part of as a Comet player and that's saying a lot. This, again, is huge for us because they are leading the West and that puts us a game behind. Overall, it was a great team effort and we made it a lot tougher than it should have been, but the fact that we didn't fold and hung in there says a lot about this team."

Sacramento Monarchs guard/forward Nicole Powell, June 13, 2005 at Sacramento:
On shooting 4 of 5 (80%) from 3-point range in the 2nd half...
"It was a combination of things. The teammates, confidence and once you hit one or two you feel you can hit the rest. You need to find the right balance. If you're open and you have a shot you have to take it."

Houston Comets head coach Van Chancellor, June 13, 2005 at Sacramento:
"I thought our team played extremely well tonight. I was really pleased with them. A really good team beat us tonight and they played really well. I was really pleased with all the physical contact during the game and how our team reacted to it. There was one physical play after another. We out-rebounded a tough team and Powell just made some great shots, so give her credit."

Monarchs/Comets Connections
Houston center Michelle Snow and Sacramento guard Kara Lawson were teammates at the University of Tennessee for three years (1999-02). Snow graduated in 2002 while Lawson graduated in 2003. Lawson and Snow were also teammates on the 2003 WNBA Select Team that participated in the FIBA Women's World Cup.

Houston head coach Van Chancellor coached Comets forwards Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson, along with Monarchs guard Ticha Penicheiro and forward Yolanda Griffith on the 1999 and 2000 WNBA All-Star Game West Teams. He also coached Thompson, Penicheiro, and Griffith again on the West Team for the 2001 WNBA All-Star Game.

Swoopes, Thompson and Penicheiro were teammates on the West Team for the 2002 WNBA All-Star Game. While Griffith, Swoopes and Walker were all teammates on the Western Team for the 2005 WNBA All-Star game.

Sacramento guard Ticha Penicheiro and Houston forward Sheryl Swoopes both played for UMMC in Ekaterinburg, Russia during the 2003 FIBA Women's World Cup.

Monarchs forward Yolanda Griffith and Comets forward Sheryl Swoopes were teammates on the gold-medal winning USA Women's Basketball team in the 2000 Olympic Games. Comets forward Tina Thompson joined the pair on the 2004 USA Women's Basketball team that won the gold medal again in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. Comets head coach Van Chancellor coached these three players on the 2004 gold medal squad.



Recent Game Recaps:

July 31, 2005 vs. Minnesota - W, 67-54 (ARCO Arena)

The Sacramento Monarchs ended their five-game homestand with a 4-1 record tonight as they posted a 67-54 win over the Minnesota Lynx. Of the three games played against the Lynx so far in 2005, Sacramento has scored 67 points, and won, every time. In the second of a three-game road trip, the Lynx were handed their fourth consecutive loss. The last time Minnesota lost four straight was in July 2002.

Though they were outrebounded for most of the game, the Monarchs ultimately won the battle of the boards for the fourth consecutive game. Forward Rebekkah Brunson led the team with seven as she also led all scorers with 14 points. Despite several strong runs, Minnesota kept the game close through most of the first half. After four lead changes and four ties, the Monarchs went into intermission with a 31-28 lead.

Sacramento returned even stronger after halftime, including a 22-7 run (19:37-10:43) that gave them their biggest lead of the game (19 points, 53-34). Forward Nicole Powell scored eight of her 10 points in the second half. It was the 13th double-figure scoring game for Powell in 2005 and the 10th consecutive game she has scored at least one three-pointer.

The Monarchs tied their season-high in steals with 15. Yolanda Griffith and Hamchétou Maïga each contributed their personal season-high steals with six and three, respectively. Griffith added eight points, including a perfect two-of-two from the free-throw line. She is now nine-for-nine from the charity stripe over the last two games. Griffith and Brunson also each added two blocked shots to the Monarchs tie of their season-high six.

Shooting 36.5% and committing 21 turnovers, the Lynx had difficulty gaining momentum against the Monarchs. This was the first game for Minnesota without captain and guard Katie Smith who was traded to the Detroit Shock yesterday for guard Chandi Jones, forward Stacey Thomas, and a future draft pick. Smith has been averaging 13.3 points per game. Tonight only one Lynx player, Nicole Oldhe, scored in double-digits. Sacramento's 11 second-half turnovers allowed the Lynx to move within eight with three minutes remaining, but never closer.

Sacramento (17-7) continues on its best start in franchise history with a two-game road trip that begins in San Antonio's SBC Center at 5:00 P.M. PDT on Tuesday, August 2.



July 29, 2005 vs. Los Angeles - W, 79-59 (ARCO Arena)

The Sacramento Monarchs defeated the Los Angeles Sparks tonight 79-59. The Sparks never took the lead as the Monarchs shot 52.6% from the floor compared to 34.5% for Los Angeles.

Los Angeles kept up in the first half with the score tied at 16-16 twelve minutes into the game. Despite 10 points and four rebounds from Chamique Holdsclaw, the Monarchs managed a 20-5 run (8:03-2:36). The Monarchs led 38-30 at halftime.

After intermission, Kara Lawson ended an early 13-2 run in the second half with a 12' jump shot that gave Sacramento an even larger lead over L.A. at 59-36. Sacramento held the Sparks to only 26.5% shooting in the second half compared to the Monarchs 60% and out-rebounded L.A. 27-16. With less than two minutes left in the game Sacramento held their largest lead of 24 points. Masciadri ended the Sparks scoring in the game with two final foul shots to give her a game-total of eight points. This game ties the Spark's record at 11-11 and maintains the Monarchs two game lead over second place Houston.

Monarch's Forward Rebekkah Brunson scored a career-high 15 points, shooting 7-of-12, with 10 in the second half and added eight rebounds. Most valuable player candidate, center Yolanda Griffith scored 17 points and grabbed six rebounds. She was a perfect 7-of-7 from the free-throw line. Forward Nicole Powell also scored in double digits with 12 points, marking her twelfth double-figure scoring game. Guard Ticha Penicheiro scored her 1,500th career-point with a total of four points tonight. After being held scoreless for two games, Penicheiro has scored in the past three games. Tonight she also added three assists and three rebounds.

Only two players from Los Angeles managed to score in double figures. Center Lisa Leslie improved her scoring since the last time the Sparks visited Sacramento, from three points on June 4th to fourteen points in the loss. She also grabbed three rebounds and three steals. Forward Chamique Holdsclaw added only two points and no rebounds in the second half, with a total of 12 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.



July 26, 2005 vs. Charlotte - W, 64-54 (ARCO Arena)

Despite a slow start, the Monarchs came from behind to control the visiting Charlotte Sting with a 64-54 victory at ARCO Arena. Yolanda Griffith recorded her fifth double-double of the season (77th career), leading the game with 20 points and tying her season-high with 11 rebounds. Playing against her former team, Nicole Powell again was a contributing force as she added 15 points for Sacramento, including a perfect 2-of-2 from three-point range.

Charlotte took an early lead as they opened the game on a 5-0 run. Forward Sheri Sam sunk a perfect 4-of-4 field goals as the Sting extended their lead to as many as nine in the first five minutes of the game. But Griffith and Powell led a resurging Sacramento squad that went on a 14-0 run over the final nine minutes of the half. The Monarchs entered halftime with a 29-24 lead.

As the second half opened, the Monarchs continued their run, scoring another seven uncontested points and extending their lead to 12 (36-24). Sacramento led by as many 13 in the second half, but Charlotte stayed close and came within four points (58-54) with under five minutes remaining. Powell continued her strong play, adding four of her points and a steal in the closing minutes to seal the 10-point margin of victory for the Monarchs.

Reserve guard/forward Hamchétou Maïga grabbed a career-high eight rebounds as the Monarchs scored 12 second-chance points. Forward Rebekkah Brunson had her second consecutive record-setting game as she tied her career-high four steals. Former Monarchs forward Tangela Smith recorded a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Sting. She also set her new career high with six steals.



Women's National Basketball Association Stories from August 2, 2005


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