How do the Storm lose a game against a team with one of its top 2 scores is out, after it lost the first game of a back to back, they lead in rebounding, have the same shooting percentages (mostly), an equal number of turnovers and dominate the first four minutes of play?
Two words.
Asjha Jones.
Jones was a +22 in individual +/- for this game. After starting the game -11, Coach T inserted Asjha and they immediately went on a +8 run in the next 3+ minutes. If they hadn't benched the rest of the starters for the last 3 minutes they may have regained the lead.
After a rough -5 over three minutes to start to the second quarter, Coach T put the starters back on the floor with Jones and they went on a +8 run.
In the third quarter Coach T dumped rotation and put Jones in with the starters again. The only starter to rest in the third was Whalen for the final 6 minutes. The Sun were +18 in that stretch. Shouldn't these ladies have been tired?
In the fourth quarter, the Storm made their push with little success, unable to stop the Connecticut offense...and managing to only force a -3 on the Sun in that interval.
Curious to me is why Izi did not play more. She was +11 for the game with a +34 Net40 and only played limited minutes in the second half in a bizarre lineup with Bird, Lawson and Johnson. Her offense was not as strong as Barb's but she seemed to slow the Sun down. Jackson (+9/+34) and Wright (+4/+17) were the only other individuals with a positve +/-.
Most Effective Lineups
Bird-Wright-Castro-Jackson-Burse: +8
Bird-Lennox-Turner-Jackson-Burse: +5
Lawson-Wright-Castro-Jackson-Johnson: +4
Least Effective Lineups
Bird-Lennox-Turner-Robinson-Johnson: -8
Bird-Lawson-Turner-Johnson-Burse: -4
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