Catching Ducks

Remember Shannon "Pee Wee" Johnson? She was a scrappy veteran point guard that played her last season (2009) in Seattle. She's just been hired as an assistant coach at Northwestern State (University of Louisiana).

Swin Cash is over in Italy, playing with Team USA. They beat a local team 77-48. (The local team, by the way, included American players Janel McCarville (New York Liberty) and Cheryl Ford (Detroit Shock -- but she refused to play in Tulsa, so she hasn't played in the WNBA the last two seasons).)

Labels: Seattle Storm

From The Fry Chronicles:


The Footlights [comedy troupe] clubroom was a long, low room under the Union chamber and had a small stage with a lighting rig and a piano at one end and a sort of bar at the other. All along the walls hung framed posters of past revues and photographs of Footlighters. In their duffel coasts, black polo necks, tweed jackets or wind-cheaters, with studious black-rimmed spectacles perched on their noses and untipped cigarettes between their lips, they all seemed so much older than we were, so much cleverer, so much more talented and a world more sophisticated. They looked more like French left-bank intellectuals or avant-garde jazz musicians than members of a student comedy troupe. Peter Coo, Jonathan Miller, Bill Oddie, Graeme Garden, John Cleese, David Frost, John Bird, John Fortune, Eleanor Bron, Miriam Margolyes, Douglas Adams, Germaine Greer, Clive James, Jonathan Lynn, Tim Brooke-Tayleor, Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, Griff Rhys Jones, Clive Anderson ...

'The tradition stops here,' Hugh [Laurie] and I would mutter as we looked up for inspiration and found our gaze meeting theirs. Such a tradition, such a rich history as the Footlights', was in part inspiration and encouragement but in part insurmountable obstacle and impossible burden.

Labels: Stephen Fry

Seriously. We know she hit them in college, and she has hit several big shots in the last couple of seasons.

But this one from her rookie season in new to me:



[h/t i bleed white & blue]

Labels: Seattle Storm

Once again, Tanisha Wright is "All-Defensive" first team. (Swin Cash made second team.)

The other players on the first team are All Stars. I think it's cool that she keeps getting recognized by the coaches, even thought she's not a "star".

Labels: Seattle Storm

From "Daddy Ghoul" (3.6)


George: I like watching you sleep. I look at you and I think, "She's mine. She's all mine."

Nina: Hm. That's sweet. Creepy and slightly Ted Bundy-esque. But sweet.

Labels: Being Human

While Minnesota and Atlanta prepare to face each other in the last few games of the season, Storm players have moved on.


But first! A "thank you" video that's pretty darn cute:




Sue Bird had surgery on her hip. Swin Cash tweets that it went well.


Swin Cash, meanwhile, is in Italy with (a very eclectic version of) Team USA:



There's a picture gallery here.

Labels: Seattle Storm

I was really hoping Indiana would make it to the WNBA Finals. Instead, it's Atlanta. (Again.)

So who do I root for?

Atlanta? (The team we faced last year that stars Angel McCoughtry, who only just manages not to be my least favorite player by virtue of the fact that she has not publicly made horrible, racist statements like Cappie Pondexter.)

or Minnesota? (A team with a couple players I'm quite fond of -- Maya Moore and Lindsey Whalen -- but who I vindictively want to lose just because I don't like how closely their year resembles our 2010 season.)

I guess I'm going to have to go with Minnesota. But c'mon, Atlanta! Make them work for it. I want the series to go to four games, if not the full five!

Labels: WNBA

From the thread for the games airing 9/11/11:


ttdomi: The announcer just called [Angel] McCoughtry a younger version of Tamika Catchings.

Holly C. Tanneyhill: Wow....Someone needs to be fired... Not even close. I don't even know which point to refute first. Personality or skill set.


[I think everyone sane agrees that the younger player that most resembles Tamika Catchings is Maya Moore...]

Labels: WNBA

From "The Rescue" (1.08):


[Sandy tries to have a father-son talk with Seth...]

Sandy: If you can't tell your dad, who can you tell?

Seth: Gee, I don't know... Ryan, Mom, that tree over there.

Sandy: You're gonna miss me when I'm gone.

Seth: When are you leaving?

Labels: The O.C.

"Gloria" is probably my favorite character on Modern Family...

Labels: Modern Family

From her Twitter:


"A friend's 4-yr-old son thought he was applying Chapstick. Turns out it was a glue stick. #liplock"

Labels: random silliness

From their review of the Dollhouse episode "The Hollow Men":


"At some point in the years to come, I plan to re-watch both seasons of Dollhouse and see if those early episodes work better now that all’s revealed. I still don’t know if [Joss] Whedon and company knew where they were headed all along, or if they’re just very clever at locating the most useful pieces of what they’ve previously put into the show. Either way, it’s been quite a progression from where Dollhouse started and where it is now. It’s as though MacGyver gradually morphed into Battlestar Galactica."

Labels: Dollhouse

[h/t Fuck Yeah, Seattle Storm]


FYSS has lots of other great videos posted, too:

Media Day Bloopers

Pre-Game Video: "They're Back"

Pre-Game Video: "Don't Matter"

Pre-Game Video: Playoffs

Labels: Seattle Storm

From "Advanced Criminal Law" (1.05):


Duncan: Listen, I wanted to ask you about that young lady in your Spanish class. You know, the blonde, with the pouty, strident, Cate Blanchett sexuality, and the ridiculous name...?

Jeff: Britta.

Duncan: That’s it. Can you imagine living with that [name]? Can you imagine? Unbelievable. Anyway, um, are you two an item, and if so, would that item be impervious to sabotage?

Jeff: You know, you have the savoir faire of a hyena. How is that that you and James Bond come from the same island?

Duncan: Message received. I'll just wait for you to finish striking out first.

Jeff: Cheers.

Abed: M*A*S*H.

Duncan: Fawlty Towers. Game over. Have a nice day.

Labels: Community

I mentioned Tamika Catching's awesome play from yesterday, but Lindsay Whalen of the Minnesota Lynx had one of her own:

Her teammate got a rebound and tried to throw an outlet pass to Whalen as she ran down the court. Unfortunately, the pass was too strong. Fortunately, Lindsay Whalen is pretty darn awesome (and Rebekkah Brunson ran down the court to help) and the play was saved. It's at about 1:05 of the game summary:

Labels: WNBA

Both Jayda Evans and the Storm website have information about the potential 2012 Storm roster. Jayda's article included the 2011 player's off-season plans, but the Storm website broke that into a separate article.

(By the way, Sue Bird will be changing Russian teams this year, and Svetlana Abrosimova plays for her new team!)

Labels: Seattle Storm

From "Amy and Amiability" (3.5):


Blackadder: Oh God! Bills, bills, bills. One is born, one runs up bills, one dies! And what have I got to show for it? Nothing but a butler's uniform and a slightly effeminate hairdo! Honestly, Baldrick, I sometimes feel like a pelican: whichever way I turn, I've still got an enormous bill in front of me!

Baldrick: Don't worry, Mr B.! I have a cunning plan to solve your problem.

Blackadder: Yes, but let us not forget that you solved the problem of your mother's low ceiling by cutting off her head.

Labels: Black Adder

Tamika "Catch" Catchings won MVP! That's awesome.

The WNBA website posted her top 10 plays of the season:



It doesn't include the crazy-amazing play she made in today's game against Atlanta, though: It started, strangely enough, with a turnover from her. She had a bad pass picked off by an Atlanta player. When the Atlanta player (Lindsay Harding? Armintie Price? Just checked the video -- it's Angel McCoughtry) ran down the court, Catch ran after her, stole the ball back, ran back to the Indiana basket, was surrounded by Atlanta jerseys, and ended up throwing the ball backwards, over her head. Shot went in; my jaw dropped. It's at 1:57 of the recap video:



(They also made it their Play of the Day.)

Labels: WNBA

From his twitter:


"Yeah! The 7th season of the reality show about the two mentally-challenged underwear-model brothers trying to impress God, begins tomorrow."

Labels: Supernatural

In a similar vein to the 100 Years of Style video, here's a history of (mostly European) hair:



[h/t Jezebel]

Labels: random awesomeness

Apparently Sue Bird has been playing with a nagging injury since last year. Since she has some time before she joins her Russian team, she's contemplating and considering having surgery now. Unfortunately, that would mean she would miss a Team USA trip to Europe.


A while back, Swin Cash filmed a "pre-game" video for Fox Sports:

<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/video?vid=8aef728c-fd63-4bf1-9fbe-04e9720f3e63" target="_new" title="">Pregame: Swin Cash</a>

Labels: Seattle Storm

From Swish Appeal: "[Diana] Taurasi said her mom sent her a bar of soap to wash her mouth out after Seattle game."


And from WNBAlien: "Taurasi might be the guiding light for Phoenix, but in this series losing [Camille] Little was just as big for Seattle. She’d played less than 13 minutes in the deciding game due to all those fouls – at least Taurasi managed nearly 30 before she was removed. For the record, Little quietly walked to her team’s bench without saying a word to any official. Y’know, just for the sake of comparison."

Labels: Seattle Storm

I am totally rooting for Indiana now. If we can't win a championship, I want Tamika Catchings to. She's awesome.

Labels: WNBA

It's nice to know I wasn't the only one stunned by the end of that game.

Elizabeth Cambage tweeted: "Holy moly mum just called me and told me about the seattle vs phoenix game! I left home thinking seattle had it!!!"

Svetlana Abrosimova tweeted: "Somebody please tell me what happend? Seattle was up by 18points.I couldn't watch the game..What a tough loss!!!I cant believe it"

Even Rebecca Lobo was shocked: "Must admit... I thought Seattle would pull it out at home. Congrats to the Mercury in one of the most physical games I've ever seen."


In addition to being stunned by the loss, I'm also stunned by how many minutes Lauren Jackson played: Thirty-five. That's ridiculous. If they had won, would she even have been able to play the next game? (Also: I've said it before and I'll say it again. Sue Bird being the leading scorer is always a bad sign.)


Wanna feel sad(er)? Listen to Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson's post-game interview. You can hear LJ trying not to cry.


And the obligatory articles from the Times.


Bah, humbug.

Labels: Seattle Storm

Too sad to blog yesterday.


From "Lullaby" (3.09):

[Cordy, Wes, Fred, and Gunn all sit in the front of the convertible, leaving a very pregnant Darla alone in the back.]

Darla: Doesn't anyone wanna sit back here with me?

Cordelia: We're good.

Gunn: Yeah, it's comfy.

Darla: I promise I won't throw anyone out of the car. Not while it's moving.

Fred: It's not that we don't trust you. I mean, we don't trust you, but, the fact is, your water broke all over the back seat.

Darla: Oh.


From "All the Way" (6.06):

[It's Halloween...]

Dawn: So what are you supposed to be?

Anya: An angel.

Dawn: Oh. Shouldn't you have wings?

Anya: Um, no, this is a special kind of angel called a Charlie. We don't have wings, we just skate around with perfect hair fighting crime.

Labels: Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Or, more accurately, do or have-your-season-end-much-sooner-than-you'd-like.


Lauren Jackson will probably play tomorrow. (Should she?)


Some Storm fans on the flight back to Seattle gave up their first class seats to LJ and Le'Coe Willingham. Awwww!


Sue Bird won (or rather, co-won) the Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award. I'm actually kind of surprised she hadn't won it before. "Ethical behavior, fair play and integrity" sounds like Birdy to me!

[I'm deeply amused that she's sharing the award with Ruth Riley, because when I think of Ruth Riley, I think of this. Riley is the player trying to block Bird's shot right at the end. Hee!]

Labels: Seattle Storm

From White Night, by Jim Butcher:


[Harry and Murphy have just found out about a group of witches called "Ordo Lebes".]

Murphy: Ordo Lebes. My Latin is a little rusty.

Harry: That's because you aren't a master of arcane lore, like me.

Murphy: [rolling her eyes] Right.

Harry: Lebes means a large cooking pot. Translates out to the Order of the Large Cooking Pot.

Murphy: Or maybe Order of the Cauldron? Since it sounds so much less silly and has more witchy connotation and all?

Harry: Well, I suppose.

Murphy: [amused] Master of arcane lore.

Harry: I learned Latin through a correspondence course.

Labels: books

[h/t i bleed white & blue]

Labels: sports

From the Tumblr Fuck Yeah, Seattle Storm!:

"Don’t think I can make posts for quite a time. Still pissed about the game. Really hated the commentators."

[Right there with you, FYSS!]


And an encouraging note from Lauren Jackson's Twitter:

"See you all monday @ key!! Its gonna be ON."

Labels: Seattle Storm

Richard Cohen at WNBAlien just posted his rundown of Thursday night's games. (He's in England, so his posts go up pretty late for us Yanks.) Anyway...


"That was an old-fashioned butt-whooping. No better way to say it. It was a distillation of the reasons behind all those Storm wins over the Mercury in the last couple of years. Their defense was quick, active and physical, and shut down the Phoenix running game from the opening tip."

Labels: Seattle Storm

Post-game video interviews:




From the Storm website, Storm's role players star: "'I can honestly say that this is the first opening statement I've ever had to give,' Seattle Storm forward Camille Little said to begin last night's press conference following the Storm's 80-61 Game 1 victory over the Phoenix Mercury. Typically, the podium used to conduct interviews after playoff games is reserved for some combination of All-Stars Sue Bird, Swin Cash and Lauren Jackson. On Thursday, however, those three players were overshadowed by the production of Little and Tanisha Wright, the Storm's other two starters. Little had 17 points and 11 rebounds in her first double-double of the season. All Wright did was outscore opposing number Diana Taurasi 21-11, excelling at both ends of the floor."


From Jerry Brewer at the Times, Veteran Storm springs to life: "Just a month ago, you weren't sure whether the Storm needed a kick in the butt or a cane."


And from the other side of the game, Phoenix Mercury Embarrassed In Playoff Opener By Tough Seattle Storm, 80-61: "It's not a surprise the Phoenix Mercury lost the Game 1 of their first round playoff series to the Seattle Storm. The Storm have now won 11 out of 12 games against the Mercury in the last two years and were the healthier and better team. It was disappointing however, to see the Mercury get out-worked and out-played so thoroughly. They consistently were slow on defense and got killed on the boards as they watched too many balls fall into their opponent's hands without even trying to contest the outcome. The veteran Mercury team were frustrated and played without poise which translated to an embarrassing butt-kicking at the hands of a very good Seattle team."


And finally, Le'Coe Willingham's acceptance speech: "There's a lot that I know that you don't know that I know."

Labels: Seattle Storm

Results of game one of the first round of the playoffs:

Minnesota defeats San Antonio, 66-65.
Atlanta defeats Connecticut, 89-84.
Indiana* defeats New York, 74-72.
Seattle defeats Phoenix, 80-61.

Three of those games were very close. Our game? Not so much.

(Actually, there's another standout: Atlanta was the only road team to win. That's how they started the playoffs last year, too. The Eastern Conference better watch out!)


*In the Indiana/New York game, Fever guard Erin Phillips hit the game-winning shot. If her name sounds familiar, it's because she signed with the Storm before the season began. She was traded to Indiana as part of that three team trade that brought Katie Smith to Seattle.

Labels: Seattle Storm, WNBA

From his comment on my Camille Little & Tanisha Wright post:


"Playing defense against the Storm is like trying to hold a handful of jello. You can keep most of it bottled up, but something almost always leaks out somewhere."

Labels: Seattle Storm

Excellent game from both of them tonight, both defensively and offensively. It looked like Tanisha Wright was being interviewed by ESPN after the game, but it didn't air on TV. Boo!

Over on ESPN.com, Mechelle Voepel mostly wrote about the (much closer) Indiana/New York game, but she did have this to say about our game:


Overall, the opening night of the WNBA postseason was one that showcased various "dynamic duos." The 80-61 Seattle victory over visiting Phoenix was surprising not because of who won, but by how much. One naturally would assume Phoenix with the number "61" next to it couldn't possibly be a final score, but it was.

The Mercury star duo of Diana Taurasi and Penny Taylor were frustrated as they combined for 24 points. Seattle's star combo Lauren Jackson and Sue Bird combined for 21 points, but they were much happier. Thanks in large part to the pair that might get fewer headlines but not less applause from grateful Storm fans: Camille Little (17 points, 11 rebounds) and Tanisha Wright (game-high 21 points, five rebounds). The Storm continue to own the Mercury, who now must dig out against a team against which they have lost 11 of their last 12 games going back to the 2010 season.

Labels: Seattle Storm

Both from the Seattle Storm website:

Midway through the fourth quarter, the Storm leads 75-50. The season low for the @PhoenixMercury is 70 points.

The 19-point margin of victory is the Storm's largest in the playoffs since Oct. 5, 2004 vs. Sacramento.


The Seattle Times article has a nice encapsulation, too: There was a moment midway in the third quarter of the Storm's 80-61 win Thursday against Phoenix that told the told the story of their playoff-opening win. Storm guard Tanisha Wright chased down a pass from the Mercury's Alexis Gray-Lawson and tip toed along the sideline before giving the ball to Sue Bird. The Storm's All-Star guard led a fast break and made an assist to Wright who buried a three-pointer at the top of the key that sent the 7,279 KeyArena fans into a frenzy. It was that type of night for the Storm...



Yeeeeaaaahhh! The only bad part of a blowout is that the last quarter isn't very exciting. But a good win! We'll see how Phoenix reacts on Saturday, though.


p.s. WNBA.com posted a cool "Player Sound-Off" with Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi.

Labels: Seattle Storm

I couldn't choose just one!


Rebecca Lobo: 10 pm on espn2 Phoenix at Seattle wnba playoff game. Game is all about tempo. And Taurasi. And tempo. And Sue Bird. And tempo. And LJ.


Seattle Storm: Coach Agler on defending Diana Taurasi: "Cross your fingers." (The Storm's strategy is a *little* more complex than that.)


Sue Bird's Hair: I didn't see a technical foul there! Then again, Sue and I were busy hitting a 3.


Rebecca Lobo (again!): Wow, Seattle was terrific tonight. But watch out, Taurasi's gonna ball out in Game 2.

Labels: Seattle Storm

Playoffs start tomorrow -- whee!

From The Seattle Times: Lauren Jackson isn't 100 percent, but she'll be on the floor when Storm opens playoffs.

Also from The Times, Dishin' it with Sue Bird.

The Seattle P.I. (in it's current online-only incarnation) has a nice article about Ashley Robinson: Robinson becomes major contributor for Storm.

From the Storm website: Storm Hits Playoffs Playing Best Basketball.

The Storm website also had two articles about the friendships and familiarity between the Storm and the Phoenix Mercury: Ties Run Deep with Mercury and Storm, Mercury Renew Rivalry.

Lots of people have playoff preview articles: WNBAlien, WNBA.com, the Storm website.

ESPN-W has a cool article about Storm fans, with video! Boisterous fans give Storm decided advantage.

Labels: Seattle Storm

From "Ink and Incapability" (3.2):


Blackadder: Now, Baldrick, go to the kitchen and make me something quick and simple to eat, would you? Two slices of bread with something inbetween.

Baldrick: What, like Gerald, Lord Sandwich had the other day?

Blackadder: Yes, a few rounds of geralds.

Labels: Black Adder

From "iPromise Not To Tell":


Principal Franklin: Hello, Sam.

Sam: Mornin', Ted.

Principal Franklin: [warningly] Sam...

Sam: [falsely cheerful] Good morning, Principal Franklin!

Principal Franklin: So, Sam. Tell me, what has gotten you into trouble this week?

Sam: Uhh, I got yelled at by Ms. Briggs for failing a quiz.

Principal Franklin: Why did you fail the quiz?

Sam: I didn't know the answers.

Principal Franklin: Right. Anything else?

Sam: Uhh, I got kicked out of the cafeteria for slapping Gibby with a piece of pizza.

Principal Franklin: Why did you slap Gibby with a piece of pizza?

Sam: I found it on the floor; I wasn't gonna eat it.

Labels: iCarly

Check out #1!

Labels: Seattle Storm

ESPN did preview for all four 1st round match-ups. For Seattle/Phoenix, everybody picked the Storm to win.

ESPN-W has an article about Lauren Jackson's journey this season.

Finally -- and this really should have been in the previous post, but I hadn't read it yet -- Richard Cohen's review of last night's Chicago @ Seattle game:

"A Swin Cash layup took them to 19-8, and then the roof came off the building when Katie Smith drilled a three to break the 6,000-point barrier. This was why it was nice that she’d finished two points short on Friday night. The cheers were so loud and went on so long that they even drew a cute little wave of acknowledgement from Smith, who’s the sort of player who’d just want to get on with the game."

"Seattle took care of business, and it’ll almost be a relief to face all the speed and scoring of Phoenix after trying to guard [Sylvia] Fowles in that fourth quarter."

Labels: Seattle Storm

Fan video from last night's game of Katie Smith's 6,001st point and the ovation during the official announcement.

She was named Western Conference Player of the Week this week.

Her full point tally, by the way, is 7,448. The Storm website two neat tables that show the leaders for both (player) points and (coach) wins that shows both ABL and WNBA. (In addition to pushing Katie Smith from 3rd to 1st, the combined list also puts Taj McWilliams-Franklin at 5th instead of 11th.)

Meanwhile, Katie Smith is out and about, giving twitter props the Storm staff.

Labels: Seattle Storm

From "Night Terrors" (6.09):


Alex: He's scared to death of everything.

The Doctor: Pantophobia.

Alex: What?

The Doctor: Pantophobia. Not fear of pants, though, if that's what you're thinking. It's the fear of everything. Including pants, I suppose, in that case.

Labels: Doctor Who

Don't forget to vote!

Labels: Seattle Storm

Very exciting to be at the game when Katie Smith got her 6,000th WNBA point! She did it in fine style, too, by swishing a three in her first shot of the game.

Brian Agler got his 211st win as a head coach, tying Van Chancellor (the head coach of the Houston Comets, winners of the first four WNBA championships).

Agler's wins don't include post-season (not sure why) but do include his years in the ABL. After the game he pointed out that at least one player from this year's Storm team was with him for every one of those wins. (Obviously Katie Smith is the one player for the ABL and Minnesota Lynx wins.)

Katie's points, on the other hand, include post-season (I'm assuming), but don't include her ABL years. If you do include her ABL years, she passed 6,000 a loooong time ago*, and has more points than the two WNBA players ahead of her on the list (Tina Thompson and Lisa Leslie).

The Times had a nice article on Saturday about Katie Smith's late-season surge. Jayda Evans' sub had a mini-interview with Coach Agler before tonight's game, and asked him about Katie Smith:

Q: After watching Friday's video, what did you see out from Katie Smith?
A: It looked like Katie from the ABL days. She was driving the ball. She was getting it to the rim. She had her stroke. She was defending. It was obviously perfect timing for us. We needed it that night.
Q: What has this season been like for Smith in terms of finding her role?
A: I think it's been hard for her. I think it's the first time in her life she hasn't started. So that is totally new for her. She's come to a team that is really established. Sort of like she did in Detroit, but when she went to Detroit she moved into the starting lineup. We have an established starting lineup. So it wasn't as smooth for her. It's taken some time. I will say this for Katie, she's the ultimate competitor. And she's going to figure it out. I'm hoping what we saw Friday night is what we're going to see down the stretch here.

She had seventeen points tonight, so it looks like she's in the groove just in time for the playoffs!

As Nate Parham at Swish Appeal points out, it's nice that Coach Agler and Katie Smith could reach their milestones together.

(We won, by the way.)



Looking forward to the playoffs, Mechelle Voepel over ESPN.com writes, "Playoffs have wide-open feeling": In the WNBA a year ago, there was a green giant that was anything but jolly to those standing in its path. The strong feeling heading into the postseason then was that the visual of Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson and their Seattle teammates lifting the league trophy would ultimately symbolize last summer for the league. The success of the Storm indeed ended up being the dominant story of the WNBA in 2010, as they swept through their three playoff series with a 7-0 record and Jackson was named MVP of the league and the finals. Got any idea of what image will wrap up 2011, the league's 15th season?




*According to Wikipedia, it was August 16, 2007.

Labels: Seattle Storm

From his twitter, about Diana Taurasi and Angel McCoughtry:


"With both Angel and DT it's hard to tell if they're worried about the scoring title or just, y'know, being Angel and DT..."

Labels: WNBA

This is the first-hand account that I like to read: For Thou Art With Us.


Related: Operation Find Don, The Kindness of Strangers & the Power of Community: Operation Find Don, and A Rather Befuddled Note From Me To You About September 11 Specials.

Labels: history

Over at WNBAlien, Richard Cohen devoted his entire post to it: Taurasi Terrific, but Smith Helps Storm Survive.

Swish Appeal has Why Katie Smith's Efficient Performance Overshadowed Diana Taurasi's Spectacular Shooting In Seattle Storm Win .

On the Storm's website, they have the usual interviews. In Sue Bird's, she talks about playing better when she's having a good time.

Labels: Seattle Storm

From Eat the Rich, he discusses the rudeness of Russians:


People who weren't in Russia before 1991 sometimes think Russian rudeness is a product of freedom. "I guess the Russians are finally free to be rude," they'll say. They're wrong. Manners were worse yet in the USSR and were accompanied by a public atmosphere of defeated fatigue and indefatigable suspicion. [...] So socialism causes rudeness. And capitialism causes rudeness. But if you go to Sweden, where they've got both, everybody's polite. You figure it out.

Labels: P.J. O'Rourke, politics

[h/t Jezebel]

Labels: random silliness

Seriously, she just went off on Phoenix tonight. Twenty-six points. TWENTY-SIX! In the previous seven games she scored 28 points total.

If the last Phoenix/Seattle game was a Diana Taurasi/Sue Bird battle, this was a Diana Taurasi/Katie Smith battle. This one we won!

Jayda Evans, the Seattle Times reporter who covers the Storm, is on her honeymoon, so some dude named Percy Allen did the liveblog instead. I think he needs his hearing checked: "The Storm are being introduced. It's impossible to tell who gets the loudest ovations. However, fans love Jackson, Cash and Bird." Ummm.... The cheers for Jackson and Cash are loud, but I've always thought that Sue Bird got the loudest cheers. What do you think, Iris?


In other news:

Remember Alison Lacey from last season? Apparently she's decided to retire from professional basketball.

Nice article from Forbes about Force 10 Hoops, the owners of the Storm.

Swin Cash won an award from the league for her charity work.

Labels: Seattle Storm

From his twitter during tonight's Phoenix @ Seattle game:


"Oh. My. Word. Make room for the Legend that is Katie Smith, Diana..."

Labels: Seattle Storm

From "Fair is Foul and Foul is Fair" (2.4):


[Richard meets with his new advertising executive, Sanjay]

Sanjay: You know what you should do?

Richard: What?

Sanjay: Go crazy!

Richard: ...I was really hoping you'd say something constructive.

Labels: Slings and Arrows

Usually Ben York is absurdly pro-Phoenix Mercury, but today he surprised me by posting an article entitled "Why Sue Bird Should Be the 2011 MVP":


Imagine, for a moment, where the Seattle Storm would be without Sue Bird in 2011.

Go ahead. I’ll wait.

In 2011 thus far, Bird has recorded six assists or more in a game 11 times, scored 15 or more points 18 times, and turned the ball over two times or less a staggering 20 times.

Considering how often the ball is in her hands for the Storm, these totals are nothing short of remarkable.

Labels: Seattle Storm

Busy with (annoyingly confusing) home loan stuff. So, just a few quick notes:

Former Storm player Svetlana Abrosimova just played a charity game back in Russia. There was an auction, too, and her Storm jersey sold for 50,000 Euros. That's pretty cool!

Both Sue Bird and Swin Cash recently passed the "4,000 points" mark. They're the only players from the 2002 draft class to do it, and they've entered that "club" 16th and 17th. They were also 45th and 46th to reach 2,000 points, 28th and 30th to reach 3,000, and 1st and 2nd to be drafted in 2002. They just can't stay apart!

Oh, and Ped? If you like to look at stats, Swish Appeal (almost) always has lots in their posts.

Labels: Seattle Storm

From "iOMG":


Sam: So...where did you learn to make fudge?

Brad: Oh, my great-grandma taught me.

Sam: She was a good woman, Brad.

Brad: She's still alive...

Sam: Even better.

Labels: iCarly

I won't be moving until mid-October at the earliest. But I've already started!

Labels: moving

From "Draft Day, Part Two: The Fall of Ryan O'Brian" (2.18):


Casey: I'm sorry.

Dan: Yeah?

Casey: I'm very sorry.

Dan: I don't think you are.

Casey: I am. In fact, I'm so sorry it's almost hard for me to think of different ways to say "bite me."

Labels: Sports Night

Back-to-back games this weekend! But now we have a breather before next weekend's Friday/Sunday game duo -- the last games of the regular season! (Where did the time go?)


Over at Swish Appeal, Nate Parham discusses the Seattle@San Antonio game: How The Seattle Storm Beat The San Antonio Silver Stars In The First Four Minutes Of The Fourth Quarter

"The Seattle Storm did not play that well in their 70-60 win over the San Antonio Silver Stars last night. In fact, the Silver Stars arguably outplayed their guests through three quarters despite being down by three points. Through three quarters, the Storm turned the ball over 17 times (30.58% of their possessions). They allowed the Silver Stars an above average free throw rate of 44.8% in the first half. The Storm didn't have an assist in a first quarter during which they shot only 33.33%. But what the Storm did do was play outstanding basketball for about four minutes in the fourth quarter."


Richard Cohen at WNBAlien discusses the Seattle@Tulsa game: Who Wants it More?

"Seattle started pushing the ball a little in the early minutes of the second half, remembering that you’re allowed to run back down the floor instead of walk if you happen to feel like it."

"Lauren Jackson had enjoyed going to her turnaround jump shot from about 10-feet all night, but she tried it twice to open the fourth quarter and both came up short. That’s usually a sign of tiredness, which would be understandable considering she’s still building her fitness back up after the injury. When Lacy flashed back to the first quarter with another three, the gap was down to four with seven minutes left. Then Seattle remembered that they have one of the best players in the World on their team, and that she’s 6’6” – tiredness be damned. Two feeds from Bird to Jackson for layups, both after she’d established strong position deep in the paint before even calling for the ball, reasserted Seattle’s position as the favourites to win this game."

"Seattle ball with 50 seconds left. Huge turnover [by Tulsa]. The game was dead and gone seconds later. You’d expect a veteran team like Seattle to run at least 22 seconds off the clock on a late possession like that, but Bird brought the ball down, used a Lauren Jackson screen to break open at the three-point line, and put the shot in the air with 14 still on the shot clock. That was a horrible decision for half a second, then the ball went through the hoop. "


And Richard Cohen on the Seattle@San Antonio game: Western battles roll into final week

"It was all about the West in the WNBA last night, with the battles for second and fourth in the conference played out across two games. In the end, everyone survived to fight another day. Which is a slightly more generous way of saying that absolutely nothing changed. But at least there was some reasonably entertaining basketball along the way."

"Currently holding a half-game edge on Phoenix for second place in the West, if Seattle can cling on to that spot they’ll host games 1 and 3 (if necessary) in the first round of the playoffs. Game three in Key Arena, versus game three anywhere else on the planet, makes a huge difference to Seattle’s chances of advancing."

"The scoring for the half finished on a veteran play from Tanisha Wright, exploiting the physical advantage she has over Silver Stars rookie Danielle Robinson. Holding Robinson off with her body, hauling the lob pass in with her other arm and converting the layup, Wright’s basket gave Seattle a 30-29 lead at the break. It hadn’t exactly been an offensive showcase, but then anyone who came to a Seattle-San Antonio game expecting that was sorely misguided."

"The third quarter was a painful illustration of the positives and negatives about the Seattle Storm. Sometimes the precise and deliberate offense that runs through option after option to find the best shot available just ends up slow and ugly. They wander around looking fairly aimless, while the shot clock ticks inexorably down towards zero. But with Jackson nailing a three from deep beyond the line when she was forced to put it in the air to beat the clock, and Cash banking in a jumper she had to take for the exact same reason, Seattle somehow led 42-36."

"With [Sue] Bird at the helm Seattle held [San Antonio] at bay. It wasn’t always her scoring, but Bird took over in the fourth quarter and imposed a level of composure that the Storm had lacked earlier in the game. She still committed her sixth and seventh turnovers of the game in the course of the period – her highest total of the season, which makes this a strange game to be waxing lyrical about her qualities – but her leadership and control were key in Seattle clinging on to their lead."

Labels: Seattle Storm

From her twitter:


Just saw Wicked for the first time. I like that my 5-yr-old refers to intermission as "halftime."

Labels: random silliness

Before the game, Brian Agler was quoted as saying that Lauren Jackson probably wouldn't play against San Antonio. "We probably won't play her tomorrow just from the standpoint of all these games mean something to us for playoff seeding but trying to push her on a back-to-back when we've got two home games coming up might be a risk. I'm going to talk with her and see how she feels and we probably won't make that decision until tomorrow game time just to see how she responds."

Did she play? Oh yes.

The game in San Antonio was close, but Seattle pulled into the lead in the third quarter and never let go.

There were several exciting shot-clock beating shots from the Storm, including a long three from Lauren Jackson and a banked three from Swin Cash. Those were pretty cool!

It's only their second road win against a non-horrible team this season. (The other was against Phoenix.)

Phoenix won tonight, too, so it's good that we got the win tonight.

Labels: Seattle Storm

From season two:


Simmons: Wait a second, are you smoking inside of your helmet again?

Grif: What? No! [Exhales smoke] Oops.

Simmons: Dammit, I knew this would happen. And how many snack cakes have you had today?

Grif: None.

Simmons: ...

Grif: Okay five. ...or more. Baker's dozen at most.

Simmons: Do you even know how many there are in a baker's dozen?

Grif: By my count? Forty-eight.

Labels: Red vs. Blue

This looks really awesome:

Salaam Dunk - Official Trailer from Seedwell on Vimeo.

h/t Nate Parham from Swish Appeal

Labels: sports

For the eighth season in a row, the Storm are going to the playoffs. The only other team to go to the playoffs eight seasons in a row was the LA Sparks (1999-2006).

That Tulsa team sure is scrappy! I'm glad we got the win, of course, but I wish that we hadn't needed Sue Bird, Swin Cash, and Lauren Jackson to play so many minutes (36, 29, and 29, respectively).

Labels: Seattle Storm

From "Politics of Human Sexuality" (1.11):


Shirley: Pierce has got a girlfriend!

Britta: That's great. What's she do?

Pierce: She's an escort.

Shirley: Oh...

Jeff: Some mysteries solve themselves, don't they?

Labels: Community

From "The Secrets and Lies" (3.19):


Summer: What does she see in that guy? He's so dirty and greasy.

Seth: He's got good abs. Women like abs. I got a six-pack myself. I know.

Summer: Cohen, those are your ribs.

Labels: The O.C.

h/t Jezebel

Labels: clothes, random awesomeness

Last night's game was a bit depressing. Turnovers galore + missed shots = an ugly loss.


So, let's focus on more cheerful things!


The Storm Mini-Games videos are awesomely adorable:

Sue Bird Racing "Camille Little as 'ostrich'..."

Flap Jackson Flip "Each team is armed with flippers and a helmet-hoop."

Shootin' the Shirt with Katie Smith "I am not shooting that thing!"

ARobbin' Buckets "ARobbed!"

Swin Cash Grab "Yo, T, this is real money!"


Apparently Swin Cash has an original iPod, so Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson bought her an iPod Touch to replace it...

Labels: Seattle Storm