Sac/Washington - "The Ticha Thread"

[Purple Reign]

Tonight's game was a huge microcosm of the first half of the season. And we did not learn any more than what we have already seen.

Lots of turnovers - 17

Rebounding Even - 31-29 Sac

Lots of erratic substitution - 9 players playing 13 or more min.

Poor defense for 3 quarters, only to turn it up with 3 minutes left in the game

Opposition shooting a high percentage - 57 percent from 3

Grab a double digit lead at 60-50 in the third, only to give it all back.


But the one thing we are seeing that I appreciate so much is the outstanding play and leadership from Ticha Penicheiro.

She is absolutely playing by far the best ball of her illustrious career. Ya'll know I am a numbers cat. Check these numbers out:

11.0 PPG (13.0 over the last 5 games) - CAREER HIGH
.438 FG% (50 percent, last five) - CAREER HIGH
5.1 APG (over 6 per game, last five - High since 2003
.859 FT% (31 of 34, last five) - CAREER HIGH
2.0 SPG (2.25, last five) - High since 2002

Plus the timely baskets (2 big buckets in the final minute tonight), the overall leadership. I AM APPRECIATING TICHA TONIGHT, and this year. She is playing sensational ball, and it is a welcomed sight to see.

 

[Monty'sBiggestFan]

Turnovers
compared to where they have been...they are improving both in the number they are committing and the points they are allowing off them.

Rebounding
They outrebounded somebody AND won the game, I'll take it.

Substitutions
The substutions took the starters off the floor so they
could come back in and finish the game. I'm not sure why five years later this is still is a concern, it's their system.

Defense
Sure they did, but unlike most of the eight losses they have, they won the game. If they turned it up in the last 3 mins? It's because they'd had subs so they had the legs to turn it up and go lock down. Some of the shots Currie and Beard were hitting from three? They were contested. Beard down the stretch was sick.

Double digit lead given back. See: typical Mystics game @ ARCO. See Also: I honestly was preparing for another Sac Wash overtime game. See Also Also: Alana Beard and Mo Currie. See Also Also Also: re: Beard and Currie=sick. See Also Also Also Also: No team is going to lay down in this league any more. See Also Also Also Also Also: Monarchs had a lead of at least one when the horn sounded, they didn't earn style points but got a W.

Ticha...any further questions re: how real her rebirth is? She told us all when camp opened that she felt different. The only question I see as being left is what took so damn long. But even that doesn't seem relevant. I truly believe there is a direct correlation between her assists going up and her scoring going up. She drops her turnovers (I'm not sure when she last was averaging as much as she is right now, I wanna say 1998 or 1999-ish) she'd be up where Bird and Whalen are right now.

 

[Purple Reign]

Turnovers
compared to where they have been...they are improving both in the number they are committing and the points they are allowing off them.

Rebounding
They outrebounded somebody AND won the game, I'll take it.

Substitutions
The substutions took the starters off the floor so they
could come back in and finish the game. I'm not sure why five years later this is still is a concern, it's their system.

Defense
Sure they did, but unlike most of the eight losses they have, they won the game. If they turned it up in the last 3 mins? It's because they'd had subs so they had the legs to turn it up and go lock down. Some of the shots Currie and Beard were hitting from three? They were contested. Beard down the stretch was sick.

Double digit lead given back. See: typical Mystics game @ ARCO. See Also: I honestly was preparing for another Sac Wash overtime game. See Also Also: Alana Beard and Mo Currie. See Also Also Also: re: Beard and Currie=sick. See Also Also Also Also: No team is going to lay down in this league any more. See Also Also Also Also Also: Monarchs had a lead of at least one when the horn sounded, they didn't earn style points but got a W.

I guess I should have mentioned that we got the win. No doubt. But because of the defense, the lost leads, the turnovers, what I am saying is after half the season, I believe this is what the Monarchs are. .500, nothing more or less.

I completely disagree though about the substitution pattern. System be damned!! It was cool to herky-jerk players in and out when you had veteran depth and played the effective defense of '05 and '06. THIS TEAM HAS NO DEPTH and defensively they are average to below average. A bench full of rookies and one young veteran (Newton) who can't stay on her feet or hit an open jump shot and another young veteran (Robinson) who is a good player, but is offensively inconsistent as can be. In the words of the legendary Coach Herman Edwards, "YOU PLAY TO WIN THE GAME", with your best players on the floor. This is the pros, this ain't college or the minor leagues placing emphasis on player development. That is what practice is for, and you earn minutes. In my humble view, the Monarchs do not win unless Ticha, Brunson, Lawson and Powell do not play well. And it is hard to play well, when you are being jerked in and out.

Tonight, I will make it a point to call into Monarchs Talk, and offer this to Henry, Koz and Krista, and I think they will agree that Coach needs to tighten up that rotation as the season progresses. LASTLY, I sit in Section 117, right behind the bench, and i see the dynamics between Jenny and those players during player rotation. There is a very weird dynamic, especially with Brunson and Lawson and the coach. I am not starting mess, but my instincts as a life long basketball fan says that player rotation is more of an issue.

 

[NothinButHoops]

Major props to TP...for her outstanding play & leadership. She has put herself in a position to lead this team by example. Maybe the substitutions are good, so that she can be ready to close out games? As fans we want #21 on the floor at all times!

We just have to put our faith in this coaching staff & although we may not like the substitution patterns... that is the Monarchs.
It must be great for the players to know, I will get some minutes & that they need to be ready to help this team win. Yes & win we did

Great team effort, despite some clutch play from Beard & Currie.

Now lets go steal some road games!

To or MVP's going to Texas ...go kick some BUTTS

 

[NothinButHoops]

Just listened to the post game quotes on Monarchs.com...for the game last night.
Ticha , Sho & Adrian, you get a sence the players know what to expect in this team philosophy. Now with that being said, do they want to stay in the game? Of course, are they happy to come out, probably not, but they do have to have faith in the bench to pick up where they left off.

Check it out, it helped me to hear their voices & perspectives.

 

[uncommonclay]

LASTLY, I sit in Section 117, right behind the bench, and i see the dynamics between Jenny and those players during player rotation. There is a very weird dynamic, especially with Brunson and Lawson and the coach. I am not starting mess, but my instincts as a life long basketball fan says that player rotation is more of an issue.

PR, you should come by and say Hi ... I'm sittin' in the same kinda seats behind visitors bench, 113 ... a lot of weird stuff on those benches too !

it killed me last night when Scho came out for Kim smith, Scho had like 3 tips and steals and was HOT ... and Smith was NOT ... i do feel like the rotation is less whack than it was, but it doesn't take in to account who's playin hot ...

 

[NothinButHoops]

PR, you should come by and say Hi ... I'm sittin' in the same kinda seats behind visitors bench, 113 ... a lot of weird stuff on those benches too !

it killed me last night when Scho came out for Kim smith, Scho had like 3 tips and steals and was HOT ... and Smith was NOT ... i do feel like the rotation is less whack than it was, but it doesn't take in to account who's playin hot ...

Well ,I can say sec.109 was less than thrilled to see ShoTime leave the game as well....she provided so much energy. Gotta say I luv her ability to Finish....Quick & Lean!

 

[creative one]

Ticha is a significantly better point guard than Sue Bird is, has been, and ever will be. I don't think this is up for debate. If it weren't for Lindsay Whalen putting up MVP-like numbers, Ticha would be considered the best PG in the entire WNBA.

 

[Monty'sBiggestFan]

Ticha is without doubt the class of the west, she will reinterate that when she comes back to Sacramento for her annual "I Own Sue Bird And There's Nothing She Can Do About It" show.

I'm pretty sure you could get the broadcast folks to bite on the rotation issue, they've been on that subject the entire season seemingly on the broadcasts and pregame/postgame interviews with the staff and players. If not for the last couple of years.

On most of if not all of her pregame radio interviews Koz has asked Boucek some variation of the question. I haven't listened to the archived stream of last night's game but before the NY game it was "You have a lot of games coming up, how will you handle keeping players fresh..." "You utilize your bench a lot and it's young." In her M's talk interview last week they talked to Newton about it.

Boucek's answers have been just as consistent - obviously since she's the one running the system, but she's answered the same way all season: each time recognizing that she has a young team, especially in the bench spots but the only way they are going to gain experience is for them to play - because they will definitely be called upon all season.

This very well could be the classic chicken and egg argument where, you can’t play the bench because they’re too young/inexperienced or you can’t get the bench experience without playing them. True, the WNBA isn’t the minor league where you generally are invested in player development, however, for a team with a system designed on the premise that you need minimally 9 players rotating in, I don’t see how you limit that thinking you can ask the starting five to chase people all over the floor for 40 minutes and think you’ll get better production than you’re getting with the system now. They not only clearly are invested in it, they require it.

Despite the fact that they have had back to back team wins where they’ve started to contribute and execute cohesively as a unit I’m finding it interesting that there is still a call for this to become a five-six player roster. I mean seriously, how long has Newton been in this league? And it’s JUST now as issue that she’s on the ground a lot? Without “no-shot” Scho the Monarchs don’t win the game last night. With out Newton defending her butt off late in the game, they may not have won it either. The defensive intensity of the group that forced that shot clock violation with about a minute left in the game was palpable.

If we limited the minutes of all the players on this roster who have been inconsistent offensively or defensively at one point in the season or another, we would probably only have one player worthy of getting minutes on a regular basis.

If you had tossed out any other player names but those two, you maybe could have convinced me that they are grumbling with their coach. I have observed a similar dynamic between those two and it doesn't seem to stem from minutes or to have anything to do with Boucek directly. I didn't notice it last night, but I had seen during the Chicago game and perhaps relatedly or perhaps not Opening Night when one of them came off the floor all hot and bothered in a much more animated way than I had seen her come off the floor in the Chicago game.