Comets Soar Over Monarchs

By Peggy Walton: SPM TX Writer
Posted Sunday, July 6, 2008

Tina Thompson (7) led all scorers with 19 points. Photo by Donnie Moreland.

HOUSTON - The Houston Comets had reason to celebrate this holiday weekend as they defeated the Sacramento Monarchs 73-65 on Saturday and reached the .500 mark for the first time since 2006.

The Comets welcomed back Tina Thompson, who had missed four games due to a broken finger. But even with the finger heavily wrapped, Thompson led all scorers with 19 points.

Michelle Snow added 17 points, four rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots. Sancho Lyttle had a big night with her third double-double of the season with 10 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, two steals and three blocks.

Nicole Powell led the Monarchs with 18 points including 4-8 from beyond the arc. Rookie Laura Harper came off the bench to add 11 points and five rebounds.

For the second game in a row, Kara Lawson was inactive due to a sore left shoulder. She tried to motivate her team from the bench but was restricted from even giving out high fives to her team.

When asked about Lawson’s injury, Sacramento head coach Jenny Boucek did not elaborate.

"She is out with a sore shoulder and listed as day by day," she said.

In attendance with the Monarchs were about 100 very loud Sacramento fans, glowing in their purple shirts and jerseys. Rumor has it they had won a local radio station promotion that sent them on a Texas Two-Step with the Monarchs, to attend both the San Antonio and Houston games this weekend.

Comets head coach Karleen Thompson has tweaked her starting lineup several times this season, mostly due to injuries of Thompson and Tamecka Dixon and Mwadi Mabika.

She is currently going with the big lineup of Snow, Lyttle, Thompson, Hamchétou Maïga-Ba and Shannon Johnson.

Concerning her ever- changing lineup Coach Thompson said, "We tried to go with a bigger lineup and we knew Tina could play at the small forward position. You cannot sit someone down with 18 rebounds; you cannot sit Sancho down, we need her to continue to get double-doubles. We definitely know we need Tina also. We just worked it out. We didn’t practice it, but we did it last year so it was not really new to us."

Tina Thompson was impressed -- but not surprised -- by how the team stepped up while she was injured.

"All of them have been playing well and hard,” she said. “Different people are getting the opportunity to play a lot more minutes. Sancho managed to play really good but that was not necessarily a surprise ... I was really happy that we continued to get wins that now allow us to be at .500."

Boucek thought the Monarchs played a slow game tonight, but would not put the blame on the team’s tough traveling schedule.

"We have focal points to our defense. I thought we were a little bit late and slow everywhere. We were just slow reacting. Our defense has to be anticipatory. A lot of times I felt that we were late and that is not our defense."

Prior to the game both teams were 8-9; at stake was the dreaded last place spot in the Western Conference. The Comets’ win left the Monarchs in sole possession of last place.

Up next for the Monarchs is a home game against the Seattle Storm on Tuesday, July 8th.

The Comets begin a three-game road trip in Phoenix on Tuesday, July 8th. The game will be broadcast on NBA-TV at 3:30pm ET.

NOTES:

-Earlier this week the Comets reported that Mwadi Mabika underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair cartilage on her right knee. Surgery was successful and she will spend the next four to six weeks completing rehabilitation.

-Former Comet Roneeka Hodges has been signed to a seven-day contract. Hodges played for Houston for three seasons before being picked up by Atlanta in the Expansion Draft. She was then traded to Seattle and subsequently waived by the Storm. During her years as a Comet she posted 4.3 points per game and 1.3 rebounds over 88 matches in 12 starts.

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