I thought we came out very focused. I knew we were going to play a great team in a great atmosphere, it's a great gym with a lot of very passionate fans. We knew that we were going to have to come in here and play our best basketball. I thought our girls did that. We came out very intense, shot the ball very well in the first half and recognized that in the second half they would probably make a run. They did that in the third quarter, but we made stops when we had to have stops. I thought we played a really smart game from start to finish.

On the 3-point barrage to start the game:
I think it was just the flow of the game from the start. If there's open shots, these players will make open shots.

Was your game plan to really run the ball against Ekaterinburg?
Our game plan is always to run, get out in transition and get as many easy buckets as we can, while keeping the pressure on them defensively. In the last two games, games we've played very well, it's been our tempo.

How nice is it to see the team peaking at the right time?
It was so great to see them play with such fire. There's not an American who wouldn't be proud of this team and the way they've pulled together, the way they're playing together. We've got two good wins against two of the Russian teams and they certainly are good wins. For us to be playing this well speaks volumes to these girls and how hard they're playing together.

On Diana Taurasi's play:
She definitely got in a groove and everybody recognized that and got the ball to her. When Diana gets on a roll like that, there's nobody who can stop her.

On the championship game against CSKA Moscow:
I'm sure it'll be another very tough battle. They've got great inside players. (Ann) Wauters and (Maria) Stepanova are big players. Stepanova had a good game against us, Wauters was not as effective so I'm sure their focus will be to get the ball inside and see if they can attack our post game a little better than they did the first time.

Can you compare the two Russia teams?
They both have different styles. CSKA has a tremendous inside game, they have strong post players and it's a different look than Ekaterinburg, who has the perimeter game to go with the post game, but not quite the same size in the post. I thought we did a great job in the last game against CSKA of really trying to minimize that post game and make them work for their buckets. We're going to have to do the same thing tomorrow.

On the overall play of Sue Bird, Katie Smith and Diana Taurasi:
These players have played together with us for awhile now. Since Sao Paulo their commitment to get better as a team for the United States has been great to see. Individually they're all-stars. We all know that. But how we fit together as a team is something I've been very impressed with here. We played that way in Chile, but this group of experienced perimeter players, Diana, Sue, Katie, have done a tremendous job.

Kara Lawson, Sacramento Monarchs
On the USA's start:
The way the starters came out, Dee hitting those big shots, really set the tone for the game. For those of us sitting on the bench watching it, it was great to see how the first group came out. It's so important from a team perspective, when you get out of the gates that quickly, it really helps give everybody a lot of confidence. Then when you get in the game you want to keep adding to that momentum. For the first half, that's probably the best we've played offensively since we've been here, in terms of making shots. Defensively we did a great job of limiting a lot of their players. So we were very happy with the first 20 minutes of the game.

How was UMMC Ekaterinburg able to cut it down to 10 points in the second half?
They're really good. That's not a team you're going to really blow out. They have some good players with a lot of pride. Defensively we weren't quite as sharp as we were in the first half. We were late getting through some screens and had some miscommunication defensively. They were able to capitalize off of that. And then offensively we had some turnovers, some sloppy play that allowed them to get out in the open court. Fortunately for us we got our composure back, had some good offensive possessions and were able to stop their run.

You've got CSKA Moscow again tomorrow. What will that game be like?
I think it's going to come right down to the end. I would expect nothing less from them. They've been the best team in the tournament so far, if you look at consistently playing well. They're probably the most talented team if you look at them from top to bottom. Their size is really a challenge for us. I think we're eager to prove that our win the other day wasn't a fluke. Anytime you get the opportunity as a competitor to play one of the best teams in the world is something you look forward to and I can't wait. I know it's going to be a long day tomorrow, our game's at night, sitting and waiting. The way this team has played the last two games has been something special. The way everyone comes in and does what they're supposed to do, it's been really, really a great team to be a part of because everyone's unselfish and everyone wants to do their part to help the team win.

Taj McWilliams-Franklin, Los Angeles Sparks
On the team's start:
It was a great start. We came out really focused. We knew it was going to be tough, they had been talking earlier about how they were going to beat us because they had so many more players than us. But we just came out focused like we did in our previous game against CSKA Moscow. Everybody was focusing on defense first and then letting our defense trigger our offense. It showed with the amount of points we put up on the board.

You all kept the tempo up high, was that one of your game plans?
I think we wanted to control the tempo. We had some great runs, but then Sue (Bird) slowed down the ball when we needed to set up some plays and we executed those plays. It was a great mix of running when we needed to run, slowing it down when we needed to slow it down and running our plays. They're not the greatest defenders, but they play a great team help defense. So you want to isolate defenders and cause them to help more, which leaves shooters open for jumpers and penetrations and kick outs, which is what it led to in the first half.

Ekaterinburg came out in the second half, slowed the tempo down and clamped down on defense. Is that how they were able to come back?
We shot really well in the first half, much better than them so I think we knew they were going to start hitting their shots more. But more than anything, our defense was one step slower. In the first half we were really quick to help, really quick to rotate, in the second half, especially in the third quarter, we were watching a lot. The pass was going by and we were watching it get there and then reacting. In the fourth when we buckled down a little more, fixed what was wrong with our defense, we extended the lead again from 10 to 18.

Cappie Pondexter, Phoenix Mercury
On the subs keeping the intensity of the game up when they entered after the starters got the game going:
Our team is very talented. Anybody can be a starter on this team. The important thing and the thing that makes us great is the depth that we have. When the starters come out aggressive like that, they set the tone for us to come in and we take on their mentality. We play the same way and we try to keep the momentum going for when they get back in. I think we've been doing a great job of that.

It was fun. I thought she was going to come out really explosive, the way I'm used to. But she was kind of a step slow today. She's getting use to playing that three position again. For the last few years she's been playing the four so I think she's in the adjustment period. It was great seeing her out there.

How was UMMC Ekaterinburg able to come back to within 10 points in the second half?
Basketball is about runs. We knew that they would make their runs, especially after they made some adjustments at halftime. The good thing is that we adjusted well after they made their run.

On Diana Taurasi's performance:
That's normal for me to see. I see that a lot. When she's aggressive like that it allows everybody to be aggressive. I love to see it, I love to watch it. She's a great shooter, she's the best shooter in the game. I'm glad she was able to show it, especially against this team because we definitely needed that.

Katie Smith, Detroit Shock
On today's game:
We came out on fire. Diana came out shooting it when we found her. Obviously the first five minutes set the tone and I think they probably were a little over confident. We're a little undersized and played a tough game the other night. But I think we came out and set the tone, got ourselves a nice lead and a cushion. By all means we knew they were going to make a run to try and get back into it and they did that in the second half. But we were able to maintain and push that lead back up where we didn't have to worry about anything towards the end of the ball game.

On the performances of her teammates tonight:
Diana was just aggressive. She came out and was hitting, was aggressive, was attacking and really set the tone for all of us. Taj was just … knocked down a three, the pick and rolls were working, helping a lot. We moved the ball really well and found the open person. Taj was able to finish today and did some really good things for us in the first half. I thought that in the second half Cappie (Pondexter) had some really good buckets in a stretch when we needed them, J-Mac (Janel McCarville) was rebounding her butt off, Katie Feenstra did some work. It was fun because Dee and Taj got us going and then in bits and pieces everybody added a little bit.

What did you think about Sue Bird's two 3-pointers to pull away in the fourth quarter?
Those were big. It kind of took the wind out of their sails a little bit towards the end. They got a little momentum, a little more momentum and then all of a sudden it's like, bam! Big three. Then we get another stop with our defense, which again was really reliable and something we can hang our hat on, and then she comes down and hits another. Yeah, those two big buckets down the stretch for us helped us keep the distance so there was no biting of the finger nails in the end.

Diana Taurasi, Phoenix Mercury
Did you get nervous at all when the score closed to 10 points?
They're a really good team and in any game people are going to make runs. But I think we got in a huddle, drew up a play and Sue (Bird) made two huge shots to help fatten the lead a little bit more. After that we felt pretty good. Ekaterinburg is a great team. This is their first games together and they're going to be phenomenal in a couple of months.

On her performance tonight:
Yeah, I was feeling it a little bit. But my teammates did a great job of getting me the ball when I was open and I just knocked them down.

How competitive is basketball in Russia?
I've played in Russia three years now. I played for Dynama with Vodo (Natalia Vodopyanova) on the same team for a year and then two years with Spartak. The competition here is really good and I think that's why you have teams like Ekaterinburg and Samara and ourselves with so many foreigners like myself coming to Russia. The Russians are very well taught in basketball. It's definitely been a really good situation to be able to come over here, play for seven months and get better as a basketball player.

You're a great player during league play, but you seem to step it up when you're playing for USA Basketball. Is that the case?
Just as a basketball player, when you're playing international competition against the best players in the world you try to play at a different level. It's great that as a team we can come out here, play against these great teams in a hostile environment and get a victory. Personally, I just go out there and play basketball. Whatever happens, happens. We've had good fortune of late. Tomorrow's going to be a tough game against CSKA. We beat them earlier, but this team is probably the best in Europe for the last four or five years so we're going to have our hands full tomorrow.

On the team's overall performance so far:
We came here and only had three practices before our first game and the first two games showed that we didn't play very well. The last two games we're coming together as a team. Tomorrow's going to be a great opportunity to put it all together.

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