April 23, 2008 • Beijing China

Anne Donovan, head coach
Opening statement:
I give a lot of credit to New Zealand for just not quitting, having a very good second half and continuing to fight. After the first half we thought the game was over, but New Zealand didn't believe that. They kept fighting. They certainly made it an interesting game there at the end.

We had a great first half, we did all the things we wanted to do in the first half. But we lost our focus a little bit and our bench lost their focus a little bit. It didn't finish the way we wanted it to, but it did start the way we wanted it to.

Swin Cash, Seattle Storm
On today's game:
They're a scrappy team and sometimes teams that have to play a certain way to stay in the game. Obviously we didn't match their intensity as well as we could have, especially in the second half. But we were able to get the win and that's the most important thing. You learn from it and we have a big game to look forward to tomorrow.

What do you know about the Chinese team?
I know that they've had the same coach for a few years now (Tom Maher) who use to coach the Australian team and they've significantly improved every year. This isn't going to be the same China team you saw in the last Olympics or even two years ago. I think it's going to be a very good game, they're going to get up and down the floor. They like to do a lot of cuts, they have a lot of movement. We just have to play smart, solid USA Basketball defense and we'll do fine.

Lindsey Harding, Minnesota Lynx
Compare the team's defense effort from the first half and second:
It's hard to sometimes keep your focus when you're up by so much. That's exactly what it was, when you have a team down by so much it is hard to keep that focus, but it also shows how good of a team we are. We are professionals and we've got to be able to play up to our level, no matter who we're playing.

What kind of adjustments will the team make for tomorrow's game against China?
I think a lot about this game will prepare us for tomorrow. As a home team you have to know that they might get a lot of calls so we're going to have to play through those fouls and tonight we did not do that. We know that they're going to be pumped, they're going to have a lot of fans there cheering for them and against us. But that's why we're here, that's why we play and I know we're going to be ready.

Laura Harper, Sacramento Monarchs
On today's game:
Obviously we had a really great second quarter, but as far as playing together for a full 40 minutes it was just tough to do that. New Zealand fought back really hard and it says a lot to come back like that in the second half with that much energy, that much passion. Defensively we definitely have to pick it up for tomorrow.

How much is playing in this tournament with this group of players going to help you going into your first WNBA season?
This experience has been like something I can't even explain. I've never played with players this age before. Being around, hearing things, talking to them, these girls just live the game. They don't even think about it, they know what they're doing all the time and just play. Even off the court has been a learning experience. Even being on the bench for 40 minutes, which I'm not, would help me if I was here and not playing. I'm just so happy I was even invited to play at this tournament. I don't really want it to end.

Who have you been learning the most from?
For me it's definitely Lisa (Leslie) because she talks in my ear. She's very, very calm. Even at breakfast she'll give me little tips, tell me little things. She's very motivating. Hearing from someone who's been playing since the league began, someone who's one of the best if not the best players in the league definitely helps.

Kara Lawson, Sacramento Monarchs
On today's game:
We just got undisciplined on the defensive end. That's been our focus this tournament, our defensive game. We let them get to the free throw line, got in the bonus early in both quarters and we just didn't every really lock in in our half court defense. That's an area where we definitely need to work on.

On the offensive end I thought we got some pretty good looks. In the second half we missed some easy shots and got a little rattled with some of their double teams, but really we didn't get those same offensive opportunities we got in the last game from our defense getting stops and getting off and running.

You have China next, what do you expect to see from that team?
China's a great all-around team, they've been training together for a long time. They've got a great amount of chemistry. Of course anytime you play a country in their country they tend to play a little better than normal. We're going to have to be ready because they've been pretty consistent in this tournament. It'll probably be our toughest game so far.

Taj McWilliams-Franklin, Los Angeles Sparks
Opening statement:
New Zealand is a very scrappy opponent and they played really hard in the second half," Taj McWilliams-Franklin (Los Angeles Sparks). "In the first half we played like we normally do, we dominated. But in the second half we lost our focus and they came back really well. They played that zone really well and made it a game in the end.

What do you think about the second half and what was your secret to winning the game?
We built such an early lead in the game tonight that we knew we were going to pull it out in the end. The secret today was going with what we know. We have a strong post game and New Zealand is not that tall so we kept attacking inside. They were triple teaming and double teaming our post players, who were kicking it out for some open looks. It was a tough game, there was no secret thing we did. We tried to play hard and kept moving the ball around.