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Years ago
more on Summerton's cut
BASKETBALL
Depth Could Be The Key To Sun's Championship Hopes
May 21, 2007
By LORI RILEY, Courant Staff Writer WASHINGTON -- Connecticut Sun coach Mike Thibault agonized over his final cut last week, just like he did last year.
Last year, he cut Jen Derevjanik on the last day. He had too many point guards and he wanted to give her a chance to play elsewhere. Derevjanik signed with Phoenix.
Friday, he cut forward Laura Summerton for the same reason.
One of the players he decided to keep, Megan Mahoney, played well in the Sun's 89-80 opening victory Saturday. So did the rest of the bench, which contributed 21 points, 11 rebounds, two blocks and only had one turnover.
"There were a bunch of people on the bubble," Thibault said of the cut. "We kept [Mahoney] as that player who can move around and play four positions. She's not a [power forward], but she's strong enough to battle some of the smaller post players in the league. We can use her to switch on screens and jump out on guards and go back and play post.
"Laura played well enough to play on a team. I wanted to keep [rookie] Cori [Chambers] as a young player to develop for the future. Asjha [Jones] and Kristen [Rasmussen] are already signed for next year. I felt like no matter what she did, Laura was never going to get any minutes with this team."
Mahoney, who shot 4-for-14 and had 14 turnovers in three exhibition games, hit 5 of 5 free throws Saturday, scoring five points. She had an assist, two offensive rebounds, a steal and no turnovers in 11 minutes.
Backup point guard Jamie Carey hit 2 of 6 three-pointers and was the leading scorer off the bench (eight points). Rasmussen and Erika de Souza, playing their first games for the Sun, combined for eight rebounds. De Souza had four points and two blocks.
"That whole group - Jamie, Megan, Kristen, Erika - all played well," Thibault said. "Erika was a huge presence in the lane. As she gets more comfortable, that will get better for her. She was probably a little nervous in her first game with us."
Carey, Rasmussen and rookie Kamesha Hairston came into the game early in the first quarter. At times, Thibault made mass substitutions and was comfortable playing his reserves together, leaving them in at critical points.
At the end of the third quarter, Mahoney was fouled at the three-point line and hit all three free throws. Carey hit a three-pointer with the shot clock running down to boost the Sun's lead to 69-64 with 28 seconds left in the third.
At the start of the fourth quarter, with the Sun up 69-68, Carey, Mahoney and Rasmussen were on the court, along with starters Margo Dydek and Nykesha Sales.
"It was kind of like a platoon where all of a sudden, all of us are in the game," said Rasmussen, who played 15 minutes. "I think our job is to come in, get some quality minutes, bring energy, maintain or improve the quality of the game, let the [starters] get their rest until they're back in and doing what they do.
"It was fun and it was exciting and it was a good start for us."
Rasmussen came in after Jones left the game with 3:36 left in the first quarter when she was elbowed in the nose. Jones returned in the second half.
"They did a great job," Jones said of the bench. "Offensively, the starters got a little stagnant. The bench brought energy."
Contact Lori Riley at
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