Monarchs Rout Comets; Shock Stop Fever

HOUSTON (AP) _ Van Chancellor wants his Houston Comets players to put their postseason opener out of their minds as soon as possible. <br/><br/>Kara Lawson scored a career playoff-high 18 points and Yolanda

Friday, August 18th 2006, 8:51 am

By: News On 6

HOUSTON (AP) _ Van Chancellor wants his Houston Comets players to put their postseason opener out of their minds as soon as possible.

Kara Lawson scored a career playoff-high 18 points and Yolanda Griffith added 16 points and nine rebounds as the defending WNBA champion Sacramento Monarchs beat the Comets 93-78 on Thursday night.

DeMya Walker added 15 points and Ticha Penicheiro had eight assists for the Monarchs, who've won eight of nine playoff games since the start of last season's title run. Their 93 points and 36 field goals were postseason franchise records.

The Comets, meanwhile, suffered their worst playoff loss since a 69-48 loss to Sacramento in 2003 and dropped to 0-3 in playoff games at the Toyota Center, which opened before the 2004 season.

In other playoff action Thursday, Deanna Nolan scored 18 points and Katie Smith added 17 to help Detroit beat Indiana 68-56 in the Eastern Conference.

Houston was leaving early Friday for Sacramento to prepare for Game 2 on Saturday.

``The first thing we have to do is walk out of here and forget this game,'' Chancellor said. ``Put it out of our minds and go to Sacramento and step up and play, just play hard.''

The Monarchs lost three of four regular-season meetings with Houston this year, but dominated this one from the start with accurate shooting and smothering defense.

Sacramento shot 52 percent (36-of-69), scored 24 points off 14 Comets turnovers and held Houston to 31 percent shooting in the first two quarters.

``Playing well defensively gives us a chance, even if we don't play great offensively,'' Lawson said. ``When we do both, that leads to special nights like tonight.''

Sacramento led 58-30 at the break, setting WNBA playoff records for points in a first half and largest halftime lead, and led by at least 20 until coach John Whisenant put in the backups in the final minutes.

``We put a lot of focus and energy into starting the game off right,'' Lawson said. ``We did, but then people came off the bench and just kept it going.''

The Monarchs lost two of their last three regular-season games and five of their last six on the road. Griffith said they suddenly were back to their championship form on Thursday night.

``Tonight was us playing Sacramento Monarchs basketball,'' Griffith said. ``We weren't worried about who they had on their team. We ran our offense and knocked our shots down with confidence.''

Michelle Snow scored 15, and Tina Thompson had 13 for the Comets.

``I think we are all still waiting to show up for the game,'' said Sheryl Swoopes, who scored 10. ``We flat-out didn't get the job done on either end of the floor.''

Thompson sank a jumper from the wing to give Houston its only lead at 2-0. Walker then hit three straight shots from close range to start a 16-2 run by the Monarchs.

The Comets were sloppy and out of sync from the start, missing six of their first nine shots with two turnovers.

Snow's putback with 2:45 left in the first quarter was Houston's first basket in five minutes and the Comets closed to within seven. But Walker converted a three-point play and the Comets never cracked a double-digit deficit again.

Shock 68, Fever 56

In Indianapolis, the Shock backed coach Bill Laimbeer's guarantee that they would beat Indiana.

``I think it pumps us up and gives us more confidence, makes us more focused and intense,'' Nolan said of Laimbeer's prediction. ``But at the same time, we're not really thinking about it. We're trying to limit the little things, like turnovers, allowing second shots, and just play hard.''

Nolan was 9-for-11 from the field, constantly getting free for open jumpers at the top of the key. She scored six points during a key 13-0 run.

Tamika Catchings, named the WNBA's top defensive player earlier in the day, led Indiana with 17 points, six rebounds and five assists. She hit four straight shots in the fourth quarter, rallying the Fever within four points at 58-54 with 2:24 remaining.

But Smith hit a 3-pointer off an offensive rebound and Ruth Riley followed with a layup to counter a basket by Whitmore for a 63-56 lead with 1:11 to play, and the Fever got no closer.