ESPN WNBA

Originally Published: October 7, 2009

Smith helps Mercury off to fast start

Comment Email Print Share

By Mechelle Voepel
Special to ESPN.com
Archive

ESPNews Highlight Of The Night

Mercury ties series at two games

Learn More » Report a bug » Feedback »

ESPNews Highlight Of The Night

INDIANAPOLIS -- On Sunday after a Game 3 loss, Phoenix's Tangela Smith spoke barely above a whisper in a quiet Mercury locker room.

On Wednesday after Phoenix evened the WNBA Finals with a 90-77 victory, Smith wasn't exactly on a megaphone or anything. She was still quiet, but this time spoke with a relieved smile.

"We really wanted to work on our spacing tonight, and it was great," Smith said. "We just took our time, concentrated and got the open person. And we made our shots tonight."

[+] Enlarge

AP Photo/Michael ConroyTangela Smith's 4-for-6 effort on 3-pointers helped the Mercury hit 42 percent from downtown.

Smith had 16 points and five rebounds, shooting 6-of-10 from the field, including four 3-pointers.

"Smith hurt us," Indiana coach Lin Dunn said. "I didn't think we did as good a job running her off the 3-point line as we had. There's no way she should ever score a 3 on that end-line out-of-bounds play. We know how to defend it, we've practiced it, but we didn't do it right."

Instead, Phoenix got a big boost from Smith, who also was part of the Mercury's 2007 WNBA championship team. That title really meant a lot to her, because up until that point, Smith had been a good player who hadn't had a lot of happy moments at the end of seasons.

"I was in the league for 10 years before I won," said Smith, who hit all three of her 3-point attempts in the first quarter. "Now I have a chance to win a second time in three years."

A Chicago native, Smith went to Iowa to play for C. Vivian Stringer, but then was pretty upset when her coach took the job at Rutgers. They still stay in touch, but Smith had a hard time at first dealing with Stringer's leaving the Hawkeyes.

"When Coach Stringer left, I was really hurt," Smith said. "But I stuck it out, and I have no regrets. I think it made me grow as a woman. I love Iowa, and it made me a better person."

Her Iowa career didn't have the most pleasant ending, though, as the Hawkeyes were upset on their home court in the 1998 NCAA tournament's second round by Kansas.

Then she was drafted in the WNBA's second round by Sacramento, where she spent the first seven years of her career. The next season, 2005, she was traded to Charlotte, and had to watch as the Monarchs won the WNBA title that year.

She was with Charlotte for two seasons, but then when that franchise disbanded, Smith was taken in the dispersal draft by Minnesota in 2007. The Lynx then traded her to Phoenix for No. 1 pick Lindsey Harding (who this season was traded to Washington for draft picks that resulted in Quanitra Hollingsworth and Rashanda McCants).

It has ended up being a good deal for the Mercury and for Smith.

"I've loved being with Phoenix," she said. "That's the team I want to retire with."

Smith felt the Mercury did just about everything right at the start of Wednesday's game, and then carried the momentum throughout.

"I think we came out aggressive, we concentrated, we were playing good defense," said Smith, whose Mercury outscored the Fever 33-22 in the first period. "When they made their run in the second quarter, we still stuck together. We didn't let anything break us tonight, including their fans. Because their fans were really loud.

"Five of us have been there before [in 2007], and we talk to the other players and tell them, 'We know we can do this.' If that's in our heads, we just need to keep the faith, and that's what we did."

Smith said that during the near-decade that she was in the WNBA without winning a title, the things that helped her through the disappointments were "my passion for basketball and my support system. I'm really close to my family."

Several of her relatives came from Chicago to Indianapolis for the Finals. She was eager to go see them after the Mercury's victory.

"You know, I couldn't find my mother during the game, and I was kind of bothered because I always try to find her before games for good luck," Smith said, laughing. "I guess that's just a superstition, though, because I still did fine and we won."

Mechelle Voepel, a regular contributor to ESPN.com, can be reached at mvoepel123@yahoo.com. Read her blog at http://voepel.wordpress.com.