Masked Bird to trigger Storm
When one of the Seattle Storm`s male practice players wound up with a bloody nose Thursday morning after an on-court collision, Sue Bird came over and playfully offered the guy her new face mask. Sitting on the sidelines as he tried to stop the bleeding, he declined, with a smile. For one thing, it probably wouldn`t have fit -- he`s somewhat bigger than Seattle`s 5-foot-9 All-Star point guard. More important than that, Bird is going to need the mask herself tonight when she starts the opening game of the WNBA Western Conference finals at Sacramento against the Monarchs. Yeah, that`s right -- despite all the precautionary statements about her status the past couple days from coach Anne Donovan and team officials, Bird`s not only playing, she`s starting. Besides, did anyone really expect Bird to stay in the nest for this best-of-3 series opener? The same Sue Bird who has started all 104 games of her Storm career? ``This has happened to a lot of other players. If they can do it, I can do it,`` said Bird, who was fitted for the mask on Wednesday, then donned it for the first time during Thursday`s intense two-hour practice. ``I haven`t had a problem breathing or anything like that. It went pretty well today. I have virtually no pain. The big thing is getting rid of my black eyes and my swelling.`` And anyway, ``I don`t expect them to be aiming for my nose.`` Bird still needs surgery for it to heal properly -- and that could happen as soon as next week. In the meantime, the mask will do its job while Bird and the Storm try to do theirs, seeing if they sneak away from Sacramento with their third straight victory this season after going 0-7 in unfriendly ARCO Arena the previous four years. ``Whoever plays better defense and controls the backboards will have the edge,`` Donovan said. Whoever rebounds the ball better and gets out on transition will have the edge.`` While the Storm swept away Minnesota in two straight, the Monarchs went the full three games against three-time defending Western Conference champ Los Angeles. Sacramento closed out the Sparks on L.A.`s home floor Wednesday night, 73-58. ``I like the fact that they went three games with L.A. and had to expend a lot of energy to do it,`` Donovan said. There was some lament that the Storm didn`t get a shot at Los Angeles, even though they lost three of four to the Sparks this season. ``I`m a little bit disappointed,`` Donovan said. ``You always want to go and play the best, and by last year`s standards, that`s L.A. But I think Sacramento showed they were the best in that (Western semifinal) series, and the better team won.`` Although Sacramento still has a sizable lead in the all-time series (11-6), it`s 6-5 for the Storm since Bird came aboard. Which makes Donovan all the happier to have her available, broken nose or not. ``I can`t tell you how proud I am of her. It`s tough to be out there in this game with so much contact where you lead with your nose,`` Donovan said. And Bird isn`t about to flinch. ``The hardest thing is this thing right here,`` she said, lifting the mask. ``The nose is broken, but I can`t feel anything -- except for this thing getting in my way. ... But once you get used to it, it`ll be fine.``
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