More on the playoffs

The Indy Star says last night’s Fever win over the Dream epitomizes Tamika Catchings’ MVP credentials. And they got a picture of Iziane Castro Marques’ flagrant, when she tried to take Catch’s head off.

Catchings took time out today for a live chat with ESPN.

On the other side of the league, the Lynx last night showed just how dominant a team can be.

This piece is ostensibly about whether or not Seattle Storm players can document their bruises. But it ends up being a discussion about the behavior of Mercury forward Diana Taurasi:

The most volatile player was Mercury G Diana Taurasi, who cursed to the KeyArena rafters four times as she fouled out with 6:40 remaining in the fourth quarter. None of the Storm players were surprised by her behavior, however. Jackson even added that she has a potty mouth, but now that she’s 30, her mother has told her to tone it down.

“Diana has a potty mouth, that’s a fact,” said Storm C Ashley Robinson, who’s known Taurasi since AAU ball. “She needs to stop cussing like that, she’s almost 30. But she’s exactly how she is on the court (off it), but she’s not mean, she’s not nasty.

“I think it’s hard for people to know that she really means the best. She competes hard. I swear it’s like Tourettes, she gets caught up in the moment and before you know it she’s cussing. But it’s also why a lot of people love her. You probably don’t want your kids cussing but you want your kids competing as hard as she competes.”

Smith added that the Taurasi factor brings entertainment and characters to the league, which is a positive. Yet Smith, a 13-year veteran, added she’s never seen a player get away with talking to officials the way Taurasi has done since entering the WNBA in 2004 as the first overall pick to Phoenix.

“I told her she got extra hits in and she’s like, ‘Naww,'” said Smith of a conversation she had with Taurasi during the pivotal Game 3. “I have a lot of respect for D, she’s a good, good friend.

“She gets away with the (cursing), so there’s nothing we can do about it. We all handle ourselves differently. The refs don’t say anything…I think if you do it enough, you can’t ‘T’ her up for everything. The same way with fouls. You can’t call them all.”

Very interesting.

Here’s where the Storm players will be in the WNBA off-season.

Recruiting news bonus:

ESPN has the latest on class of 2012 committments.