San Antonio vs. Sacramento

"We are supposed to take care of our home court. We had a great crowd that had a lot of great energy. We took care of what we were supposed to do. Now we have to go steal one on the road, which is extremely difficult to do in this league. We have to climb to another level."
•Sacramento Monarchs' coach Jenny Boucek on winning Game 1 of their first-round series against the San Antonio Silver Stars

"That's why you want home-court advantage. We have to take care of our home court. When we play at home, everything plays out our way. But it's not like Sacramento is going to come into our home and give us the game. It's going to be another hard-fought game and every possession counts. We got to play on defense and keep them off the offensive boards and make sure we knock down our shots."
•San Antonio's Helen Darling on the Silver Stars' approach to Game 2 against Sacramento

"We know how they [Sacramento] feel; it's the same way we felt at Sacramento. Game 3 will be an all-out war."
•San Antonio's Becky Hammon on defeating the Monarchs 88-61 in Game 2, to the Associated Press

Phoenix vs. Seattle

"I'm not worried, I'm not scared, I am not anything, because I know that we can win. I definitely know we can win."
•Seattle's Lauren Jackson after losing to Phoenix 101-84 in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series, to The News Tribune

"We just played so well. It's not as if Seattle played that poorly."
•Phoenix coach Paul Westhead on why he believes his team came out on top in Game 1 against Seattle, to the Arizona Republic

"It's sad losing and I wish our team was as great as Phoenix -- I think they're a great team. I definitely think they were the better team throughout the series, obviously."
•Seattle's Lauren Jackson after losing Game 2 to the Mercury, to The News Tribune

"I think it's our time."
•Phoenix's Cappie Pondexter on her team's potential after sweeping Seattle in the first round, to USA TODAY

Indiana vs. Connecticut

"We just dug deep. We just had to be a lot more aggressive than they were. We had to make those extra possessions and make good on them. We couldn't give them away, and give them rebounds. We had to do every little thing right. When it came down to that stretch at the end, we did the little things right."
•Connecticut's Nykesha Sales on winning Game 1 of their first-round series against Indiana in triple overtime

"I felt good. As the game wore on it got tighter and tighter but I had a heat pack on the side. That helped. The more I played, the better I got."
•Fever forward Tamika Catchings on coming back from a foot injury for Game 1 against the Sun after being sidelined for 13 games

"They outplayed us from the start. We made turnovers and our best players didn't make shots. Tully Bevilaqua was able to run around and double-team us. They got 16 points off our turnovers and their active defense."
•Connecticut coach Mike Thibault on the Sun's Game 2 loss to the Fever which sent the series to a decisive Game 3, to the Hartford Courant

Detroit vs. New York

"There were points when I looked up (at the scoreboard) but I let it go in one ear and out the other. I did not let it phase me because I knew we had a lot more to do and did not want to let it get away from us. We did not want them to build any momentum or go on a run. Patty (Coyle) preaches execution, and that is basically what we did. We were able to limit our turnovers and get the shots we wanted."
•New York's Janel McCarville on having a large lead throughout most of the Liberty's 73-51 Game 1 win against Detroit

"We didn't play basketball. We didn't want it basically. New York definitely wanted it more than us, but we didn't want it at all. That was discouraging. We lacked the desire to compete. As a ballclub we were not cohesive. That is something we need to find in the next day and half. If they do we'll be fine. If we don't then it's an early exit."
•Detroit coach Bill Laimbeer on being defeated by New York in Game 1 of their first-round Eastern playoff series

"I told our players that at some point in this game, 'Your heart will be severely tested,' and it was. We got down to a point where it was an even ballgame, last minute, and our season was on the line. But we made the right plays when we had to make the right plays."
•Detroit coach Bill Laimbeer on the Shock fighting through until the end to win Game 2 76-73, to the Associated Press