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NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FINAL FOURMarch 31, 2017Geno AuriemmaKia NurseGabby WilliamsDallas, Texas Mississippi State - 66, UConn - 64, OT THE MODERATOR: We are joined by Connecticut. We will start with an opening statement from Coach Auriemma and then take questions for the student-athletes. COACH AURIEMMA: Obviously, you know, when you get to this point in the season, and you lose, it's the worst feeling imaginable. The excitement that was in Mississippi State's locker room, we've been there. We've been there lots of times. We've experienced that probably more times than normal. Today, you know, they deserved to win. They beat us. We had our chances. I mean, they beat us. They took us away from the things that we like to do. We didn't have the kind of maturity that you need to win at this level at this time of the year. Some of our young guys got a little bit ahead of themselves. That's okay. We went in the locker room and we experienced some of the things that a bunch of other kids have experienced against us. I'm proud of our team. I'm proud of our kids. They had an incredible run. But we came up against a much better team tonight. THE MODERATOR: Questions for our student-athletes. Q. Kia, can you talk about the way the game started, and what you think that did to you guys mentally. KIA NURSE: They started the game obviously with an intensity, and they came out and they made a push fast. Kudos to them for that. I think for us personally, we had to get back to UConn basketball. Stay engaged and stay together. Q. Gabby, can you talk about that final play defensively, what you guys were trying to do, how it turned out. GABBY WILLIAMS: I mean, we didn't want them to penetrate too deep, which they did. We were trying to face guard a little bit and put some pressure on the guards so they couldn't bring it up as fast. Just had some help defense. But came up short. Q. For both players. Can you describe what this run has been like for you guys over the last couple of years. GABBY WILLIAMS: It's been incredible, and I'm really proud of what we've done, especially this year, with kind of the gap that we've had to fill. I wouldn't want to be with anybody else right now. I wouldn't want to have any other people as my teammates. I'm proud of what we've done. KIA NURSE: It's been quite a fun ride. It's been a challenge. I think we handled it pretty well. It was something that we hadn't -- roles we hadn't been in, circumstances we hadn't been in. Unfortunately, it came short. But the people that we did it with, the help that we got from the coaches, that's irreplaceable. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, ladies. We'll continue with questions for Coach Auriemma. Q. Geno, could you elaborate a bit on the things they took away or disrupted tonight. COACH AURIEMMA: Well, normally we're a little more patient on offense. I think we became a lot less patient. We started to try to make some individual plays. We kind of got out of playing five-on-five, you know. It was very, very disjointed, that whole first half. There was no rhythm to our game. We usually have a tremendous flow. We just never got one in that first half especially. Obviously we got one in the second half. But the first half, you know, I can't even say I'm surprised. I mean, it's something I've been talking about to the guys that cover our team all year long. I've been talking about it all year. We're playing way above our years and way above our experience level. Tonight it caught up to us. When we really needed to be a little more mature with what we're doing, we didn't have it. A big part of that was because of what they were doing. Q. Your thoughts on the defense in that final sequence, trying to deny either (Dominique) Dillingham or (Morgan) William penetration? COACH AURIEMMA: Yeah, I mean, we knew -- well, first of all, having the ball with 12 seconds left was not Plan A. Obviously they had a little more time to get something done. But the kid made a great play. I thought Saniya (Chong) did a pretty good job defending her. We said if they're going to make a shot, it's got to be a pull-up jump shot. Can't be a standstill, can't be a layup. That's one of the toughest shots to make from that distance under that kind of pressure. So, you know, I always tell my team, one play doesn't cost you a game. It almost never does. One play doesn't cost you a game. But a lot of times, you know, one play will win you a game. That's exactly what she did. Q. Geno, you weren't surprised to see the kids struggle with their composure late in the game? COACH AURIEMMA: Late in the game? Struggled with it in the beginning of the game. I think a lot of it is, like Kia said, we kind of lived a charmed life for a long time, for a whole five months. Pheesa (Collier) played like a fifth-year senior, and today she struggled. (Katie) Lou (Samuelson) has been, you know, incredibly consistent all year long. Today she struggled. You take that and put it together against a really good team in this environment... I told them at halftime, It's a miracle we're only down eight. We knew we were in good shape. We knew it was going to be only a matter of five, six minutes before we got it back. But they were just better. They were just better. You know what? When stuff like this happens, it kind of makes me shake my head and go, You know how many times this could have happened and it didn't happen? The fact that it never happened, that doesn't mean I went home thinking, It's never going to happen. I knew this was coming at some point. I'm just shocked that it took this long to get here. Q. Coach, could you take us through the flagrant foul call, what the explanation was from the officials. COACH AURIEMMA: There was a sequence where somebody was going to the basket, and Lou was cutting. There was a collision underneath the basket. Lou went flying out-of-bounds. They looked at the monitor, and they said she got hit with an elbow or a forearm in the face or something. By rules, they have to call that. I don't know why they didn't call it when it happened. They were standing right there. But that's what they said. Q. Geno, can you talk about the mettle that these kids had to win 111 straight games? COACH AURIEMMA: Well, they didn't. They won 36. It's a lot. They finished 36-1. That's their record. That's what they own. That's all theirs. I'm proud of what they've been able to do, how much they changed from last October, you know. When we started October 15th to where we are today, as I said, these kids were way older than they were supposed to be. They should have shown their age early on in the season, November, December, at some point. We just kept playing like older, older players, more mature players. I watched last year's Mississippi State game. The score at the end of the first quarter was like 28 or something to 4. Stewy had I think 15 or 18 in the first quarter, you know. These kids have never really been in situations like they were in today. You know, just wasn't meant to be. Q. Can you talk about what you said to the players when you realized you were going to have two shots and the ball? COACH AURIEMMA: There's a kid trying to win the game. As I said earlier to a question, we're impatient. Normally, you know, we go over that scenario a thousand times. It's the easiest thing to do. Look at the clock. Every day in practice we said, It's usually not going to be the shot you take that makes it, it's going to be an offensive rebound. We always just want enough time for that. Saniya just tried to make a great play. God bless her. There was a collision and nothing happened. She's pretty good at drawing fouls. Just impatient a little bit, that's all. Q. Geno, when Morgan William hit her game winner, you had a big smile on your face. It was interesting to watch. Could you share what you were thinking at that moment as the ball went down. COACH AURIEMMA: Kind of some of the things I've already said about how many times that's happened going the other way, you know. Things happen for a reason. I just kind of shook my head. This kid's had an incredible run. When it went in, it was almost like, Of course. Of course, it's going to go in. She's had an amazing run so far. Look, nobody's won more than we've won. I understand losing, believe it or not. We haven't lost in a while, but I understand it. I know how to appreciate when other people win. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Coach. COACH AURIEMMA: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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