|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTMarch 6, 2020Vic SchaeferJordan DanberryRickea JacksonGreenville, South Carolina Mississippi State 79, LSU 49 THE MODERATOR: We are joined by Mississippi State. We will start with some opening comments by Coach Schaefer. VIC SCHAEFER: First, just want to congratulate LSU. Just have so much respect for Nikki and her staff and that team. They played a heck of a game yesterday. The first half today really dictated the tempo today. I said at halftime to my staff, We can't play much worse. I thought they had a lot to do with that. We were going to have to beat them at their game because we were playing at their pace. But then to go out and score 53 points in the second half when we only had 26 at halftime, so much of that was predicated on our defense. Jordan was spectacular today. I just thought she made some tremendous decisions in transition. She goes 8-12, had five rebounds, three assists, two steals. Again, she's kind of the heartbeat of our team. As she goes, our team kind of feeds off her juice. She really had it today. Then Rickea, obviously 10-18, has a double-double. To get no turnovers -- I think this is the first game all year she's had no turnovers in a game -- three assists and two steals, one block. Really, really proud of our team. I've been really worried about LSU. They had played us so well at our place. Came back and actually had a chance to tie it late after we were up 20 in the third quarter. This is a tough, physical, aggressive basketball team. That's my kind of team. They're going to be so successful in postseason. They're going to do a great job. I know Nikki will have them ready for the NCAA tournament. A great win for us. A great second half. Obviously the shot at halftime that puts us up one, that's a smart play by a really smart player in Andy. If you're at our shootarounds the night before, all of our kids want to make half-court shots before we get ice cream the night before. That's a kid that did the same thing earlier in the year at Vegas at a tournament. Made a three at the buzzer from pretty close to the same spot. Proud of our kids, proud of my fans that are here today. Our fans that came and traveled provided such a great atmosphere for our kids, really for the entire game. Just really blessed, giving God the glory for number 26 and we get to live another day. THE MODERATOR: Questions for the student-athletes. Q. Jo, you and Rickea, everybody couldn't buy a shot in the first half. Getting some good looks, couldn't make them. What got y'all going in the second half? JORDAN DANBERRY: I really think Andy's shot before the half gave us a lot of energy, a lot of momentum going into the second half. The shots weren't bad shots, they just weren't falling. Coaches told us to just keep shooting, keep driving the ball, it will come to you. That's what we did. We had to keep playing our game. We was a little stagnant on offense in the first half. We had to get some movement going on, get out in transition, guard the ball. Our defense led to offense, and that's really what carried us in the second half. Q. Rickea, we talked about your rebounding a hundred times this year. But 23-10, got the double-double. What were you seeing on the boards tonight? How much did that help? RICKEA JACKSON: Before the game, Coach Schaefer was talking about we need to rebound, especially offensive rebound, like No. 1, Cherry, she goes to the boards hard, has tons of offensive rebounds. I knew I had to rebound for our team in order for us to win. Q. Rickea, safe to say you have the rust knocked off after the last couple games? What did that feel like to get back out there and back into your groove offensively and have such a big second half? RICKEA JACKSON: It felt pretty good that I could come through for my team, just knowing that they always have confidence in me and always give me the ball. Just make me more confident to make the shot so... Q. Jo, another game where Maya has a really good game as a point guard. How much easier does it make it when she's playing that way? JORDAN DANBERRY: It makes it very easy on me. Maya is a good facilitator. She finds the open person and she know who needs the ball at the right time. She feeds the high hand. Just having Maya run our team, be that presence as a point guard, it's easier on me because I don't have to do that (smiling). THE MODERATOR: Ladies, thank you very much. We'll continue with questions for Coach Schaefer. Q. Andy's shot was big, but how big was the press in y'all's man-to-man defense in the front court to get the offense a spark? VIC SCHAEFER: I think we were really soft to start the game. We had no ball pressure. We had no denial. We were really soft. For whatever reason, I just was really disappointed. Seemed like everybody I put in, Maya was the only constant, consistent defensively with pressure I felt like the whole first half. I thought the second half our press kicked in a little bit. They had to play yesterday. So you're playing that pressure defense with the hopes that that kind of wears them down a little bit, back-to-back games, their depth, or lack of, wears on them a little bit. Pointer, God almighty, she is good. She is a warrior. Tougher than nails. Just have so much respect for her. We really just tried to create a little bit of anxiety for her. Again, Aifuwa was good early. Then we really did a great job on her late and she ends up 5-15. Yeah, the press, we turned them over, then that constant nagging having to really take care of the ball I think wears on them a little bit. They may have gotten a little tired. Q. Last year here your team was driven, weren't going to be denied anything. Did you worry about your team's motivation coming in that perhaps you had to reset, different kind of narrative this year than a year ago? VIC SCHAEFER: Last year's team, they were so focused on doing something that had never been done, to win a conference tournament championship. There wasn't anything going to get in their way of that. This year's team, we are so different. I mean, I've said this a lot, I don't know whether to pull out the Crayolas and coloring books on some days, we're just so young. Just like tonight, we get up 13, 14, 15, we need to maybe work a little clock. We come down, boom, boom, make a pass, take a quick shot, it goes in. That's just how we play. I'm trying to hold them up a little bit, pull the reins back, but they won't have any part of it. That's how they played. They have a lot of confidence. As young as we are, we are talented. My concern going in was just like what happened the first half. Whatever you want to call it, it can't be rust, we've been playing, good gosh, for four months. It's just my team. Some nights it just takes more than one pull to get the 9.9 going. It's just them. The second half, I mean, you got to look, we scored 26 points the first half and turn around and get 53 the second half. It's like somebody said in the back, You only working half tonight, Vic? No, trust me, it's just how it is. I think with our kids, a lot of it was predicated on our defense tonight. Once we got that going then I think we kind of got going downhill. When we play downhill, that's when we play our best. I told my staff at halftime, the way it was going in the first half, we were going to have to beat them at their own game because that's the tempo that was being played. We got a lot of good looks the first half, they just weren't going. I thought the second half we made those shots. We got to the rim some. We got out in transition. Jo was just spectacular. She was really good tonight, y'all. Q. We saw Aliyah start, then she didn't play much. Is there a reason she started over Rickea? VIC SCHAEFER: Yeah. Q. Was Rickea suspended or anything? VIC SCHAEFER: No. Q. Obviously you guys didn't make shots the way you wanted to in the first half. Andy hits the shot. How does that change your message at halftime? VIC SCHAEFER: Again, with talking to my staff, I told the team this, Man, we can't play much worse and we're up one. Andy, great job. Way to be focused and smart. Some kids just have it. Andy is really smart. She's a cerebral player. To know we were fumbling the ball out there, clock was going down. We had a play called off the free throw. To know we had fumbled it, Rickea has the presence to throw it to Andy, Andy has the presence to turn and just get it to the rim. Again, she's made that shot before in Vegas earlier in the year in December. That's a smart, heady play. You go in at halftime, you got a little momentum really. Again, instead of down two, being up one, that's significant in my mind. Again, they had thrown one in, so we were even. It was a push. They threw one in at the shot clock, we threw one in. Made me feel a little better anyway. Q. What lessons do you take away from today going into tomorrow? VIC SCHAEFER: Well, again, I think our kids get their feet wet today and get to play in that environment, that arena. They know we're going to play a really good team tomorrow. I think they get a little bit, I don't know if 'comfortable' is the right word, but at least they get acclimated. If it's Tennessee, we had a knock-down, drag-out with them earlier in Knoxville in the year. If it's Kentucky, it's a team that beat us. Really, it's the only game all year that we really just never were in. I think either way, we get their attention. Again, I think our kids saw today, whether they were on the bench or on the floor, they saw how when we get going in transition, when we can get going in the open court, make good decisions, we're pretty good. So I think we'll have some -- hopefully you get a little confidence from that. You got to realize the next opponent is going to be even bigger, is going to be even tougher. We know what our struggles were with Kentucky, we know what our struggles were with Tennessee. Both those teams are well-coached. Got great players, future WNBA players. They got difference players. Both of them have dominant guards that can go get 25, 30. That's the first thing that gets your attention. Rhyne Howard, Rennia Davis. Two big guards that can light it up. Whoever we get, we'll have their attention and be excited to play. I'll tell y'all, I haven't slept much. I've been really worried about LSU. The other piece is that we have so many fans here, people plan for this event now at Mississippi State, really makes it special, that atmosphere... For me there's a sense of ownership and a sense of responsibility because those people have planned their weekend, they're spending probably thousands of dollars to come follow our team. I don't want them to go home early. I really wear that. I wear that responsibility because I would be so disappointed if that happened. It happens. Look, you can look all over the country. It happens in men's and women's basketball all the time. I know my fans. I know who they are, just what tremendous fans they are, how hard working they are, how they love the Bulldogs. I'm glad they get to stay another night and we get to play another day. Q. Y'all have made five straight semifinals. Last year it's about winning a championship. When you look back at when you took over this program, what does that speak to about where this program is from then to now? VIC SCHAEFER: I don't know how many of y'all were here the first year when we limped out to the jump circle to play Alabama on the first night. I'm telling you, we limped out and got beat by Alabama. We had just beat them at home a week earlier by 26. They stood around in a 1-3-1 zone and begged us to shoot it from 12 feet and we accommodated them, scored 36 points. Look it up, I promise you not far from that, 36 or 37. We're a long way from that, buddy. Quite frankly I'm disappointed you brought it up because I don't ever want to think about those days. That was rough. When I came off the floor that night, I remember looking at my former AD, looked at him dead in the eye and said, I'm sorry. Again, my team, my program, I'm responsible. At the end of the day I'm accountable. To know how far we've come from that day, we're proud of where we are. This is what's expected now. Those fans out there expect it. They're here all weekend. They didn't make a reservation for one night and maybe the second night. They expect it also. That's the expectations we've created at Mississippi State. I'm glad we're a long way from that. It's taken a lot of hard work and commitment from a lot of people. It doesn't go unappreciated. Again, I know how hard it is to do. We'll just keep our heads down, rear-ends up, keep grinding away. THE MODERATOR: Thank you. VIC SCHAEFER: Praise the Lord, go Dogs. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|