BIG TEN CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

March 3, 2022

Suzy Merchant

Nia Clouden

Tamara Farquhar

Michigan State Spartans

Gainbridge Fieldhouse

Postgame Press Conference

Michigan State - 73, Purdue - 69

THE MODERATOR: We'll start with an opening statement from coach.

SUZY MERCHANT: Just really proud of this team. We've been through all the injuries we've had and the adversity. But to see them just continue, they played in every game, fought every possession, and I'm just really, really proud of them.

I thought these two were really good. We got a lot of our inside game, even though both of them were in foul trouble, and we had to play in those situations, I mean, Tamara had a huge bucket down the stretch and had an opportunity at the free-throw line and needed to get to the line and finish it. And that's what you got to do at this of your career, right, when you're an upper classman, it's survive and advance.

And I'm just really proud of our team and we'll enjoy it for a little bit and move on and got the Buckeyes next.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for the student-athletes, please.

Q. Obvious question, but does it mean a little bit more to you not only to win the game, but what you did there down the stretch to give your team the lead and extend it?

TAMARA FARQUHAR: Definitely. I mean, we knew that it was going to be a hard game. Any team in the Big Ten is capable of winning against any other team, so we knew that we needed everyone, so making it there at the end definitely gave us all a boost of energy, and yeah, it felt good.

Q. Did it mean more since it was Purdue?

TAMARA FARQUHAR: Not necessarily. I mean, I want to compete against any team that we play against, so, yeah.

Q. Lots of early turnovers, early troubles. How are you guys going to kind of make sure you're not too aggressive but are still assertive against the Buckeyes tomorrow?

NIA CLOUDEN: It's kind of just you play hard and whatever happens, happens. So you can live with getting a foul if you're playing hard on defense or trying to box out or setting a good screen and stuff like that.

So we just got to focus on keeping our level of aggression up and then just still trying to be smart, keep our hands up, and not foul.

Q. (No microphone.)

NIA CLOUDEN: I thought Matilda was great. She definitely bounced back and, yeah, she hasn't been worrying about those two games where she didn't play her best at all. She's just been in the gym working. So she played really well and she just played her game, got to open spots, and did her job.

Q. What was your mindset going into the second half there, being in foul trouble, and trying to still play aggressive while kind of being careful?

TAMARA FARQUHAR: We just had to be really smart. We knew that a lot of our players on the starting five were in foul trouble so that was something that we needed to be mindful of.

It was hard playing with fouls but at the end of the day, like, it's the end of the season, you have to be able to play without fouling all the time.

NIA CLOUDEN: Yeah, basically just what she said. Just focusing on keeping our hands up and playing good defense and then helping each other out wherever we can, just keep trying to play smart.

THE MODERATOR: All right. Ladies, you can return to the locker room. Thank you.

Questions for coach.

Q. You've got to be pretty proud of your inside game today. They beat the boards hard, hard, hard all game. Talk a little bit about your inside game.

SUZY MERCHANT: Yeah, appreciate the question. They'll be proud that you noticed.

And with all of our injuries, all the kids that we lost early were perimeter-type players, guard-like creatures, I guess I would say, so we had to go with our bigs. So probably the side of the ball you worry the most about is the defensive side, and Purdue not only can go four out, but even down the stretch they are in a different touch with five out, kind of trading threes for twos.

So we thought like no question we had to get something out of our inside game because our three-point shooting isn't what we're known for right now, given our kind of personnel issues. So we really wanted to go inside. I thought Smitty was super aggressive on the perimeter early. She's a really good shooter. That 15-footer is her game. And I thought she was aggressive in taking it.

I thought Tai and her both were really solid on the block. And then Tamara down the stretch got in there in the post and we kind went to her because when you play small you got to have the small guy in there, the smallest guy in there, and so we felt like going at Hardin a little bit might allow to us, one, maybe get a foul; or two, score in the paint.

And I thought they were very, very effective tonight and we needed them to be. I give them a lot of credit. I told them this. Having to play outside in is not a natural thing for Taiyier Parks at six-foot-three moving around chasing double stats and players and five outs.

So I am proud of our production. I think we had 34 points in the paint and not only did they look for their spot, but they were effective in finishing in there.

Q. You guys come right back and get the lead back. Is that something that had been missing from your team here late in the season?

SUZY MERCHANT: I wouldn't say that. I really wouldn't. I'm so proud of -- of all the teams I've coached and I've played in championship games here, I've coached some amazing players. Like this team I'm going to, I can't say enough about them. We have never folded.

Now did we always answer? No. We've had it a one-possession game with Maryland and couldn't close the deal with a minute to go at home or Ohio State, same thing. Like, we're right there. But the one thing I will say is they never, like they have never given in, and they have never stopped fighting regardless of what is coming out of the net.

And that, to me, is sometimes at the end of the day that's sort of the lessons in life that you'll always cherish and take with you.

I give Purdue a lot of credit. I thought Katie's done a really good job there. They run some really good stuff. Those kids play together. They play smart. So this time of year, I mean, anything can happen. I mean, like Jeanae Terry, she's 0-8 from the arc, you know, and so we were cushioning her and giving her the opportunity to shoot it and she knocked down two today.

Like, she didn't even hardly take them. So she did a really good job I thought stepping up for her team and Layden was really good. I thought Woltman was aggressive in there. So I don't know, I'm proud of our fight, regardless -- I told the team, regardless of what's going to happen, just give great energy and effort and don't worry about outcomes, just worry about playing hard and I think that's when things for us go well.

Q. Are you ever going to clap again?

SUZY MERCHANT: That's the first time -- okay. I have it on my phone and I recorded it because I kind of have an attitude about it. I wasn't really near the shooter, number one, and number two, like I'm okay if that's the rule, but you should just warn me first.

Like -- and then the very next possession, which I do have on film, if you would like to see it, I'll text it to you. Nia is shooting a shot and Katie Gearlds, she doesn't clap, but she kind of throws her arms up and sort of a semi-leg kick, so I'm like, Why is clapping not okay, but like almost defending the shot is okay? So I'm just going to have to change my sideline decorum.

That's all kind of for one of the refs, if you're listening in. If you're going to T me up, at least let me earn it. The last one I had, I did earn that one, and I deserved it and he should have T'd me up, but this one was ridiculous. I'll send you the clips.

Q. You mentioned that effort obviously being a big thing today with Tamara to be able to have nine rebounds for you guys and then in transition she had a nice bucket to Matilda, so how big was that for you and just her presence and how she's been playing for you here down the stretch?

SUZY MERCHANT: Yeah, I mean, I would say this about rebounding. Rebounding is a loose ball, offensively and defensively. And the kid that gives the most effort and goes after it gets it. So her effort is always tremendous. When she was dribbling, like in the 2-3 zone and she was dribbling down the floor in all that traffic, I'm like, Find your guard, find your guard, find your guard. Like it seemed like an eternity. And I was thinking, find the guard sooner.

And she's not a full court dribbling, play-making, human. And then she found Matilda for a layup, which was, I was like, oh, boy.

So that was, this time of year I think anything can happen. Jeanae Terry had two threes, and then Tamara Farquhar drove the length of the court, creating a shot for someone else so it's the magic time of the season, I guess.

Q. Big change from last time we talked to you. I remember you said last time you guys met energy was kind of lacking. How did you guys come in tonight?

SUZY MERCHANT: Well if you can't bring energy in the post-season I'm not sure you deserve to move on. So that's what I told the girls, like last night and last couple days I'm like, Listen, we've been through a lot or -- I know this, if you guys bring your energy and effort, let the outcome be what it is. If they play better than us that day, then so be it, but we're not going to be looking back and having regrets about, were we up in our gaps, did we dive on the floor, did we do the things we needed to from an energy and effort standpoint.

And I didn't have to coach it one time today. Not one time. And those three guards that I played logged a lot of minutes. I don't think Nia or, I mean, Matilda or Dee Dee even came out, I don't think. Yeah, I don't think they did. So I mean Dee Dee was looking at me to come out, so that was, like I was like, no. No, like no. No. And it was toward the end of the quarter, but I just, that's the energy and the effort piece, like sometimes you got to just dig a little bit deeper.

And I felt bad, I wanted to get her out but with Nia in foul trouble I needed a point guard and she's the only one I got outside of Nia.

Q. It looked like she tweaked her ankle in the third quarter is she fine?

SUZY MERCHANT: Yeah, she seemed fine. She was walking around. And, I mean, sometimes this time of year you kind of tweak things and then you just keep playing on it and then usually tape it up, whatever. This time of year, ice it up, tape it up, time to move on.

Q. What's it like coaching somebody like Matilda where she started off the season spectacular, kind of tough few games here in the end where she went out and now she's kind of coming back. How do you coach them through that?

SUZY MERCHANT: I just talked to her a little bit about a couple things. No. 1, her missing the shot -- taking the right shots. Are they open and are they in flow and are they the right shots to take.

I think when you're a coach that's what you want to do, you want to make sure you get the right people the shot, is it the right person taking the shot, is she open, and then the rest of it will take care of itself.

I am a little bit surprised, she had one game early, I think when we played Purdue the first time, she was not very good. Then we went to Ohio State and she snapped right out of it, I think she had 27 that game at Ohio State. I just had never seen her do it back-to-back like that.

But the other thing that I talked to her about the other day was like, Listen, everybody's going to run at you. When you're open, you take 'em, you always shoot the ball. But when people start running at you, I was trying to talk to her a little bit more about shot faking, like two shot fakes, shot fake first and then shot fake at the end. Because what she does is she catches it and puts it down right away and she's not super athletic in terms of speed, right? So if you, you know, if she can catch ball in her scoring pocket and look for the shot fake before she drives -- she didn't do that tonight, but that's probably a little bit unnatural for her, so that way maybe if somebody really gets into her space and she shot fakes, now when she drives she's got that little pull up jumper or the rip and take to the rim. So just to get herself going that way versus just always shooting it or trying to put the ball down right away.

So I didn't see her do that, that's probably new in her space, but I was proud of her, the possession when she missed the shot, we got the rebound, kicked it back out to her for a window three and she hit that one. I mean, I just, she's taking the right shots and she's a good shooter and so we do need her to score and it was great to see her finally knock some down after the last two games being 0-fer.

Q. So what would -- every game is like a learning experience, so what happened today that you actually would like to repeat tomorrow against No. 1 seed Ohio State?

SUZY MERCHANT: Well I thought our inside game I would mention that. Certainly Ohio State is a great 3-point shooting team. Their 5 is very difficult. Kevin's done a really good job, they're Big Ten champions for a reason. They're a handful.

So we're going to have to continue defensively to be able to play outside in. So I think we can carry that over, because Purdue was very much similar, outside in, three-point shooting, driving team, so that's going to be important for us.

And then for to us carry over, can we score the ball consistently, can we score it inside a little bit, get offensive rebound put backs and kind of create some offense for ourselves, particularly inside with our post players.

And they did a great job today, I think Tai and Smitty both had what, 27 points combined and like 13, 14 rebounds together, so that's a pretty good line for us. So paint points will obviously be important because that's what we play and who we've become.