NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: SECOND ROUND - KANSAS VS STANFORD

March 20, 2022

Brandon Schneider

Zakiyah Franklin

Chandler Prater

Kansas Jayhawks

Postgame Media Conference

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: I was really proud of our team's effort today. I thought we were highly competitive for about 25 minutes of the game. Give Stanford a lot of credit; I thought they were incredible in the third quarter. Lexie just went into takeover mode and it was as elite an offensive performance as I've witnessed in person, in the manner in which she scored in just every way possible. A lot of credit to her and to Stanford on their performance tonight.

Q. Chandler, you guys hit the buzzer shot at the end of the first quarter, you had the score close at the end of the half, and three times throughout the second half you guys tied it up. What were you thinking during halftime, that hey, we're at the national champions' home and we're this close at halftime?

CHANDLER PRATER: Coming into the game we definitely had a lot of confidence that we could keep up with them the entire time, so at halftime, it was just more of a reminder that hey, we're able to run with this team and we're more than capable of playing alongside them.

Q. Zakiyah, this is a young team. What kind of experience do you gain tonight?

ZAKIYAH FRANKLIN: A lot of experience, some that we can even learn from Stanford, the way that they played. Coming back (to the NCAA tournament) next year is the plan.

Q. For both of you, can you just talk about what about Lexie Hull tonight made her so difficult to guard and allowed her to have such an offensive game? Was it something specific or was it just she found a rhythm and was able to hit shots?

CHANDLER PRATER: She's a three-level scorer. She's able to go to the basket, pull up, and shoot from the three. You definitely have to be on your toes with a player like that, and once they start to heat up it's definitely hard to stop them. A lot of credit to her for playing so well and competing so hard.

Q. For Zakiyah, Cameron Brink, Stanford's center, Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, great shot blocker, but you actually had some nice floaters against her. How does she affect your approach, her presence?

ZAKIYAH FRANKLIN: Her length, honestly. She's a very long player and quick on her feet.

Q. For the players, just wanted to get your thoughts on the turnovers. You guys forced 10 turnovers in the first half on them. What were you doing to them defensively to get them out of rhythm and forcing the 10 turnovers that they had?

CHANDLER PRATER: They run a very clean and precise offense, so coming into this game we wanted to disrupt them and not let them catch it on their spots and definitely just play the defense that we've been playing all year. It was a key to not let them get comfortable on offense because they're such a great offensive team, so forcing turnovers and making things hard for them in the first half definitely was a key.

Q. What will be your lasting memories from this season?

ZAKIYAH FRANKLIN: Honestly I would say just the growth of this team. We've grown so much over the year, and (also) how much we've accomplished honestly. We can take that into next year and do something even special and build on it.

Q. Coach, were you aware of the dramatic moment that happened in the previous game where they got a dunk from one of their players? Were you worried about maybe that happening in this game?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: I saw it. I didn't see it live, but I believe it was one of my two sons who notified me immediately about that, and I am obviously very familiar with her and her ability to do that.

All we talked about is to not turn the ball over at the top, because those are dangerous plays for anybody. But just be aware that she's (Francesca Belibi) very capable.

Q. Coach, Stanford has a lot of depth and it seemed like that played in(to tonight's result); would you agree there?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: I think (it was) their depth, and I think you can talk about their offensive performance, but I thought it was their defense (that stood out). (It) was a lot of body blows over and over that just took a lot out of us. It was very difficult for us to get good looks, and we had to work really hard to get quality shot attempts. Then that just continued to take the air out of us and affected our ability to defend a very high-octane offense.

Lost probably in Lexie's offensive performance was how well she defended. She neutralized Holly Kersgieter with physical, tough, very stingy defense, and it's not a surprise to me that that translates into a pretty good offensive night.

Q. You touched on this a little bit, but Stanford has so many players, so how hard is it to figure out who to focus on? And then somebody like Lexie gets going, why is it so difficult to stop her when they have all these weapons, (and how difficult is) just the balance of trying to guard that person when they have all this different talent?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: Well, their offense is (made up of) interchangeable parts and obviously a very high-IQ team. But they went from big to bigger to enormous when they were playing Jones at the three and Lacie Hull playing the point guard. That's very, very imposing. The interchangeable parts and the depth they have I think will position them to be right back in the hunt to win another national title.

Q. There was a moment in the first quarter when Taiyanna Jackson was subbed out, they started feeding Cameron Brink, she scored a bucket, drew a foul, and immediately Taiyanna came back in. Was that matchup part of the emphasis of your game plan?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: Well, you know, Taiyanna is a player that we think is one of the better defenders in the country, and we have to be judicious some with her minutes and guard against foul trouble. Credit Stanford, when we went to our bench we brought in a freshman, and they were very aggressive in attacking that matchup.

But Taiyanna has had an exceptional season. You're talking about a team that has multiple All-American candidates on their roster, Brink being one of them.

Q. You're a pretty young team, just junior laden. Would you say you're young, and how valuable is that moving forward?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: With the COVID year, there's a possibility for us to have seven freshmen and four sophomores, so we potentially could be super young (moving forward).

Q. How valuable is it to play in a game like tonight even though the outcome wasn't what you wanted?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: I think the experience (at the tournament) as a whole (was important). I thought we played really well against Georgia Tech and I thought there were some moments against Stanford tonight that we played really well. I would hope that it (our play) would create a great thirst in our program to continue to grow and develop and be a consistent participant in this tournament.

Q. How was it for you psychologically to coach against a legendary coach and teacher as Tara?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: You know, I think of it as more of an honor. To be able to (coach against someone who I) have much respect for (as a coach) and what she's not only built here but been able to sustain for decades is unbelievable, and I think any coach in our profession, if you don't try to learn and emulate those like her, then that's pretty foolish.

Q. Just want to get your thoughts on Haley Jones. You guys held her to seven points, four rebounds only took five shots. Was there anything you felt like you were doing defensively to contain her and force her to not have the kind of night she's used to having?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: I thought Ioanna (Chatzileonti) did a really good job on her (Jones), especially when she was playing the four. But I also understand that when somebody is going like Lexie was, they probably chose to direct much of their offensive attack in her direction, which is going to limit opportunities for other players.

Q. I asked this to your players, but what specifically about Lexie tonight was so hard to guard, and was it something specific about her or just that because she's a three-level scorer, she can have nights like this?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: I think her defense ignited her overall performance. In the first half when it was a back and forth (game), she made some really tough mid-range pull-up jump shots that were contested, and then in the second half she got back-cuts, she got post-ups, she got rim attacks, and they started running her off staggers and she started making threes. She is just a really talented player who just got better and better and just played with a mentality that we're not going to lose tonight.

Q. This team has accomplished a lot throughout the year. At the beginning of the year, picked to finish the bottom of the Big 12, to hanging for a while with the defending champions. What will you remember most from this team this year?

BRANDON SCHNEIDER: I think (I will remember) the progress and the chemistry that was built with this team. I really believe that we played the toughest four-game stretch to end the regular season, playing four top-10 opponents, but I thought we played our best basketball (of the season) against Georgia Tech, and for, like I said, 20-25 minutes today.