NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - TENNESSEE TECH VS INDIANA

March 18, 2023

Teri Moren

Grace Berger

Lilly Meister

Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall

Indiana Hoosiers

Media Conference

Indiana 77, Tennessee Tech 47

TERI MOREN: Thank you. First of all, just want to give a shoutout to our crowd today. Again, another tremendous just showing from Hoosier Nation. That's what a women's basketball game should look like. You know, our fans continue to show up for us in a big way, so we're grateful that they were here this afternoon.

You know, very good win against a very good team in Tennessee Tech. Kim has done a tremendous job with her program, with her team. You know, we obviously went into this game with a tremendous amount of respect for them after watching them the other night, not on film, but got to watch them up close.

Was caught by their ability to knock down threes, something we were concerned about, and I thought our kids -- it took us a good quarter to sort of the get our legs under us, which I anticipated just because we've had about 11, 12 days off. Took us a little bit to get going there, but I thought there was a media timeout where Grace Berger and Chloe really challenged their teammates to do a much better job protecting the three-point line.

Once we got going defensively, really things started to open up for us offensively. And so on an afternoon where we didn't have Mackenzie Holmes, I thought Lilly came in and did a great job for us, just as AG did.

So it was great to see everybody contribute in some way. I will say this and then I'll be quiet. I thought Grace Berger came out with just a different level of urgency today, and we need her to do that. We need her to do that the remainder of the tournament.

She's our leader, and as Grace goes, we go. But I thought there was a determination. I thought there was a moxie that she had this afternoon from the beginning, which was great to see. We're going to need her to continue to approach every game like that.

Q. Lilly, first career start in March. Really daunting task. Walk me through the moment when you found out you were starting today.

LILLY MEISTER: I don't think it was until we were really going through our scouting report that I knew. We had been hinting at it the past couple weeks but it was never set in place.

But because of that I was kind of prepared in the back of my mind. So it was, you know, just another game I guess. (Smiling.)

Q. Actually I was about to ask almost the same question as he had, so if you can go into a little more thoughts about your emotions and how you thought you played when you had the chance, that would be great.

LILLY MEISTER: Yeah, well, the whole season my role has been different every game. It's never been the same. This afternoon was just another example of that.

It's a little nerve-racking, but this is the best atmosphere ever. It's March Madness. Packed Assembly Hall. That's crazy. And, yeah, so it was a little nerve-racking, but once the tip went off it was just another game. Kind of forgot about all of it.

Q. Grace, obviously you don't want to see a teammate go down ever or not be able to play. With Mackenzie out, how did that I guess open up space and change the way you were able to work on the offensive end of the floor?

GRACE BERGER: I wouldn't say it changes it. When Mackenzie is on the court I probably benefit from her all of us might get easier looks because obviously the team's main focus is Mackenzie.

So I think -- and Mackenzie is really good about setting me screens and getting me open and making my life easier as a point guard.

So I think we miss Mackenzie, but obviously we had two really, really good post players that stepped up in her absence and filled her role really nicely.

Q. Back to Lilly, getting your start today, Tennessee Tech with three-pointer. You tied it with a field goal and free throw and a couple more free throws there in the second quarter when you started the run of yours. Just the confidence that your teammates put on your shoulders and how you felt on this little run that you had.

LILLY MEISTER: I mean, they always build my confidence. It was a great pass from Berger here, so they do most of the work.

But, yeah, they're always congratulating me. The run was amazing. I mean, like I said before, Assembly Hall was packed, so you can't hear anything when we're on a run. I just think it was just really cool, a really cool experience.

Q. Grace, when the first quarter was tied, you and Chloe went over and talked to your team. What was that conversation that you had with them to get them fired up?

GRACE BERGER: I think Coach Moren said it. Just mainly the defensive end. We knew that they were hot from three coming into the game and that they were plenty capable of doing it, and that was a strength and we came out and I thought gave them a couple easy looks from three.

So I think that was disappointing for all of us that we didn't come out ready in that sense. But I think after that first quarter we fixed it and made things harder for them and didn't give them what they wanted.

Q. This is for you, Grace. Coach talked about the sense of urgency you displayed. Can you talk about that and did you feel this sense of urgency and really want to make a difference?

GRACE BERGER: Yeah, I mean, it's the NCAA tournament so it's win or go home. You know, there is really no reason for any of us not to have a sense of urgency in every game moving forward. We're on the biggest stage. That's where we belong and where we want to be, so there is no reason not to be excited for every possession, every practice leading into it because it's go-time now.

Q. Grace, coach used the word "moxie" which nobody uses anymore. Been years I think since I've read that anywhere. Not just a sense of urgency, but the stage itself. You guys have spent the whole season pointing to be here, and now that you're here, you've got a win, what do you have to do -- do you have to get rid of the first quarters against some of these teams coming up and stay at that high level that you kind of reached with the defense starting in it -- I think you had a 17-nothing run in the second quarter.

GRACE BERGER: I mean, strong starts is something we always want obviously. If you watch the other games across the country the first few minutes of any NCAA tournament game there are some nerves for everyone, whether they've been here before or not.

I don't think that was entirely unexpected. But moving forward I think first five minutes we always want the other team to call the first timeout and we really pride ourselves on that.

I think just keep giving that message to the team and like I said, just pride ourselves on that.

Q. Grace, I think even without Mackenzie today you guys shot over 70% from the field from two point range. Address how good the guard play was, even the players that came off the bench, and how important that was.

GRACE BERGER: Yeah, as great as Mackenzie is, and she's an amazing player, I think we are a really complete team. We have really good guard play, really good back-up post players coming in off the bench.

So I think that stat just is a testament to that and the hard work that all of our players -- whether they get press or get regular playing time a lot, you know, they come in every day and get in extra shots.

So I think the shooting percentage is just a result of that.

Q. Individually you wake up this morning, what does pre-game and breakfast look like to you? Does that change when it comes to tournament time?

GRACE BERGER: So I think it was a little different today because we had like the earliest game I've literally ever had in my life. It was a little different. Didn't do the full shootaround; whereas I think we typically moving forward -- right?

TERI MOREN: Yeah.

GRACE BERGER: We'll get an hour. That's typical for us. Today was a 15-minute walk-through of your plays, so weren't able to get as much shots up. I think that was more to do with just the early game.

Moving forward it'll look pretty much like it did in the regular season.

TERI MOREN: Breakfast was really good, though.

GRACE BERGER: It was.

LILLY MEISTER: I think the only thing that was the same was the food I ate before.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Coach Moren?

Q. Three-parter about Mack. How limited, if at all, has Mack been in practice? Was her availability today sort of a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency situation, and how hopeful are you that she'll be able to go on Monday?

TERI MOREN: Limited throughout the week, to answer your first question.

Available if needed.

And then very optimistic. Feel really good about her Monday.

Q. Obviously Meister and Geary aren't going to be able to fully replaces Holmes, but what did you want to see out of the two of them today in her absence, and how do you think they did?

TERI MOREN: I thought both of them did a tremendous job. We didn't need either one of them to do or be anything other than who they are. Lilly has played minutes off the bench for us and has provided us with a spark, whether it's rebounding, guarding, whether it's getting put-backs, hitting free throws. She's grown inside our program this year.

She's continued to get better defensively. That's really what we wanted her to focus on. Not replacing Mack as far as being a scoring threat. If the ball did get to her or found her she could get that offensive rebound put-back, that was going to be great.

And then AG, same thing. We didn't ask those guys or put pressure on them. Look, these guys get reps every day in our practices, just as Mack gets. So for both of them to come in today and be ready, I'm not surprised by that.

I'm not surprised by what they were able to do and provide and give us. It's March. They've got plenty of reps, and so it's -- they showed up today and we're going to continue to need them.

Mack is not going to be able to play 40 minutes. She hasn't been able to do that all year. The experience both of them got today was really good I thought.

Q. Coach, shots weren't falling pretty early. You were getting looks; they just weren't going down. Did you make it a concerted effort to get the fast break and break the game open or did it just happen naturally?

TERI MOREN: I think it's obviously who we are and who we want to be, is pushing the pace and running and, you know, we had several of those.

Then we started I thought pushing the pace harder. But, I love the shots we got. I loved -- maybe there was a few that were probably rushed a little bit. But, you know, everyone of Sara Scalia shots, we saw those go in. Yarden the same. Syd the same. It was just a matter of time before those started falling, and they will continue to fall because we just got so much confidence in these guys to shoot the ball at a high level.

Q. I know Yarden is not much of an emotional player, but has she expressed any excitement about potentially playing her sister in the second round?

TERI MOREN: Not at all. Yeah, no. She's the greatest poker player I've ever seen. I think both of them are certainly -- they got to see each other the other night at the hotel, which was special. But, you know, Yarden and, again, I've never Lior, but if she's anything like Yarden, you know, any sort of an expression of excitement is hard to kind of get out of her.

I can only imagine how special it is to be able to see your sister, though. She's obviously -- when her family is here. It's special. Unfortunately her father I think is coming next week, not this week.

But it's a special time for that family.

Q. Coach, Kim just mentioned before you guys that you two had a conversation at mid-court that she was really hoping to build a program the way you guys have. Today marks your 200th win as head coach here. Any extra magnitude to this win other than just NCAA tournament win or is there a certain emotion behind that?

TERI MOREN: Yeah, I didn't even realize that. But again, I think Kim, we're both just -- again our program is a little bit in a different place, but our responsibility as women in our game is to grow our game and grow our programs.

That's exactly what Kim is doing. The other thing I told her is to make sure that she and her team enjoy this moment. We get so caught up in what's next, what's next, is that you forget about -- for them, for us, many years ago we were the ones looking from the outside in.

Or wondering if we are going to get in the tournament. The last several years it's been a little bit different for us, but there is such -- it's such a special moment when you can be part of the 68 teams. It's a special place to be. Kim is going do a great job. She is. She will. With her program.

Again, it's just a matter of time before I hope that we're going to see fans in the seats like we did today inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Been able to do that in the big all year with the other teams.

So it's an exciting time to be part of women's basketball, and if you're a fan and showing up for us, we're certainly grateful.

Q. Had the run in the second quarter and late in the third quarter with a 17-point lead. Here you are in March Madness and anything can happen. Texas Tech had their three-pointers also. Just right at the beginning of the fourth quarter, took it into the 20-point range. I don't know what the final score -- as a coach, how does that feel going from net 17 to the 24-point lead?

TERI MOREN: Again, we're perfectionists over there as a staff, so we want to watch good basketball. I was not happy, especially in to the third. I thought we took some -- made some bad decisions, some shot selections that were not good inside of our offense.

And so you try to as a coach -- I think we -- and as a staff, you don't look at the scoreboard so much. It's are we getting better in every possession? And so that's the pressure we put on them, right? No matter what the score looks like, we're still going to want to play good basketball, good, solid, sound basketball.

Going to want to take care of the ball. We're going to want to get the shot we want to get. And so that's the discipline of our program, what we expect from our players, no matter what the score is. We tend not to look at that so much, especially when you have a lead because it's always about can we get better inside of our motion? Our other action? Can we show patience in the shot clock? Can we get to under 12 and get a good shot as the clock is winding down?

And so those are the challenges that we present in those timeouts. Let's not worry about the score right now. Let's worry about us improving and getting better inside of the next possession, both offensively and defensively.

Q. Coach, congratulations on this win.

TERI MOREN: Thank you.

Q. Number 200. I know you rarely follow that stuff.

TERI MOREN: Yeah, thank you.

Q. Big number for you. Well done. Chloe Moore-McNeil, again, her stats don't shine, but on the floor, how important was it for her leadership and breaking the press and especially closing out on the perimeter against a team whose three-point shooting a phenomenal?

TERI MOREN: I talked about Grace a little bit, but nobody was madder -- as we say in Southern Indiana, madder than hornet than Chloe was at us giving up measured threes in that first quarter. She was mad.

And so she really challenged her team to step up to the challenge of getting our hands up, making it more difficult, making them shoot twos.

So she's just been so great all year. We've depended on her and she's been dependable for us. Sometimes, you're, right, her stats don't show just how important she is to our team.

But anybody that's in our locker room that's a part of our program understands just how special and how important she's been for us all year and how important and special she'll be down the stretch here in March.

Q. You kind of commented earlier in the season on Lilly, that she's always trying to get extra work in the gym. What have you seen from her behind the scenes?

TERI MOREN: Just that. She talked about different roles a little bit, and I don't know if this is the first time at the presser, she's really a smart, well-thought out young lady.

But she has just continued to get better. I think any time you have roles like we ask, whether it's AG or Lilly, even Sara now coming off the bench. Lexi. You know, their roles are different than they had a year ago in high school or their other institutions.

The only thing we ask them to do is be open to whatever role we give them. There will be sacrifices that have to be made, but continue to come in and not just respect the process, but embrace the process of getting better.

That's what she's continued to do. You know, all of them have. Lexi, Lilly, Sara. Their game will speak for itself, but it's because of all the work they do behind the scenes sure work you all don't get to see.

But we get to see it every day. That's where your confidence comes from, is -- I'm not surprised by Lilly. Even though she looked a little bit nervous up here, she was ready for this moment. It's because of the work that she does.

Q. What you were just saying, you talked all week about the balance and the depth this team has.

TERI MOREN: Right.

Q. They really looked to me that they shared the ball and made that extra pass. How important will that be for you guys going forward?

TERI MOREN: Right. Well, it's been a statistic that we've been really -- I've been really proud of. You know, just because you look down, you have 18 assists, 29 mades, you know, again, a lot of the people have taken this on, but we've always called it sharing the sugar around here.

This is a team that's unselfish, balanced, realizing it could be Grace's night, Mack's night, Syd's night. Just as long as we get the win at the end of the day of the night.

This is a team that will share the ball and that's been the beauty of them and why we've been able to score the way we have been.

Because we will give you a good shot for a great shot that's a testament to those kids and their discipline and unselfishness.

Q. Coach, every year we can see sort of a lot of the pressure being put on the No. 1 seeds. Leading up to today how do you see your team respond to that No. 1 seeding including today?

TERI MOREN: Again, the one thing we have had all year is the experience of having a target on our back, right? And we've managed to -- I think knowing that we're the hunted we've handled ourselves knowing that.

With that comes you're going to get everybody's best shot. Our kids realize that. This is a veteran group, experienced group. They are watching basketball just like we all are right now. They're seeing upsets in men's basketball. I don't know of there has been any in women's basketball yet.

This is a group that's certainly up for the task of being able to handle the next opponent. Just realizing that, again, we're going to continue to get everybody's best. We just got to be able to exceed the energy of these teams and make sure that we're playing the right way and doing things that we do both offensively and defensively to put ourselves in a position to be successful.

We don't need to be anybody else other than the women's basketball here at Indiana that has certainly won a lot of the games this year.