BIG 12 CONFERENCE WOMEN'S TOURNAMENT

March 8, 2005

LaToya Bond

Christelle N'Garsanet

Cindy Stein

COACH STEIN: I'm just very proud of our team. They really hung in there. We knew that rebounding was going to be critical for us, taking care of the ball. Those two things we really emphasized. Our kids really stepped up and got stops when we needed them, really made some big plays. Hitting those free-throws at the end kind of just really helped us solidify things. I'm just really proud of them.

LaTOYA BOND: We just knew we had to put great pressure on and get a couple of stops -- not a couple, but try and get a whole bunch of stops. We just picked up their pressure on defense. I guess we made a lot of stops, very good stops.

LaTOYA BOND: Of course. I mean, after losing two during the season, I mean, we wanted to come out there and win. I mean, not just because it was them, but just 'cause we want to keep going in the tournament. We want to put a statement down: We're ready.

CHRISTELLE N'GARSANET: Yeah, it was very physical. She's a really good player. It wasn't easy. But I have to just play my game and just stay focused, not focusing on her.

CHRISTELLE N'GARSANET: Yeah, I really wanted it. I'm sure everybody on the team really wanted it more than anything. Just be here like the other tournament was really important for our team. Even if it was against somebody else, we'd feel the same.

CHRISTELLE N'GARSANET: She's pretty tough to stop, but you just have to keep playing even when she scores, don't get down, because he's really good, keeps pushing you around. You going to only stop her once or twice.

LaTOYA BOND: I mean, it's going to be a tough game. I'm looking forward to it. I know we're going to have to play good defense and execute on offense to keep going in the tournament.

LaTOYA BOND: No, I don't remember that one (laughter). I don't know.

COACH STEIN: It was a heck of a play, wasn't it (laughter)?

COACH STEIN: What you just saw there was LaToya, that's just her. She just plays. She's very unselfish. We've really been focusing on our next play, whether you just made a great play or they made a great play. We're just really focused on what we've got to do next. LaToya has really embraced that. I think that's the big thing for us. Sometimes throughout the season we would get really low when somebody would make a run at us. We're just trying to keep a good balance out there. But I thought all of our kids throughout the game made individual plays that were really key. You know, like I said, I just think that's so important, her stepping up, she can do so many things. I think honestly she's probably playing with a little adrenaline. I think at this point she didn't make all Big-12 honorable mention at least. I felt like, and as I told her, You can make a statement here in the tournament, but you still have to play balanced. I think she did that today.

COACH STEIN: Well, obviously we watched that tape quite a bit. We were two steps behind on every single play the last time we played. It was extremely disappointing. Like we've mentioned several times, that was a big part of our season because we were very disappointed in ourselves and that's not how we wanted to represent ourselves. The team has been very focused on making our crowd proud of us and our school proud of us and really fighting. Sometimes whether it's a win or a loss, it's just trying to make sure we're doing those little things to not just ensure our future, but to still make a statement this season. You can't make a statement unless you win your first game because you don't get to the next one.

COACH STEIN: Well, it's going to be an interesting match-up. I think that everybody knows that Baylor is extremely talented in every single position. Even when someone plays off, and I think some people have played off, like Whitaker, and she's been knocking shots down. I just don't think you can take anybody lightly. We feel good that we have one game under our belt where we can kind of get the jitters out. We know they're going to be coming in, running full force with a lot to prove. I think our kids are as ready as they can be.

COACH STEIN: You know, it has been a tough season. But we've tried to stay extremely positive throughout the whole thing. I think our team has represented that. I think they've done a good job of just working on getting better and not staying too involved with what everybody else thinks. It's more what we're trying to do as a team, preparing for this type of a tournament.

COACH STEIN: We just basically went back -- we were doing some things more out of lack of discipline. They were getting some easy shots because we weren't staying disciplined with our defensive principles, whether it's staying on the floor, only switching on certain things, trailing on double screens, we just really tried to emphasize the importance of doing that. I thought we did a better job in the second half.

COACH STEIN: Well, I'm excited. We're still playing, and that's all that matters right now (laughter). All those games that you lost before doesn't matter. If you can win this thing, it doesn't matter, anything that's happened throughout the year. That's what our team knows and they believe in that. Hopefully they'll work hard again tomorrow.

COACH STEIN: Thank you.