|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
NCAA WOMEN'S REGIONALS SEMIFINALS & FINALS: OKLAHOMA CITYMarch 29, 2008Chante BlackJoanne P. McCallieWanisha SmithAbby WanerOKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA THE MODERATOR: We're joined by Coach Joanne McCallie. Coach, thoughts about the tournament? COACH JOANNE McCALLIE: Thank you. We're just working hard, excited to get better. We did that in the first couple of games and just trying to grow things a bit. Rebounding-wise and defensively and offensively, I guess all those things and we're just real excited. A&M is a terrific team, and all the teams to this point are absolutely excellent. And we're looking forward to the opportunity and getting through this day. Looking forward to getting through the playing day. Q. Coach, talk about Chante's performance, her improvement from the beginning of the season up until now. COACH JOANNE McCALLIE: Chante is a tremendous person, spectacular player and she has gotten better every practice, every game. She's very steady, works very, very hard, and I just think that she has, you know, a desire to compete. And the most important thing for us is for her to be aggressive and dangerous and working the ball. Regardless of whether it's her or somebody else who benefits from that, that's the role she needs to play for us. She is continuing to get better. For her we talked about it, it took a while timing-wise after sitting out a year, what that was like to come back. It's taken her a while to feel as though her timing was there, but there is no doubt that she feels better about that now and is continuing to get better. Q. Nationally people are going to look at this regional and see Duke, Notre Dame, Tennessee, and then Texas A&M as the different team here and this is new for Texas A&M to come to this regional, but can you talk about you and Michigan State and Duke as a program, you expect to be here and you expect to go further and how much does that play into the mindset of the type of match-ups tomorrow? COACH JOANNE McCALLIE: I think every team is really hungry. I think this is a hungry time of year. I don't think you can put all of these teams collectively together. These are teams that represent this year and only this year. I know for us we're extremely hungry because we've been getting better and now getting to know each other still. Look at Texas A&M, they've got five seniors. You know, this is where they should expect to be based on the fact that they've spent a lot of time together. So I think each team is different. I'm just not one of those people that looks to other teams, you know, you have to stay in the moment. So whatever has been done in the past is not relevant to now, it's just not. What's relevant is now, and what we can do together as a team. I think that we have a chance to play a better game. We're for a little bit better game. Maybe we have two or three guards that have seven rebounds for us, you know, or more balance across the board. There are so many things that we still have yet to do. That's what we're trying to work towards. So it's not about any kind of name or seed. Everybody here is very, very good. None of that matters. It matters which team has their act together. Q. Joanne, what is it that you've seen the most growth in Abby? Her shooting hasn't been quite there but she is learning so much. Is it her passing, her leadership? COACH JOANNE McCALLIE: I think it's a combination. I think Abby has grown, you can look at statistically the rebounding and assists she creates, but I think it's her leadership and poise, and her sense of calm and her ability to do so many different parts of the game. You know, and go with the flow of the game. I'm excited about her game because of all those developments, and that would probably hold true for some of our other girls that are older, the poise, leadership and calm that is so important to have at this time of year. I think Abby has been working hard, and it's been fun to see her grow in all those areas. Q. When you first saw Chante on the court did you anticipate she could be as dominate as she's been lately? And is there anybody you've played that as a similar style to Texas A&M? COACH JOANNE McCALLIE: Yes, because of her athleticism and her pride. There is an awful lot of pride in Tay. You've got this athletic post player with great quickness and a shooting touch that most guards want to have. So that's pretty exceptional for Tay. And then you've got that pride factor that she has in wanting to be so very good. So it's been easy to watch Tay and doing so many things because really from the beginning she's shown every sign of that. With A&M, I don't know, Virginia is a team that comes to mind because of the athleticism. I felt Virginia was extremely athletic in the ACC. Of course we played great teams. Carolina is pretty good. They're as athletic as anybody. Maryland as well, Tennessee, all those teams, but I guess the thing is A&M is a quick and athletic team, and Virginia comes to mind. But we played Rutgers as well you know, and we feel like we've played everybody, and some teams we've played many, many times, over and over and over again. So I feel like there is a plethora of teams that we have played that would have us prepared for a great team like A&M. Q. Coach, can you talk about what this first year has been like for you at Duke and some of the ways following in Gail's footsteps how you just kind of worked your way through that? COACH JOANNE McCALLIE: Well, it's been very, very interesting and I think, again, it's been an everyday process in trying to get to know the team, having the team get to know us better. I think it's been made very easy by the team in terms of their openness. This is a great group of women and they want to do well. So as a group they've made it very easy for me and my staff in getting to know them and trying to help out as much as possible. But a first year is an exciting year. I think the thing that I'm so impressed with is the trust factor. Because at this point in time in the tournament, that's truly a critical factor. As you know, many teams in this tournament, I guess with the exception of Louisville, I mean, coaches have been with their team multiple years, five years, ten years, a long, long time. So I think what's fabulous about this group is they've been able to really just come together as a group and keep that trust factor alive, because that's really what can be the difference down the stretch. Q. Can you talk about Takia Starks and Danielle Gant and the individual match-ups? COACH JOANNE McCALLIE: Do I have to? Absolutely, they're fantastic players. Takia Starks to me is an excellent guard. She's got this shake-and-bake move, but she's got this pull-up J, she can go on the rack. She pull up a three. She's complicated because she can change her speed. Obviously plays with a great deal of confidence. No. 55 as you suggest, she's just a tough match-up because she can play inside and out, she can play the 4, the 3, she puts the ball on the floor, she is great at offensive and defensive rebounds. She's the heart and soul of that team, a lot like No. 10 is. She is their go-to guard. They rely on her greatly and she does a great job organizing, and just when you think you've got her, she gets out there and hits a three. The X factor is No. 21, coming off the bench. Probably a starter, really. But she's an incredible player. Can shoot off the pass, has her range, has a great deal of confidence right now, given what she's doing in the tournament, given her stats. So they have a lot of great players, without question. Like I said a bunch of seniors, a whole lot of seniors, a whole lot of experience and they're very, very good. Q. Wanisha, has tried to put out of her mind what she is going through for the last time this year, what kind of a leader is she? COACH JOANNE McCALLIE: She is a great leader, brings enthusiasm to the team, and she isn't afraid to say things when necessary. I think she is a deserving person, I think she should get everything that she deserves. I tell her, get everything you possibly can, this is not the time to worry about scrap books and play sad songs and memories, this is a time to go after what you deserve. I think she is an incredible player. She feels like she has her best game ahead of her. She wants to be sure she plays her best games, plural, and that's something you earn every game, you earn that. And I think she has a bit of an time to do that. Wanisha is a great player. I think she would be a fabulous WNBA player, her body type, quickness, speed, versatility. She can play the wing spot, the 2-3, she can play the 1, and she's very, very smart. She picks up things quickly. So if I were a WNBA coach I would being looking at her. She is not the top echelon in the draft because of stats and things of that nature, but, boy, she's right in there. Q. Can you talk about the defensive style of Texas A&M and the pressure they put on you guys and is there a team that you faced like that or that you've seen like that? COACH JOANNE McCALLIE: Yeah, we've faced some pressure, we've got some that? (Chuckles.) A&M has excellent pressure. Again, I would go back to Carolina and the pressure they like to put on you. I thought Virginia at times had some great pressure. I thought when we played Tennessee. Again, when we played Connecticut, I felt we got a lot of great pressure there. I think A&M has their own great pressure and whether they deny the wings or front the post, the way they get in your face and cut through lanes, and I think that, you know, our job is to be attacking and keep our poise and composure at times as well. So I feel like we play a lot of big teams, I feel like we've been in a lot of situations, but at the same time, you know, everything you've got -- every day you've got to come out there and execute and get it done against excellent ball pressure. THE MODERATOR: Coach, best of luck tomorrow afternoon. We're now joined by Chante Black, Wanisha Smith and Abby Waner. Q. Chante, what's the difference between Coach and Gail? CHANTE BLACK: They're two different people. I don't really know any specifics that would point out to say differences between the coaches, maybe personality, I would say. I know that Coach McCallie is a more energetic coach. She's always in the game, you see her hands going on the sidelines, but I don't have too many specifics. Q. What's been the difference in the style of play that you guys have played coming into that tournament? How has that been different? WANISHA SMITH: Just the same mentality, just to try and win games. The major difference is we had run a match-up, that's one of the only differences. Q. Abby, who does Texas A&M mostly remind you of that you've played that year? ABBY WANER: Um, I don't want to say a specific team but the ACC, I think, has that style of play, which would be athleticism, outside of me (Chuckles.) And run and gun, get up the score, defense, in the lanes, high pressure D, so I think A&M does fit that mold if you want to call them an ACC-type team. But they're athletic, they have great perimeter play, we've faced a lot of teams like that, that all posed their dangers. Q. Abby and Wanisha, what did you guys know about A&M before Monday or Tuesday? ABBY WANER: We watched them play in the Virgin Islands back in November but, you know, they lost to Wake Forest and we got killed by UConn by 26. So we would like to think we're a different team then, and now they're a different team. And it's hard to catch games on the east coast, so we haven't been able to watch them too much outside of that game. CHANTE BLACK: Basically the same. Q. Talk about Wanisha's senior leadership? CHANTE BLACK: Nish is a great leader for this team, only senior on the team that's played a complete four years for Duke. So she always knows what to do when we get into tough situations and the tempo -- Coach always talks about poise and Nish knows how to maintain poise for this team. So it's good we have her on this team. Q. Wanisha, could you talk about what experience does the program have when they make so many Sweet 16 appearances? What factor do you think that experience has? WANISHA SMITH: I think it has a major experience, not only for the players but the coaches as well. Our coaches have had great success, and just being able to translate that to us we get into the tournament and into different situations, just being able to communicate to us what to do and what not to do. Q. For Wanisha and then Abby, Coach McCallie was in here earlier talking about how you have a huge trust factor and how critical that is in the tournament, and obviously she's new. Can you talk about that trust and how it's built over time? WANISHA SMITH: The transition has gotten smoother toward the middle of the season. I think that's normal to have a new team with a new coaching staff and just really knowing what they expect and, you know, just trying to do what they want us to do. I think right now the trust issue is not an issue anymore. We're completely comfortable with each and every one of our players and our coaches. So I mean I think that's going to work well for us in tournament. ABBY WANER: I think the fact that we have established a level of trust says a lot about the team that we have. I think it takes a certain level of maturity and being able to accept adversity and move on from it, and our team does trust each other, and that makes it easier for us to trust and develop a new relationship with our coach. Q. Wanisha and Abby, can you talk about Chante's dominance in recent games and how long have you seen that coming? WANISHA SMITH: Chante has been phenomenal. I think her last game, it was really good to see her play against posts that were her height and being physical with her and her being able to withstand the physicalness and still dominate with the number of points she had and the 16 rebounds. I'm sure that will carry over. ABBY WANER: There has been a lot of talk about how great Chante is playing, but it's not a surprise to us. All along we've thought she was one of the best post players in the country, and she makes it fun for a guard to play because she doesn't play like a low-post player. She makes us look good and we'll get her the ball. Q. Chante, how do you expect A&M to defend you? CHANTE BLACK: Texas A&M likes to front the post, but I expect their post to come out and deny a lot, put a lot of pressure on our guards, and you know, just go from there. That's what we've seen so far. Q. Chante, you talked about tapes. Did you watch them versus the Paris twins? Them against Shaunte Smith of OSU? Which ones? CHANTE BLACK: We've seen the combination of films, we break it down pretty well, so we know they like to front a lot. Q. Chante, can you talk about your plans to defend any of the post players, Danielle Gant specifically, I don't know if you're assigned to her or not but what y'all's plans are for those players? CHANTE BLACK: We're just going to go out and defend them. THE MODERATOR: Ladies, best of luck to you tomorrow afternoon and we'll see you then. Thanks. End of FastScripts |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
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
|