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MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE WOMEN'S TOURNAMENTMarch 9, 2010Jade KennedyJoe LegerskiAubrey VandiverLAS VEGAS, NEVADA Wyoming – 60 THE MODERATOR: We're joined by the University of Wyoming. Coach, we can start with some general comments from you about the game. COACH LEGERSKI: Well, we always talk about it being a 40-minute basketball game. We played UNLV the last game of the season, and it came down to the last minute of the basketball game, just like it did today. Two players I brought with us I thought were huge for us. Aubrey really carried this team for about 34 minutes. And during one timeout I talked about that other people needed to step up because we started standing around watching Aubrey trying to do everything. I thought Jade had a big three, came back, and hit a nice two-point shot that really gave us a lift and took a little bit of the pressure off Aubrey to be able to do what she does so well, is carry this group. You know, we'd make it definitely easier on the head coach by making some free throws, and that was apparent. But we made big plays by grabbing offensive rebounds and coming up with the play, none bigger than what Aubrey grabbed to force another jump ball. We now had the basketball again, got the ball in and was back at the free-throw line. THE MODERATOR: We will take questions for the student-athletes. Q. Jade, you scored nine points in the final six and a half minutes. Can you talk about what you were feeling down the stretch, the confidence you had in your shot. JADE KENNEDY: Yeah, well, I shot a couple of shots early in the first half. They felt good, but they weren't dropping. So coach just told me to keep shooting, get my feet set. Once one dropped, I felt confident in shooting the other two. Q. There was also one you missed where coach yelled at you. The whole gym heard it. Told you to extend your arm. JADE KENNEDY: Yeah, I was like quick handing it, not holding my followthrough. Once I focused on that, things started to drop. So thanks, coach (laughter). COACH LEGERSKI: I think everybody can always hear me in the gym (smiling). Q. You grabbed some offensive rebounds all night long. What did you do to make sure they didn't score on those second chances? AUBREY VANDIVER: Uhm, we were just being big and not trying to foul them and reach in. We were letting them get too many offensive boards. The goal was once they get the offensive board was be bigger, force the jump ball, so... Q. Aubrey, late in the game, UNLV tied it up three times but never actually took the lead. How important is that possession right after they tied the game? AUBREY VANDIVER: Right after that is when Jade hit her three. It was just really big for us to regain the lead. I think we wouldn't have been completely defeated if they would have taken the lead, but it was important for us to regain the lead and regain momentum. So when she hit that throw it was really huge for our team. Q. How important was this where you had chances to win but came up short, but you made the plays, how big was this for your confidence to do it in a game like this, to finish a game like you needed to? JADE KENNEDY: Yeah, it's huge for our confidence on the team. Like especially going into the tournament, this gives us a lot of confidence for San Diego. Yeah, we're really ready for that, so yeah. THE MODERATOR: We'll dismiss the student-athletes at this time and take questions for coach Legerski. Q. You had trouble finishing a few games down the stretch, but finished this one. How big was it to do it in this setting with this group? COACH LEGERSKI: One of the things we talked about all season long was winning four-minute segments. At the last media timeout, we talked about this is what we prepare for. Some nights the ball bounces your way, some nights the ball doesn't bounce your way. Yet I want to be in the game in the last four minutes. We have won games this year. Even in defeat, we were in those ballgames, and you always learn what it's like to execute at the end. I thought it was big for Jade to hit the three because not only did it allow us to be up three points, but we knew defensively we were still going to be up because we were going to take away the three-point shot. That just gives so much confidence from this group. We need to shoot the ball better from the free-throw line. That's a part that definitely is something about playing in a tournament with a young team. Disappointed about giving up 24 offensive rebounds, and yet we played hard. We tried to compete. More importantly we did not want to get them to the foul line on second attempts, and I thought we were able to do that. Q. It's been a while since you have been able to get a win here at the conference tournament. Can you talk about how you're feeling, satisfaction? COACH LEGERSKI: I talked to the team as they were celebrating in the locker room because I think it's important to celebrate your victories. When I ended up getting this job in 2003/'4 season, Wyoming had not won a game in the Mountain West Conference or the Western Athletic Conference. We talked about when we won that first year what it was like and we need to continue to find ways to win. Now, it's a challenge because it depends where you're seeded. It's a difficult league. Teams are very talented. So we're going to enjoy this win for tonight and we'll get started in the morning with San Diego State. Q. Playing UNLV in Vegas, it's essentially a road game. If you wouldn't have known we were in Vegas, you couldn't have told by the crowd. How big was the crowd in this win? COACH LEGERSKI: Wyoming fans are tremendous. They follow their basketball teams. They follow all their athletic teams and support them tremendously. I think that gave us a big lift down the stretch, to know we had so many fans behind us cheering us on and giving us the energy we needed. That's what's happened at home over the last few seasons, turning out in numbers 3,500 a game. It gives our team energy. I felt that today. Even though we were on the road, it felt like a home game for Wyoming. Q. Coach, I saw your game at Utah when you lost at home. The players were visibly upset after the game. I've sensed a difference in your team since then. Is that true? COACH LEGERSKI: When you lose close ballgames at the end, you need to learn. I also believe you need to hurt. And if you don't find a way to hurt, it doesn't matter enough to you. And I thought that now we'd gone back to back in games that were down to the last minute with BYU and Utah, both defeats. And I started seeing a change in the team where we talked about somebody needs to step up, somebody needs to grab the next rebound, maybe make the next shot. But we're not going to sign it. I think Aubrey has really stepped up to make plays down the stretch. With our last game at UNLV, Aubrey came up with a big offensive rebound off a missed free throw. The scenario was exactly the same. The possession there of Wyoming, we get the ball back in and we end up being fouled and make two free throws. Tonight was the same situation. Missed free throw, Aubrey ties it up, possession Wyoming, we get the ball in and get more free throws. It's important for them to learn, but more important somebody is stepping up for this group, and it's been Aubrey Vandiver. Q. You play San Diego State tomorrow. You're 1-1 with them. Talk about that matchup and your concerns. COACH LEGERSKI: Well, first of all, San Diego State is very talented, well-coached. It's going to be a very difficult basketball game. Their experience, they've been to post-season play, they've been to NCAA play, they've won at the NCAA level. Jené Morris is a very difficult matchup for us. They're big on the inside. Once again, the offensive rebounds are going to be an issue we're going to have to address. Those are things our players will worry about tomorrow. As a coaching staff, we'll go to work tonight right when we get back, enjoy this victory, do the best we can tomorrow. Q. Is it possible to fix those rebounding issues so late in the season or are these teams that have specific matchup advantages, size-wise inside? COACH LEGERSKI: Well, one of the things that you take a look at, and tonight UNLV shot 30% from the field. There's so many rebound attempts there to gain. They're gonna have higher numbers. But we have to do a better job of trying to get what I call a person on a person, we have to be more aggressive going to grab every rebound. We were lucky tonight to survive 24 offensive rebounds and the way we shot free throws. We have to do a better job tomorrow to cut those down. Hopefully we get them somewhere between 12 and 15 because you cannot continue to survive that. There were several opportunities tonight. We have not been a great rebounding team, but we have to do better than what we did this evening. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, coach. COACH LEGERSKI: Thank you. End of FastScripts |
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