|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE WOMEN'S TOURNAMENTMarch 10, 2010Jessika BradleyBeth BurnsQuenese DavisLAS VEGAS, NEVADA San Diego State – 60 THE MODERATOR: We're joined by San Diego State head Coach Burns and student-athletes. We'll start by taking an opening comment about the game from Coach Burns. COACH BURNS: Well, I think first and most importantly in March it's about, you know, checking off the box and surviving and advance. So we're thrilled to be in this position. Wyoming is a very good team. They obviously -- they have five three-point shooters on the floor at all times, run great offense. I think that going into the game that's your biggest concern, you expend an awful lot of energy. As you saw, they have a couple of people who do a great job on the O glass, which we didn't get figured out much till about the last 10 minutes of game. Anytime we value our possessions and keep our turnovers low, I think we have pretty good weapons and we can be successful. I think that was the key to tonight's game. When we took our opportunities, we were able to score. It was a funny game in that we were able to maintain the lead, albeit by one or two points, the majority of the game. It was just a back and forth kind of battle that I think you expect in March. I'm thrilled our entire team was able to contribute and gain confidence as we head forward toward BYU. THE MODERATOR: We'll take questions for the student-athletes. Q. Jessika, were you seeing anything different from Carlson? I know you had trouble with her the first couple of games. Were you trying to do anything different this time or letting her get her points and stop everybody else? JESSIKA BRADLEY: Uhm, I think that our outlook was just change our feet a little bit. We wanted to limit her touches. Personally, I just took it personal to make sure that I did whatever I could to get around, do whatever I can to eliminate her from the offense. Keep her out, because I know she's a big role in what they do. So if I can keep her from touching the basketball, she facilitates, she finishes well around the basket, that we had a chance, so... Q. You've been here before. How much does that weigh into March when you've done it before? QUENESE DAVIS: It's kind of like muscle memory. We know we've been here. We know that we have one goal in mind, that's to cut down the nets at the end of this tournament. If we keep sticking to our game plan, doing what we do, we'll be successful. JESSIKA BRADLEY: What Q said (laughter). I haven't really been here before. But the older players, Jené and Q, I kind of have a little spot in my heart for them because I know they want to get this tournament before they leave. For my team, especially my team, Q, Spin and Kim, so... Q. Jessika, a little bit more about your matchup with Hillary Carlson. I know you faced a number of bigs down low. Where does she compare to the other opponents you've seen in this league that you faced up against? JESSIKA BRADLEY: She's a really great player. She is deceptively strong. She has a thin frame, but she's really strong. She steals really well. Like I said, she's a finesse player, so she finishes really well around the basket. You can knock her off the block, but she still finds a way to finish. Those head fakes, man. She's a really good player. She's probably one of the best that I've guarded in this league so far, so... THE MODERATOR: We'll dismiss the student-athletes. We'll open it up to questions for Coach Burns. Q. Coach, do you think it's good to start a tournament like this with a really tough game? COACH BURNS: I thought you were going to say, Start with a win. I was definitely going to agree with you that starting with a win is the best way to start a tournament. Q. But a real close game, especially when you're going up against BYU and possibly TCU. COACH BURNS: I said to our team in the locker room, if you saw any of the game in front of ours, this is a pretty good quarterfinal day when you look at Utah, New Mexico, San Diego State and Wyoming. I thought anybody that played today can win the tournament. I mean, this was no -- you know, it's a 3-6, a one-game differential and everyone is split with each other. We knew it was a huge game. Does that advantage or disadvantage? I don't know. I've only done this format one time. I sat where BYU sat. And it was strange. It was like, Hey, they started, we're still in San Diego. It's a different kind of deal. With our day off, it makes it not that big of a deal. We're off tomorrow. We prepare. We get ready for BYU on Friday afternoon. Q. Do you coach any different in March than you do the rest of the year? COACH BURNS: Yeah, I think so. Because you're done. You know, if you're not successful, you've got to use everything, try everything, do everything. I would kind of echo talking about what J.B. did with Hillary Carlson. Our game plan going in was one way, but I thought our pressure was so good that we decided to use her more as a helper. Like if four people couldn't score and we could get her off the glass, and that was just an example of I don't know that I would do that during the season, but just the way the game was going, it was like J.B., deny touches strong side, but then don't let anybody else get to the rim. I thought she did a good job adjusting to that. It's like any coaching job, you have to feel what you're doing. You know, I do think you coach a little bit different. Q. About the rebounding, are you concerned about your offensive rebounding? COACH BURNS: I was concerned October 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th. I could tell you I hope we rebound. I learned a long time ago that hope is not a strategy. So we are what we are. I think that it's something, trust me, I bet you believe we've worked on it some, talked about it a tad, watched a film on it. Credit to them for going at it and getting after the basketball. I think some of it might come from we have a tighter rotation, our minutes are a little bit limited, it's that much more energy after you guard. But that's an excuse. Could I be concerned? Yeah, but all we can do is do our best. At this point in time, you just got to do the best you can. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, coach. COACH BURNS: Thanks, everybody. 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
|