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BIG 12 CONFERENCE WOMEN'S TOURNAMENTMarch 8, 2011Yvonne AndersonAshley GayleGail GoestenkorsKathleen NashKANSAS CITY, MISSOURI Texas – 79 THE MODERATOR: We're joined by the Longhorns. Coach, we'd like your opening comments and then we'll take questions for the student-athletes. COACH GOESTENKORS: Just really happy to come away with a win. I told the team I thought it was very appropriate that we were playing Missouri again in the tournament, because that was our first conference loss. So we had an opportunity to show how far we've come. And it was very similar, I thought, in many ways to the first time we played and that we had a nice lead. And they're such a feisty team. They're an excellent team. And they never give up. They keep coming back. And so the same thing happened where they made their run at the beginning of the second half, and we withstood it, and then we made a run of our own. Then down the stretch they hit a couple of 3s and started to make a run again. And this time I thought we showed much more poise and we were able to close the game out. So I think this was good for us for so many reasons, because we did show how far we've come. And I give a lot of credit -- I thought it was a great team effort. I thought in the first half both teams shot the lights out. In the second half I was disappointed at halftime that we were only up one on the boards, and then in the second half I think we outrebounded by 16 in the second half. I thought that was a real key to the game for us. It was team rebounding, and I thought our bench came in and gave us great minutes as well whether it was Tiffany Moore, Anne Marie Hartung rebounding the ball for us, Kristen Nash just rebounding and to have Flores pick up that fourth foul. So give lots of credit to Missouri. They've done a great job, had a fantastic season. I'm just proud and pleased to be moving forward. THE MODERATOR: Questions for the student-athletes first. Q. Kathleen and Yvonne, you were really pushing the ball and scoring a lot in transition early. I know you had a high-scoring game when you were at Colombia. Was that part of the game plan, just to push the ball early? KATHLEEN NASH: That's always part of our game plan. But we were focusing on playing aggressive defense so we get tips and steals. That really helps our transition. YVONNE ANDERSON: I think especially this game we wanted to come out and just kind of send the message earlier that this wasn't going to be the same game kind of the way we played in Columbia, and I think that's where we saw that aggressiveness early on in the game. We just tried to continue it throughout the game. Q. If you two would talk about, all three of you, actually, seemed like you all played with a real sense of urgency tonight. I wonder if you could all address that, the emotions going into this. KATHLEEN NASH: We're trying to make the NCAA Tournament right now. So that's a lot of motivation for us. We have a lot of urgency because of that. And especially having lost to Missouri at their place, that really added to it. ASHLEY GAYLE: I agree. I think that a lot of it was revenge and being able to come back and beat a team that -- I mean, they were the first game we played in conference and being able to show how much we've grown as a team and beating a team that beat us initially. Q. Kathleen, what made you go without the protective mask today? KATHLEEN NASH: I mean, my mask -- my nose had just been feeling a little better lately. And it's not very sensitive. So I went without it in practice to see how it was, and it doesn't bother me. So I'll just keep playing without it, I guess, until I get hit, if I do. Q. Yvonne, could you have figured a better way to celebrate your 21st birthday, especially with your father being here and able to see you play tonight? YVONNE ANDERSON: I really don't think there is. I'm so glad we won and we were able to just play the way we did. Because not only did we win, but we won playing the way we feel that makes us the most successful. Q. Kathleen, how close are you to feeling as if you're not even thinking about flying elbows or anything when you're out there on the court? KATHLEEN NASH: I don't really think about it when I'm out there on the court. I try to just block it out. The only time I think about it is if it gets bumped, and then it will be painful for a few minutes. But I don't really think about it other than that. Q. You all seemed like really loose at the beginning of the game and came out strong. Was that the feeling before the game? KATHLEEN NASH: It was definitely the feeling before the game. And we've had some great practices, and so that really boosted our confidence, too. Q. Ashley, you really seemed to have your fire lit tonight, both offensively and defensive, you got a couple of fouls there quick. Can you talk about your overall game and how pleased you were? ASHLEY GAYLE: I think as a whole we just stepped up our game. I think that we played so well in practice that sometimes it gets a little disappointing when we see how we play in games. But I think today you finally see how we practice. And I think our post game is really strong tonight. And I think there was a lot of people rebounding and great passes from the guards. I know I got a couple passes after they switched, and that was definitely because of the guards, good passes, and we got out in transition. So I think today we were everything that we want to be. Q. Kathleen, could you talk about drawing the Aggies again tomorrow in terms of showing how far you all have come? KATHLEEN NASH: Tomorrow is personally my last chance. We just want to come out with everything we have, play with confidence and get a win. Q. Particularly for Kathleen and Ashley, they talked about the difference in the rebounding stats from the first half to the second half. What changed? What do you think brought about that change? KATHLEEN NASH: I mean, Coach was on us at halftime about rebounding because we were only up one. So I think that was probably a big part of it. Especially on the offensive boards when there's a shot up, we went and got the ball. ASHLEY GAYLE: I think we did a great job boxing out. I know a couple of their guards average something like six rebounds a game. So I think everybody knew we had a huge job to do on the boards. So our first half wasn't as good as we wanted it to be, so second half I think everybody just had it in their mind to grab a rebound. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, ladies. Questions for Coach. Q. There was a point there fairly early in the second half you guys were up eight. They had a drive to the basket that kind of just rimmed off. Kat came down and hit a 3. Instead of you being up six, you're up 11. I don't know if you remember that sequence. Was that a fairly big play in the game? Because from there it seemed like you guys were pretty much in control. COACH GOESTENKORS: Yes, that was huge for us. Basketball is a game of inches. It could have gone in or out. And I know if it would have gone in it probably would have put a little more pressure on us. But we just talked about not really worrying about the score, just playing our game, which is attack. And so when she did miss it, our first thought was to get the ball down the floor. I thought it was one of our better transition games, and I think we transitioned into that and attacked the basket, and then they helped and we kicked it out to Kat for a wide-open 3. And we always expect, if she gets a wide-open shot, we're more surprised when she doesn't make it. So I think that was a key play in the game. Q. In that second game against A&M when you were down and you fought back and were really able to get some really big defensive stops, do you feel like there was something that you guys -- that finally clicked right for you in that game, and is that something obviously you're hoping to maybe get a little earlier when you're facing them tomorrow? COACH GOESTENKORS: I felt like in the first half they came in and really set the tone. They're very, very physical team. I think the most physical in our conference. And if you allow them to take your space, they will. And especially Adams, she does a great job just getting you down on the low block and moving you underneath the basket where you really can't defend her. And I thought in the first half they dictated tempo and really got us back on our heels and set the tone. In the second half it was all about passion and pride. That's all I talked about at halftime was coming in with the attack mindset and not getting pushed around and bullied around. I thought in the second half we had that attack mindset, especially I thought Yvonne just had a terrific second half for us. And we made a nice comeback. So we have to have 40 minutes where we have that -- whether you're on offense or defense, we have to be in attack mode and can't get pushed around. Q. How assured are you that you're going to make the tournament right now? Does that take a lot of pressure off, do you feel like? COACH GOESTENKORS: I feel like we're in. But, again, you never want to take anything for granted. So we've really stopped talking about the NCAA Tournament because now we're just talking about the Big 12 Tournament. And so I think that's a good focus for us right now. We don't need to really think about big picture. We talked about it before. But now this every moment is what matters to us. Q. Did you play more today like you were open all year? COACH GOESTENKORS: Yes, absolutely. We had an inside attack. When you look at the best teams, not just in the league but in the country, they have a good inside and outside attack. And we've been very guard-oriented for a good part of the system. A.G., she's played so well against Texas Tech. That was a good game for us as well, and then struggled the next game at Oke State, and you could see the difference. I was real happy. She's had great practices. Like she said, it's very disappointing when you see her practice so well and then not have a good game or be in foul trouble. Now we're hoping she can put a string together, because we need it to be successful. Q. Did you tell her anything to get going against Tech? COACH GOESTENKORS: We talked as a whole team that we -- to be a great team we need to have a post presence. A.G. is a great post presence on defense, but we need a post presence on offense as well. And so we really have been running some more sets to try to get her the ball with two feet in the paint where it's a little bit easier for her when she gets it off the block she's not as successful. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Coach. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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