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MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE WOMEN'S TOURNAMENTMarch 15, 2013Joe LegerskiChaundra SewellKayla WoodwardLAS VEGAS, NEVADA Fresno State – 63 THE MODERATOR: We're joined by Wyoming. Coach, your comments on tonight's game. COACH LEGERSKI: There were times tonight where, once again, this group showed their resiliency to keep fighting back, being down eight, ten points, even with four minutes to go. We talked about being down six and you need to believe. They came out and played at a very high level, gave themselves a chance. That's all you can ask as a coach. Last night in the game against Colorado State, we made one play and had the ball bounce our way. Tonight you give credit to Fresno State. They made one more play and we just came up so very short. Very close, but it comes down to a number of execution plays and that you have to make sure that each and every one makes a difference, whether it's in the first minute of the game or the last minute of the game. But I'm very proud of this team, what they've been able to accomplish, and how they continue to battle throughout a 40‑minute basketball game. THE MODERATOR: Questions for the student‑athletes. Q. Kayla, can you talk about your basket, your last basket. Was that play designed for you? KAYLA WOODWARD: No. It was just whoever was open. But, you know, I knew we needed a basket, so... Just tried to be aggressive. Q. Chaundra, can you take us through the last defensive sequence. Did you have the feeling they were going to Moore in that situation? CHAUNDRA SEWELL: Moore is their leading scorer. She's proven she's dependable in tight situations like that. You knew they were going to go to her. She got by Kaitlyn. The defense didn't quite rotate just right and she was able to hit a really nice shot. You've got to give it to her. She didn't hesitate. Q. You had 21 turnovers. Looked like you handled the press well and at times you didn't. What was the difference when you struggled with it a little bit? KAYLA WOODWARD: I just think we found the open person well. We didn't freak out. I don't know, when we make the right cuts, you know, it helps our teammates so much more instead of just looking for a brown jersey. Q. Can you talk about what it is they do that makes it so tough with their press. KAYLA WOODWARD: I think what makes them tough is they're so long with their height. It's hard to pass around. Q. Chaundra, a little bit of a slow start, but a nice finish. What do they do defensively inside that gives you trouble inside. CHAUNDRA SEWELL: Like Kayla said, they're long. Alex Sheedy, Rosie Moult, they're big, strong players inside. It makes it difficult to get in a good position a lot of times. Q. Felt like you were playing from behind the whole game. How taxing is that? KAYLA WOODWARD: Well, we're always going to fight. I mean, it does take a little more energy, you know, a little more emotion. But we're always going to fight till the very end. CHAUNDRA SEWELL: I think in a game like this, the whole‑‑ we always talk about winning four‑minute segments. Just to focus on those four‑minute segments when you're down, it really helps. It doesn't seem quite as tough, that you're fighting from so far behind. Q. I know this is disappointing, but there will be post‑season for you guys. Are you looking forward to that or is that hard to think about right now? KAYLA WOODWARD: I just think it's pretty easy to think about. We've just got to keep our heads up and know we've got some more games going so... We've just got to be the team we are. CHAUNDRA SEWELL: For me personally, being a senior, it's a little more comforting. It's hard to lose and come so close. But I know in a matter of week we'll be back in Laramie with all our fans cheering for us. It adds a little more excitement. Q. Kayla, what was going through your mind when you were taking the last shot as far as the time left in the end of the game? KAYLA WOODWARD: I don't know. We just needed a basket. That's all that was going through my head. There was an open lane, so I just took it. Q. The shot clock, was that also in your mind? KAYLA WOODWARD: Yeah, a little bit. We had to get a shot off. I mean, drive down the lane and hope it goes in. THE MODERATOR: We'll continue with questions for Coach Legerski. Q. You said last night that if it came down to it, you wanted Kayla taking the pivotal shot. That played out this evening. The trust you have in here in those high‑pressure situations, how you've seen her grow in her short time here so far. COACH LEGERSKI: You know, Kayla is someone who works so hard on scoring in the summertime. It's been well‑documented through our media back in Wyoming that she'll make 15,000 to 20,000 shots in a summer ‑ not shoot 'em, make 'em. With that kind of effort, you have a great deal of confidence in a young person. When we ran the out‑of‑bounds play, we knew the ball was going to go to Chaundra or Kayla, and I have a great deal of trust in both players. Q. I talked to the players about the turnovers. At times it looked like you handled the press well, at times you didn't. What did you do well when you handled the press well and where did you struggle? COACH LEGERSKI: The biggest thing is they change their press up. You'll see a diamond press, you'll see a box press, you'll see them run and jump in their man. It gets a little difficult each and every time because you want to attack it differently. So it relies a great deal of recognition from the players. I'm trying to help them out from the bench. Once again, we have to execute. We knew going into this game if we could turn it over somewhere between 15 and 20 times we would have a good night. We turned it over 21. That's where I get talking about, you know, it's one possession, whether it's in the first minute of the first half or the last minute, it becomes very important each and every possession. Q. Your last defensive possession. A player like Moore is hard to figure out what she's going to do. What did you see? COACH LEGERSKI: The biggest thing is they have more than one option offensively. You're worried about Moore getting to the basket. You have Thompson that can get to the basket. You know Moult and Farley can shoot the ball extremely well from three. So we talked about going out and trying to switch all screens, trying to keep everybody in front of us, and then rebound. I give Moore credit. She made a big play. That's why she's a first‑team all‑conference player. I talk about Kayla Woodward, how she plays, how Chaundra plays. Moore does the same thing for Fresno State. Big‑time players make big‑time plays. Q. Can you talk about Chelan Landry today. COACH LEGERSKI: Chelan has great quickness and has really worked hard at her game of getting to the basket. A great competitor. When she was stepping up, we inserted her into the game just for that reason. She can make plays. Just before I called the timeout, she made another play to get the ball to Ashley that was open. We're pleased to see the development of Chelan. That's what we hope players do in the program. She really stepped up and has played very well for us. Q. I know you had all five starters returning this season. Could you fathom a season, 24 wins, doubling the win total from last year, what this team kind of emerged as this year? COACH LEGERSKI: That's what I talked to them about. The good news and bad news. The good news is you have everybody back. We had to turn things around and get back to winning again. The players all bought in. They came out, put their differences aside, put last year in the rearview mirror, so to speak, and just came out and tried to do everything they could, and bought in once again to this group. I think our sophomore class really improved in a year's time and we had great senior leadership. When you have that, you start seeing 24 wins. That's something I'm very proud of for this team. It's something they'll always remember. Q. Talk about post‑season now, your thoughts. Do you feel it's the NIT now or do you still have NCAA hopes at this point? COACH LEGERSKI: You know, we talked about when you come here to Las Vegas for the tournament, you need to think in terms of winning it. As a No.3 seed, that's not the easiest thing. You'd have been looking at playing Fresno State and then our No.1 team, SanDiego State, who I feel is in the tournament. For the rest of us, you have to be able to be here on Saturday and win. We came up short and we'll see what the Selection Committee does. You get 24 wins, hopefully you're playing somewhere. But that's in the hands of other people. THE MODERATOR: Thank you very much, Coach. COACH LEGERSKI: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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