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BIG TEN CONFERENCE WOMEN'S TOURNAMENTMarch 7, 2014Jordan HooperRachel TheriotConnie YoriINDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA Nebraska – 80 COACH YORI: Sure. Well, I thought, you know, our execution in the second half was really good. We made a lot of plays in the second half and down the stretch when the game got tight. You know, we had a number of players make plays. I thought obviously Jordan had a great game throughout the game, and Rachel was a big part of that. I told Rachel I don't know what's up with one turnover. I don't get it. I mean, what's the problem? But any way, she, you know, facilitated for us, but you know, Jordan was the recipient of a lot of them. But also we had some other players make some plays down the stretch. Laudermill, three; Emily; Hailie had a chance to have an and‑one. We just had some kids that did some things. We tried to take away their strengths on their offensive end, and I thought we did a really good job for the most part on Banham, and I thought we stuck with our game plan. It wasn't always perfect. They had some kids who made some shots, but at the same time I thought the fact that we were scoring on offense allowed us to continue to do what we were doing defensively. Q. Jordan, it was a two‑point game and then you guys pulled away the last four, five minutes. What stands out in that last stretch to pull away? JORDAN HOOPER: I would just say probably, like Coach said, T's big three and Em's big three, they kind of got the momentum swung, I guess. And then we made some stops on defense, and I think that was the biggest key. Q. Rachel, sometimes players will talk about being in the zone as a shooter. Did you feel like you were in a zone as a passer tonight? RACHEL THERIOT: Yeah, you could say that. I mean, just finding my teammates and knowing that they can hit open shots and stuff and make plays. Q. Their center was in foul trouble obviously most of the game. Why was it not maybe possible to capitalize on that a little bit more than you were maybe hoping for I guess? JORDAN HOOPER: Well, they have great posts that can pretty much interchange, Riché and Zahui. They do a really great job down low. So I don't think it really matters which one is on the floor. They're going to pick up where the other one left off. That's why there wasn't any letdown when she did leave. Riché is great. She did come off the bench this year a little bit more, but she's a really great player, so I think that's why there wasn't any letdown. Q. Rachel, can you talk about, obviously the last game against Purdue did not go how you guys wanted. What does it mean to go out and get momentum kind of back on your side as far as executing and getting a win? RACHEL THERIOT: I think it's just one game at a time. Obviously that game just happened, put it in the past and just keep getting better as a team. I think right now we're just getting back to how we play the Nebraska way. Q. Jordan, what's it like out there offensively when you can keep things around what Rachel's passing and you know coming off the pick the ball is coming to you at the right spot? RACHEL THERIOT: I think that means everything to everybody. We know we're going to get the ball at the right time in the right spot because Rachel knows exactly where everybody is going to be. She can find ‑‑ even if it's not your pass, she'll find the next person, and that's pretty cool. Q. Looking at Rachel's game, what about Minnesota's defense and also what she was able to do tonight, she's also had high assist games in the past, but tonight what enabled that? Was there a trend you were seeing with a lot of her assists? COACH YORI: We actually didn't run as much ball screen stuff tonight as we kind of thought going into the game, but Jordan had it going we tried to take advantage of some other things. Rachel, that's been Rachel all year. I mean, 18 is obviously a little unusual. But you know, she's had a lot of games where she's had nine, ten, 11 assists this year. So she just you know, she's good in a lot of ways. She just really dissects defense. Q. Coach, what was kind of the game plan to limit Banham, especially in the second half? I think she only had four of her 12. COACH YORI: Well, I think Hailie did a good job on her. You know, she's a tough cover. You know, we tried to take her strengths away. And I thought Hailie really kind of locked in on that. And I think two of the baskets that she scored was when someone else was on her, and in fact, maybe three. But you know, we just tried to take away her strengths. And you know, she's a really good three‑point shooter and she likes to use her right hand. And we tried to take advantage of those things. Hailie was very disciplined in what she was doing. We also played some good team defense.  They set ball screens forward. You got to be able to defend those. We have a decent match‑up for her. Q. When the player is hot shooting, you call plays for them to get open. With Rachel the way she's passing, do you have specific plays that you know she's going to get loose to pass it, or is that just the basic offense you're running? COACH YORI: A lot of stuff goes through Rachel. Not all of it, but she gets her chances to be the facilitator in a lot of the things that we do. Q. Looking ahead to tomorrow, what are one or two key things you have to do tomorrow to win again? COACH YORI: Well, Michigan State is very physical. And you know, that's not necessarily our forte, and we're not a very big team. So we've got to figure out ways to guard their interior game and at the same time, you know, do a good job on their perimeter game. And what makes them tough is that they have a good inside‑outside game, and we've got to find a way to guard that. And you know, but we have, you know, at times found different ways to do that. But we're going to get back to the drawing board and get back to our banquet room and watch some film. I do want to comment that I think Minnesota deserves to be in the NCAA Tournament, and I think they've had a great year. They've had a great February. They've played well down the stretch. They got a win yesterday in the tournament, and I think you know, with the strength of our league and their RPI, I think they need to be in the NCAA Tournament. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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