University of Connecticut Athletics
UConn-Holy Cross Post Game Quotes
11/13/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 13, 2011
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Head Coach Geno Auriemma
How surprised were you to see Caroline Doty hit the deck less than two seconds into the game?
"I don't know what happened there, but she's been all over the floor in practice. She's really anxious to play. She was excited about being out there. That's good because we have a lot of players in the back court that are more scorers than they are playmakers. We need certain ones to be playmakers, so its good for us."
Holy Cross was overmatched against you guys, how did your team deal with that? "The trouble that teams like Holy Cross have, playing us, is that the talent level is too great. No amount of good coaching could overcome that. Bill (Gibbons) does as good a job as anyone. It makes it tough for them to get good shots, good quality shots. You look at the game afterwards and you say, `look at the final score.' But, we have to spend the time between now and next Monday and before Tuesday's game. We've got to rebound the ball way better than today...our offense has got to be crisp. There are some things that we're going to have to do between now Tuesday's game and between Tuesday and next Monday's game. So, those were all evident today. It was good for us to see that."
What were your impressions of the freshmen?
"I thought Kiah (Stokes) did really well in the first half and then in the second half I think she was, kind of, just there. Brianna Banks was kind of similar. We've talked to them about being productive on your own court, that every time you're on the court, you're involved in the possession. You're doing something, whatever that may be. Kaleena (Mosqueda-Lewis) is Kaleena. She just didn't make the shots that she's going to make, but she doesn't have any problems getting those shots. We missed her a couple times, I thought. I All-in-all, for the three of them, when I looked out there and all three of them were out there together, I thought, this is a good opportunity for them. I don't know how many times we're going to see that in the near term. All-in-all, I thought they were okay, not anything great, but they were okay."
What did you think about Heather Buck's performance?
"Well, the last week or two in practice we've talked to Heather about, `what are you good at? What are things that you can add?' Heather Buck can't score in the lane. It's just a fact. She struggles in the lane. She struggles against players that are really physical with her and I think that saps her confidence and energy level. But, she can make 15-footers and she can go after the ball when it goes off the rim. So, we've talked a lot about, `do the things you're good at and staying away from the things you're not.' Today was kind of a perfect example of that. She chases down every ball. She made a 15-footer. She made her free throws. If she can give us that every game, I think that's a great contribution. That's a lot more than you can say of where she was last year, where she didn't know what she was going to be able to do. So, I think it's a confidence builder for her to know, this is what I can do and I'm going to do it."
On first game of the year:
"I think it went really well. I think we played great defense, we got into passing lanes. The first half was kind of slow. To begin with, our defense and we didn't rebound very well, but after half time we really picked it up. We rebounded the ball, got a lot more steals and we just played well on defense together as a whole and on offense."
On Caroline Doty being back:
"It is going to mean everything to us. She's definitely that glue player that coaches always talk about. She brings everyone together, keeps them focused and on point with what we're doing on offense and defense. Her intensity on both ends of the floor is one of the highest on the team."
On her mobility in the game:
"It's just like it is in practice. Every practice is almost harder than a game. Coach makes up a scenario, and when I was in the game I thought I was able to make the movements I needed to do, play defense and get up and down the floor."
On freshmen's first game:
"I think they did great the way they came out. Pressuring the ball, Kaleena getting huge rebounds and Kiah getting even more. Of course there's always going to be that overwhelming atmosphere with how supportive our fans are. The whole first game in college they're going to have jitters. I had jitters my freshman year too. With experience, game after game, they'll get better and keep learning, and hopefully progressing.
Most encouraging thing from this game:
"It felt good especially in the huddle when we'd be smiling at each other, you know we are having a good time. We know we are doing the right things because they're happy with how we played."
Holy Cross Head Coach Bill Gibbons
Opening Statement: "Being a Worcester guy, you've got a real gem here in Dee Rowe (former UConn men's head basketball coach and current special advisor to UConn Athletics). That guy is a Worcester guy and knew my father. Every time we play down here and every time we lose down here, he's the first guy to see me in the locker room. It means a lot to me that he would come up and say that your team really competed, from a guy that I really admire, that means a lot. There is a lot of stuff in college athletics, and he's the first guy to see me and pick me up and say that your team is going to be fine. That's just something I had to get off my chest. That is class and something that shouldn't be taken for granted.
"I did think we competed. The Parker kid (freshman Emily Parker) didn't play. I think she would have helped us, but I would be stupid to play her against this type of talent. Without her, I thought we showed some glimpses. The Sullivan kid (freshman Clare Sullivan) is going to be a good player and if they could both come along for us before the Patriot League season comes, we're going to be a pretty good basketball team. We had that one little stretch at the end. I thought we executed, we had shots, we just missed them. In the second half we started knocking some down until the end, and the score would have been a little bit closer. I thought we competed. We played a defense we hadn't played all preseason. We just tried to play a slot man-to-man, and I thought the kids did a great job. I thought they did a great job defending the whole time. Again, our Achilles heel was just points and rebounding, which hopefully with Parker we will do a better job...I thought we competed this year. I just told the team, we are a better team at 4:05 p.m. than we were at 2:05 p.m., and they all nodded their heads."
On the 10-2 run to close the first half: "Execution was key. We started knocking down shots, and I thought our defense was consistent. I just told my assistants that we might have to play this defense more often. We've been playing a two-three zone and our aggressive man to man. We just put this into practice yesterday, and the kids really responded to it. I thought we were tough with them. I wish we would have gotten a few more loose balls, but I thought we banged with them. We didn't have a deer in the headlights look, and I think it showed. I wish we could have finished the game better."
Overall thoughts on UConn without Maya Moore: "Obviously, they are not as good. She was just such a steadying influence, or there if they needed a play. I think (Caroline) Doty, when she gets healthy, can do that for them and give them that swagger. They are kind of missing that a little bit. They've got some good young guys. They'll have some growing pains, but sure as God made little green apples, Geno (Auriemma) is going to have them ready for tournament time. He's a great, great coach and I have a ton of respect for him. He's another guy that's class too. He is a great friend to me. I lost my 104 year old grandmother, who was very near and dear to me, this week. It's been an emotional week, I had to give the eulogy. I got a text message the day of the funeral from Geno, saying that he was sorry to hear about my grandmother and that he knew she meant a lot to me. That really showed a lot of class."
