Postgame Quotes - St. Bonaventure

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Postgame Quotes
No. 21 Virginia 72, St. Bonaventure 64
Jan. 4, 2010

Virginia Head Coach Debbie Ryan
Opening Statement:
“We knew this was going to be a tough game. St. Bonaventure has had a great year already and as you can see they are a very seasoned team. They are an NCAA team and they proved it tonight. They make you play a different style – they want you to play slow. That is obviously not our style. It was a low-possession game. We are not really a team that likes to play that way. We got our chances to run and when we did we are able to finish. We made some adjustments in the second half, we went to zone, and that proved to be the difference.”

On freshman Lexie Gerson:
“She was huge tonight. She played a great game and really stepped up. She has confidence in her shot. She has worked hard last few weeks, practiced well last the few days, played well at Colorado and played well again tonight. She didn’t play much against Liberty, it was a low numbers game, and I talked to her about that and how the game can change in a matter of seconds. China (Crosby) goes down in Colorado and there is Lexie Gerson’s chance.”

On the short turnaround:
“It was great to win at Colorado but we left at 8 p.m. their time, 10 p.m. our time, arrived back home about 12:45 (a.m.), then had to wait for luggage what seemed like forever; its hard. It makes all the difference in the world to charter back and be able to relax (Sunday). We did not have much prep time.”

On different players stepping up:
“The more games you play like this, the better you become as a team. It is very comparable to what we are going to see in the ACC with people trying to clog the lane like that. With players like Lexie hitting the three, that doesn’t matter. Whitny (Edwards) stepped up, Monica (Wright) stepped up. We do have players that can shoot the three all up and down the roster.”

On a set starting five:
“It is a work in progress; it has to be. China Crosby is out for the season, she has an ACL tear. That is obviously going to change the starting line-up. I commented after the Colorado game about how well Whitny has come off the bench. She plays a lot of minutes, comes in and changes the complexion of the game. We have good people coming off the bench who have developed their own identity.”

Senior Guard Monica Wright
On Lexie Gerson’s 13-point performance:
“If I am having a tough time I always try to do other things and build off my teammates. It helps our offense flow better when someone else steps up and takes the pressure off of everybody else. You wouldn’t expect for her to get up like that but she does. She is our secret weapon.”

On the win:
“I feel like this game is what we needed going into ACC play, momentum-wise. It kept our minds grounded going into ACC, because once we get there, it is a battle every night. St. Bonaventure is a great team. I look forward to staring ACC games and trying to win it.”

Freshman Guard Lexie Gerson
On the team’s 18-6 second-half run, which she sparked:
“The crowd was going crazy and I was feeding off them – it was awesome. I have been working really hard on my shot with Coach E (Angel Elderkin) and I have a lot of confidence in it. I just kept shooting and having fun.”