Postgame Quotes vs. No. 19 Virginia Tech
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Jan. 26, 2017
Head Coach Joanne Boyle
Opening statement:
“I just told the team how proud I was of them. I thought we played a really solid 40 minutes of basketball, there was high energy and I thought we got it done on the defensive end, rebounded well, got a lot of those loose balls that we have not been getting and I thought it just created an easier offensive game for us tonight.”
On the difference in the second half of tonight’s game and the team’s need to win:
“I don’t know if they needed it, but I think they were just so dialed in. We have been talking about a path to get to the end of the season and where you want to go and there are different ways to get there and we had lost a couple of games. To beat your in-state rival that is a top 20 team on your home floor, there is no better time to do it. I don’t want to say that there was an added incentive but there was incentive and I felt the girls were completely locked in from start to finish. We had such a great start and kept going, but credit to the girls, we didn’t relax and we were able to use the whole bench so there was fresh energy out there. They did it all. “
On looking at the scoreboard and seeing the 50-point lead:
“I just said I want a few more of these. I don’t know if I’ve been on the other end to that degree, but I’ve been on the end of a tough, long “when is this game going to end” kind of thing and it’s not fun at all to be on that end of the floor. It happens, it’s sports and my focus is on what can we do to not only win this game but also keep getting better and getting us in a position to have this focused team come out every night and play like that.”
On this being the best game defensively of the season:
“Yes, I thought we did really well against Louisville as well, but down the stretch in terms of the rebounding for us and the loose balls, I thought that was definitely our best effort.”
On the message at halftime:
“Don’t look at the scoreboard. This is about us dialing in and being as focused as you were in the first half. I didn’t have to say too much, they knew what they needed to do.”
On running Dominique Toussaint on narrow increments:
“For some reason she is just a high-twitch kid and she can go in about 3-minute spurts and she’ll go hard but then she can barely make it down the floor. So we put her in there even if it is only for 30 seconds and then we’ll take her back out because we have learned not to play her when she’s tired.”
Senior Guard Breyana Mason
On what it’s like to have this performance against a state rival:
“It was great. Playing Virginia Tech is a huge rivalry game and being that we are two of the premier schools in the state, it was something that was good for us today because there was good energy and fans were here from both sides to support us. To be able to come out and perform the way that we did for 40 minutes and not let up was really good and we had a fun game.”
On what they get out of 40 minute-effort:
“Seeing the things that we can do with these big games and being able to hone in on those skills and trying to carry it forward for the rest of the season is important.”
Freshman Guard Jocelyn Willoughby
On her 11-0 run and the momentum that brings:
“I think we came in very focused and from that play on we kept up the momentum. We have had some games where we got off to a great start and then kind of lost it, so learning to be consistent and keep up the energy throughout the game was really a focus for us. I’m proud that we did that tonight.”
On staying positive after some of the tough losses:
“Honestly, no. I think that we knew what we needed to fix so a lot of our issues were things that we could control, not what other teams were forcing us to do. I think that is part of the reason why there is a lot of potential and optimism for the games that are ahead of us. Obviously we were disappointed that we lost some of those games that were so close, but there was no sense of negativity or that this would be a long season.”