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News Conference Post-Game Quotes<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>
<?xml:namespace prefix="st1" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"?>University of Nebraska
Sunday, March 23
Nebraska 61, Xavier 58 (NCAA Spokane Regional First Round at College Park, MD)
Head Coach Connie Yori
Opening Statement:
“Well, I thought the pace of the game was in our favor. We wanted to run and up and down and the fact that Ta’Shia Phillips got in foul trouble in the first half, I thought was important. (Xavier) didn’t have the post play to run with us so at that point, I thought that favored us through a good portion of the game. When we got the lead, we got a little tentative. Kelsey Griffin had a great game for us and she is one of the most underrated players in the country. She doesn’t get a lot of noterity, but the Big 12 people know who she is. Her name may not be one you know across the country, but you can she how great of a player she is. We’re glad she’s on our team. She made a lot of plays when we needed her to make them.”
On Griffin being underappreciated nationally:
“I’ve been a head coach for 18 years at the college level and I don’t know if I’ve coached a player more tough than Griffin. She’s got a great mental toughness. She’s got a skill level that she can do what she did tonight. She didn’t give herself enough credit. She’s hit plenty of those shots during the season and we’ve run a lot of things for her. The Big 12 knows about her. When you’re first team all-conference in the Big 12 as a sophomore like she was last year, our league coaches know about her. She’s right there with some of the top players in our conference.”
On how Griffin ended up at Nebraska:
“We got lucky. She got some attention, but she was a kid that wasn’t out a lot. She did not play during the summer between her sophomore and junior year when players get a lot of attention. She was injured so we didn’t see a lot of her before her senior year. There were some programs that got in, but we were one of the first ones to offer her a scholarship. We got lucky and she loved our weather. Coming from Alaska, it was an easy transition. We were fortunate to get her.”
On Tay Phillips being aggressive:
“I just think the pace of the game was favorable for Tay’s game. She is a player who is good in transition and who can do some things in that setting. We did a really good job for the 30 minutes running the floor, making the game an up and down game and that favor’s Tay.”
Junior Guard Tay Hester
On scoring double figures for the first time since January 26 against Baylor:
“The pace of the game helped me because it’s the type that I like. I attacked the basket and they were having trouble with transition defense. We knew that if we kept up our pace we would get easy layups. I just attacked the basket.”
Junior Forward Kelsey Griffin
On her comfort level of scoring with her back to the basket or facing the basket:
“I was happy that my jumper was on tonight. That’s the first time, probably since high school, that I’ve been able to shoot like that. I prefer to play with my back to the basket, but Xavier had some larger girls in there so I knew that I may have to take my game outside. They are great defenders and they made me have to step away from the basket. You have to credit Xavier because they played great defense.”
On double-teaming Xavier’s post players:
“We knew that Xavier was a huge threat inside so we knew that if we were going to put ourselves in a position to win that we needed to focus on that. We threw different defenses at them and different players were doubling and I know as a post player that is the most frustrating thing to play against. We were able to lock down and focus on what our coaches told us to do and it really helped us. Our ability to know where their shooters were and their tendencies was a key for us in winning the game.”
On playing defense and Ta’Shia Phillips picking up her second foul :
“That was really key because we were able to get up and down the floor. To have her in foul trouble really played into our favor. On offense we were able to get easier shots and on defense that forced Xavier to work that much harder against our double teams. That was key for us in making our push and going into halftime strong.”
Sophomore Forward Cori Montgomery
On her scoring production in the game:
“When I come in, I try to give my team a needed spark and do my part. My shot was on tonight. I came in and worked hard. I wanted to be aggressive and help my team by making the open shot.”