Tulane Quotes Following The 63-55 Win Over Detroit
Dec 5, 2010 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 5, 2010
Head Coach Lisa Stockton
On Detroit making things interesting in the second half
"I thought we played tired. When we got the 17-point lead, we kind of let down a little bit and they made some plays. They got to the line, made their shots, rebounded. For us, we've got to keep our foot on the gas. We've got to play. We've got to still play hard and I think that's something that we did against Mississippi State and in games we won handily."
On if it is a challenge to keep her team up when it gets big leads
"I think it is a challenge. We're not playing a lot of numbers. We're only going seven deep in double figures (minutes) so I think that is more the issue than the mindset. I tried to get a couple of them an early rest in the first half like Whitney Bibbins. I tried to get her in and out a little bit more so that she can come in late and get us some rebounds, which she did. We really needed them and she came through with some good plays. Once we get a rotation of seven-to-nine, we can play and up-tempo style. If we're healthier, we can press and we can do some things to take some pressure off just our half-court defense."
On Tulane being able to respond and still win by eight
"We did win. I think our players have the mentality that at the end they know they can win the game. They felt like we can lock people down. We have to do that for the whole game. I told them there are a lot of things we can improve on. We can't look at 7-1 and feel great about it. We've got to get better. We've got 12 days to get exams in but also to become a better team by the time we get back to action."
On the team playing into the University's exam period
"With exams, this is a really tough time for us just because they've got a bunch of papers and things. We need this time (off). I think this is going to be good for us. As coaches, we can really break down some things and show them some things (on film). I feel very good about how we can come out of this. Being 7-1, that's probably better than I expected us to be at this time of the year, especially being down a couple of players."
On the physical play of the Detroit team
"We knew it was going to be physical. (The team) saw their game last night and we've seen their games before. That's their style. They're going to shoot it and run after it and get (rebounds). We knew it was going to happen. But it's one thing to know it and another to respond to it."
Sophomore Guard Olivia Grayson
On Tulane having to hold off Detroit in the second half
"We started off really strong, got the lead and then backed off a little. That's something that we have to work on these next two weeks. We've got to break that (habit) and get better. It's something we have to do as a team - to learn how to put our foot on the petal and leave it there."
On what the Titans did to get back in the game
"We let them get some offensive rebounds. We were beating them on the boards at halftime and I think they came back to beat us on the boards (for the game). We let them get some open threes, we missed some open shots, we took some bad shots and made some bad choices. But we won and we're 7-1 going into the break."
On what the team will do on the court during the break
"We'll practice for at least three hours. During those three hours, we can forget about the finals, forget about school and everything else, and just work on our weaknesses and build on our strengths. These two weeks will really help us prepare for conference. That's the next part of the season. Once this part of the season is over, everyone is 0-0."
Senior Forward Tiffany Aidoo
On Detroit's second-half comeback attempt
"It's like coach said, once we get the lead we get too comfortable and ease up. I hate doing this, but comparing our team from last year to this year, last year we always kept that mentality that we wanted to go get them and run them into the ground. I think that once we get that mentality again, we can start beating teams by 20 like we should be."
On what it will take for the team to regain that edge
"We just need to be determined to stop your man one-on-one, talking more on defense - which I think has gotten better from last weekend to this weekend - and just being more determined as a team to get more stops defensively. But we did win and that's what matters. We'll just get better over this two-week period."
