CU Women's Basketball Media Day Quotes

Colorado Head Coach Kathy McConnell-Miller

Opening Statement
"First of all it feels really good to be back. The fact that practice begins today and we're actually talking about basketball is a great feeling right now. I am probably as excited as I've been to start a season and coming into a season with a particular group that over the past six months I have grown to absolutely love and build such strong relationships without ever picking up a basketball. It is a group of some really strong returners as far as personalities and experience, with a mix of just young energetic, full of life, ready to go type freshmen. With the exception of our first group it's the biggest group we have brought in and it has brought a great deal to this team. The freshmen have spent a lot of time together and a lot of people don't know, but one of our priorities with recruiting is to recruit the state of Colorado and when you can bring in three of the top players in the state, in such a strong state, you know that you have a pretty good class. That coupled with three of the players played internationally together and played AAU ball in Meagan and Brenna Malcolm-Peck and Melissa MacFarlane. They traveled to France together, they played AAU ball all summer leading into their senior seasons and that to us has really helped the chemistry of this team. They came in, they knew each other and all the freshmen returned to Boulder either for summer school or to develop off the floor, so the five of them were here the majority of the summer and spent a lot of time with our strength and conditioning coach, with our academic advisor and most importantly each other and the rest of the team so to have that summer that they have had has paid dividends in the preseason workouts. The returning players all have spent their summer in Boulder and have basically committed themselves to being the best they possibly can, both on and off the floor.

I think we have quite a few leaders. Brittany Spears, I think, has emerged as one of our leaders. She is still not the vocal type that a coach loves, and really needs, but her examples are basically screaming at the players that 'I'm in the gym, you need to be in the gym with me', and it has really trickled down through the rest of the roster and really built on a summer that was desperately needed for this program. We are fourteen strong, and I would say one of our strengths this year would be our depth. We can go deep and go deeper into our bench than ever before. We are quicker and bigger and we've had players return that have put on weight that have gotten stronger and we have had incoming freshmen that have really changed their bodies over the past few months. We have had the opportunity to work with everyone more than we ever have and knowing the significance of this season and the youth we had coming in, I am so proud and thankful that our staff has been able to organize all of our schedules so we could consistently be here for all of the players.

The preseason workouts, which we only have two hours a week, were very strategic in the ways we set those up. Sometimes we were four, sometimes we were seven, occasionally we had the whole team, but to have that time, we didn't waste one second with those ladies. It has been a situation where we feel we don't need to do as much monitoring as before, we have got some experience that has really taken on some leadership and brought these young players along. I am happy, I am refreshed, rejuvenated and I am feeling really good about this season, the schedule that we have in front of us, but most importantly these fourteen young women that have dedicated themselves to making this the best season ever."

On What Defines Success
"I think between last year and that summer, and I think we've talked about this, when we finished that WNIT run with 19 wins and we were planning for the future and we had already signed our recruits, we knew we were losing Jackie McFarland. We knew at that point that Jackie was going to graduate. When we started that next season, we had no idea we were going to start that season without three starters. With Aija's [Putnina] departure to play professionally, which was a surprise to us and never had the opportunity to fill that, and then Whitney [Houston] going down, so the expectations were great and we felt like we knew were losing Jackie but we didn't know we were losing three starters. At this point, we feel like we're going into the season with what we planned on going into the season with. We knew how we recruited and how those players were supposed to fit into this puzzle and some of them are fitting great into this puzzle and some of them are exceeding expectations coming into this season. That is why expectations are high. I can't tell you how many games we're going to win, I can't tell you where we will finish in the conference but I can tell you sitting here today there is a great feeling and a great sense that the preparation was there, the talent level has improved, the athleticism, the size and the depth, so to gauge the overall success we're going to need everybody to stay healthy. We're going to need the players to adjust to the level of play, particularly the freshmen, as quickly as they possibly can and know that the bar and expectations have been raised. They are a more disciplined team right now than six months ago, they are a more focused team, so if that continues and we go into the season with the experience that we have than we will feel as good as we do today."

On Going in the Right Direction
"Well, in the right direction is the fact that we're competitive, the fact that we're winning, the fact that we are in games consistently, that we have a very successful nonconference that prepares us for the Big 12, that we go into it with the confidence that we have been battle tested, that we can compete in this league due to the schedule that we play, due to games that we have won, due to challenges we have overcome, and continue to hit the weights and stay physically fit and healthy."

On Areas of Improvement
"I think defensively, scoring defense, I think keeping our opponents to less shots, they were getting high percentage shots against us and a lot of that was due to second opportunities. Rebounding has become a focus, we feel like we've answered that with some additions, with some areas of strength and conditioning as far as working on explosiveness, making rebounding an emphasis, particularly on the defensive end, we just gave too many second opportunities, that's an area. A major area will be turnovers. We were probably at the bottom in turnovers and I think that was partially my responsibility, in how we played and people we had handling the basketball. I think with having Whitney Houston back we will definitely take care of the ball a bit better, she is very hard to pressure, we are very hard to press when she's on the floor, she takes care of the basketball, I think we just have more control when the ball is in her hands."

On Frontcourt
"I think Kara [Richards] clearly responded in Jackie's [McFarland's] absence. I think we have, in the past, gone to our strengths and our strengths have been our front-line. Today sitting here our strength is in our backcourt, this is the first time, and when I say strength I mean minutes played, point production, playing in the strongest conference and knowing what the expectations are. I think if you ask any of our players, any would attest that our guards have the most experience right now and we are going to rely heavily on our guards to make sure the ball is being taken care of, to make sure we are playing the tempo and the style of play we need to play and we are featuring our strengths. When you have an interior player like Jackie [McFarland], you will feature that, if you have an interior player like Kara [Richards], you will feature that. Right now you are going to see our guards being featured and the ball in their hands and the decision making being handled by our guards."

On Big 12 Play
"I wouldn't say that we weren't prepared for conference play [last season]. We were well aware of what conference play was all about, we just didn't have the bodies or the depth to continue to battle every single night in conference play. I will tell that the schedule was not very friendly to us the first five games last year. If you go back and look, our first five games were against three top 10 teams, and the other two were against top 20 teams, so to come out of the gate against that put us on our heels, and it was very difficult to recover from, from a confidence standpoint and as much as you try to tell them that they are good and put them in a position to be successful, they struggled early and that stayed with us and that was very unfortunate. I think the schedule is a little bit different as far as the conference goes this year and teams that we initially come out of the gate against but we take our season in steps. Right now we can't possibly think about the conference, we have to think about the fact that practice starts today, our first game is exactly one month from yesterday. The coaches see big picture, but players at this point are looking for the very next step."

On Chucky Jeffery
"I think Chucky can be an immediate impact player. Chucky is having fun right now. Basketball is her passion, if she could lace them up tonight and forgo practice, she would be just as happy as she's been. The reason I say she's happy is she doesn't really have expectations as to how easy or difficult it's going to be. Her expectation is what play you want me to learn and what do you want me to do with that screen. Her whole mentality is I'm going to do whatever I can, whether that is play 40 minutes, or come off the bench and play 25, you are going to see a player who is passionate about what she does and a player that makes us better immediately. I think she can play anywhere in the Big 12, I think she can play anywhere in the country with her talent level. She is athletic, she can shoot the ball, it's not her first thought, she can put the ball on the floor, defensively she can add a totally new dimension like some of our other freshmen, she is just fun to watch. She doesn't even know sometimes when she makes mistakes, she just keeps playing and that is the type of attitude and mentality we need."

On Newcomers
"I think any of them at any point have shown signs of greatness and the ability to contribute. One of the most consistent ones has been Meagan Malcolm-Peck. She is a very interesting player and I don't think I would have noticed this coming out of high school, but she is one who can go anywhere from the two to the five position in that she can shoot the ball, she's long enough to where she can defend a guard, she's not a player who wants one position, she is open to learning and has a very high basketball IQ. She is as grounded of freshmen, and when I say that there are not a lot highs and lows, she's fairly consistent with her personality and even more consistent with her work ethic in strength and conditioning. There are many times that she would finish first in conditioning drills ahead of players you would never expect and that is mental toughness. I would say her and Brenna [Malcolm-Peck] are mentally tough and prepared to play at this level and there aren't many things that will take them too high or too low. Melissa MacFarlane is one I know that everyone has high expectations from due to her size and experience. She has a great upside to her, she can move the floor surprisingly well but she definitely still has a lot to learn still. Kailah Bailey is one that we as a staff believe has the biggest upside. When we talk about filling voids and immediate needs from last year, one that we as a staff identified as rebounding, Kailah has the instinct to go after the ball better than anybody on our team. What we're asking her to do is different than what she has done most of her life so she has a little change in her regular position."

On Abundance of Guards
"It allows us to play faster, allows us to play a tempo that we like to play, allows us to play a higher possession game, and it allows us to press a little bit. It gives us great depth, we're not going to have to play Brittany Spears 40 minutes, and we're not going to put her in a situation where at the end of the game she has nothing left in the tank. It gives us so many different looks that it's just going to make us more difficult to defend."

Colorado Players

Sr. G Bianca Smith

ON SENIOR LEADERSHIP
"Whenever you bring in five freshmen and have only one senior it's up to that senior to make sure that they get acclimated and make sure that they know we are a family oriented team and that we welcome them. All five of them were here over the summer and I and my teammates were here over the summer. I was just able to help them get through situations. Leaving high school and coming into college is difficult. It's completely different atmosphere then what you're used to. I think I was able to provide them with some wisdom and knowledge and was able to stay positive with them and help them keep their heads up."

ON THE TEAMS MINDSET
"This team is mentally tough. I think that was our goal from the start of the summer and into preseason. We just want to be the mentally toughest team on the court. With our new strength and conditioning coach (James Hardy), the new floor in our facilities, it has helped us to become the most mentally tough team that I've been on. I think that going out there this season with Whitney Houston back, Brittany Spears returning, myself, Julie Seabrook, Alyssa Fressle I think we are going to be a dominate team as far as the guard position goes."

ON NEW OFFENSE
"With this new offense it is basically five guards out and we are all just cutting and making moves to the basket, basically running teams into the ground. Nobody is ever not moving. It is a bunch of movement and we just try to keep people's heads spinning.

So. F Julie Seabrook

ON THE ABSENCE OF KARA RICHARDS
"Last year there were games where she would get into foul trouble, and I would have to step in. I'm excited to start filling in that role and Courtney Dunn will be there in that role as well. I'm excited to get in there and start proving myself as a player."

ON OFFSEASON IMPROVEMENTS
"I stayed for May and June and worked out here with the coaches and definitely worked on my strength. Strength in the Big 12 is a big thing, going up against some big girls. Then I went home and played with my Canadian national team. I got a lot of time in the gym. We were going for three hours twice a day. Then we went to Thailand and played in the World Championships that was another good experience to start playing against bigger players, getting in there and getting playing time and working on my game. I have started working on a lot more shooting outside especially three-point (range). That will definitely help in our offense."

ON FITTING INTO THE NEW OFFENSE
"It's based on guards because we are so guard heavy but we are going to need people to go in there and guard the taller girls, we won't be able to have all guards in there all the time. Our two guard will give you more of a chance, and since I'm not a back to back post player it's good for me because I will be cutting to the hoop more. It's more motion oriented then stationary."

ON GAINING WHITNEY HOUSTON BACK
"It's awesome. She is so quick and experienced. We missed her a lot lost last year. She is an experienced guard that definitely helps control the pace of the game by pushing the ball especially during the fast breaks."

ON TEAM CHEMISTRY
"There are some really good freshmen this year. I'm excited to start practice so we can see them. We have been in seven-on-seven practice so it will be good to get the whole team together and see where everyone fits in. I think our team chemistry is awesome this year we are all getting along really well; it will be good to see how everyone mixes in this year."

Jr. G Brittany Spears

ON IMPROVEMENTS FROM LAST YEAR
"Last year was Last year. We start over this year. We worked hard all summer and preseason. We came in with a positive attitude to what we need to do."

ON RESPONISBILTY IN OFFENSE
"There will probably be a little more responsibility. There are more guards then posts so there is going to be more responsibility on the guards. It's good a thing now because everybody is going to be involved in the offense, and be able to contribute and do their part."

Fr. G/F Meagan Malcolm-Peck

ON COMING IN AS A FRESHMEN
"Just to come in and help make a contribution. Definitely with five freshmen there is a lot of bonding and chemistry between the freshmen. We are just trying to come in and make a contribution and help the program and help a teammate."

ON HER OWN STRENGHTS
"I think I'm pretty good at shooter and I can drive to the basket pretty well. But there is always improvements you can make and you are never at your full potential."

ON FIRST WEEKS IN THE PROGRAM
"We actually started in summer school, so it's been kind of a slow lead up and we started with workouts and it has been hard to get used to the workload. But it has been fun."