Colorado University Athletics
Colorado-Texas Tech Quotes
February 12, 2011 | Women's Basketball
Colorado Head Coach Linda Lappe
General
"Well we definitely got outplayed for most of that game. They were physical, they were quick and our turnovers were obviously a huge part of that game. We just didn't handle the ball like we needed to."
On which had more to do with CU's turnovers, Texas Tech's pressure or CU's offense
"It was definitely a combination of both. They're quick, they're fast, they're strong, and they make up ground very fast. You can't be lackadaisical with the ball and we've done that all year against teams like that. A lot of it is the opposing team that makes us rush, makes us hurry, makes us travel, and makes us make bad passes. So it was definitely both."
On the press defense
"At times we were too tentative. We attacked when we maybe should have not attacked and we were too passive when we should have attacked and we had gaps. That's something that you can't always draw up; it has to be a feel. A lot of times when we did attack, we turned it over. I think that's what made us tentative in possessions after that. We got scared and we talked about that at halftime; not being too tentative and being more aggressive and to get in there and be strong with the ball. I think we did a little bit better job after the half, but still not good enough."
On having a midweek open date
"I think we had three really great practices. You can't simulate, especially with only eight players in practice. Especially when you have assistant coaches practicing against your team, it's not what Texas Tech is like. All the credit to my assistants, but they can't provide the speed, they can't provide the size, they can't provide the strength and that's where our depth really hurts us, not having fifteen players, but not having a strong second five to really get after your first five."
On Texas Tech's guards
"Their guards play hard and their guards play quick, they're athletic and they're strong and they move. Obviously they were playing for something in this game, they wanted to win and they thought they could win coming in and they did. You've got to give their entire team credit. I thought [Casey] Morris hit a lot of tough shots early in the game and our defensive intensity and pressure wasn't there like it needed to be."
On the post-season talk
"As a staff we talk about it, but we also know that we have to take care of business day-to-day and in order to talk about postseason you can't be as inconsistent as we are. That's our number one goal; to help our team be able to put two back-to-back games together and we have yet to do that. Before you can look down the road in March to be able to play in March, you have to have a great February. We've talked about how good February needs to be and it's the make or break month. That's where teams separate themselves in a lot of different ways and we want to make sure we're up there and we're not getting separated in the wrong direction."
Colorado Players
Brittany Spears, Sr., F
ON TURNOVERS-"I think we were just rushing it. We just weren't slowing it down and playing our game."
ON TEAM'S POSTSEASON PROSPECTS-"I know it is on our minds, but we haven't really discussed it. We know that we need to win to make the postseason. I think everybody knows that we have to keep going out and playing hard and get some wins so we can get to the postseason."
ON TEXAS TECH'S GUARDS-"I don't think it was anything that they did. It was mostly us. We turned the ball over too many times and they got too many points off of turnovers."
ON MESSAGE AT HALFTIME-"Stop turning the ball over and just play hard. Don't give up."
Chucky Jeffrey, So., G
ON TURNOVERS-"We knew that they were going to press. We were throwing bad passes on both ends. We just weren't clicking. If one person was thinking, 'I'm going to pass it to you,' the other person was thinking, 'I'm going to go back.' We just weren't on the same page. We were throwing the ball away too much."
ON TEAM NOT GETTING IN A RHYTHM-"Usually we make the change. We were trying, but it just gets tough when you throw one and everybody is like, 'Well, we have to try something else,' and then somebody tries to break it by themselves and tries something different. We just weren't on the same page, and it is hard to break a press when everybody is not focused on one thing."
ON LOSING MOMENTUM AFTER NEBRASKA WIN-"It kind of took our momentum a little bit. We talked together as a team. We know that we did some things wrong and we didn't come together when we needed to. We know what we did wrong, such as not talking to each other. Usually everyone tries to go their separate ways, but after the game we huddled and we talked, 'We have to do this and we have to pressure each other harder in practice,' and stuff like that. We just have to get our minds right for the rest of the season. We have four road games left so we have to be ready."
Texas Tech Head Coach Kristy Curry
On Winning
"It's just a credit to these kids, to continue to fight through adversity. You can either that adversity work on you, or you can work on it and these kids have really done everything that they can to continue to work on it and it says a lot about them.
On Playing Together
"They did a great job with that. Great leadership from these two (Monique Smalls, Casey Morris). We just had a great presence about us, both inside and out. We didn't let mistakes bother us. I think we did a great job today, to come in here and be that decisive against a team that has had some great wins at home, that says a lot."
On Defense
"Great ball pressure. We have great ball pressure, it makes everything else easy and we did a great job at identifying their shooters and making sure we understood tendencies. You know, that was our best job all year executing a game plan. It's just a great effort by these kids. They deserve all the credit."
On the Starting Momentum of Smalls and Morris
"Their energy today was contagious. I think they've had great energy, and at times we don't let it be contagious, and it was just a great team effort today, and it started up top with these two and their leadership. On both ends of the floor, we were aggressive, and good things happened. These kids are definitely deserving of that finally.
On Casey Morris
"When we have great balance, I don't think it's all on Casey's shoulders. I thought today we had great balance both inside and out. I haven't seen the stats, but when you can have that fourth player in double figures, that makes a big difference for us. If you can come in and shoot the percentage we did the first half, it makes a big difference. I just want Casey and Mo to come out and be aggressive on both ends of the floor and good things are going to happen for us. It was contagious today. We knew that our 3, 4, and 5 understood the importance of playing with great energy as well
On Points off Turnovers
"I think we kind of reversed it a little bit, from what happened to us Wednesday night. It shows what kind of kids these kids are. We talked a lot the past couple of days about what our 27 turnovers turned into and how we need to get more easy baskets, whether it's in transition or in turnovers. I think we reversed that roll today, and we've got to be consistent. It's important to understand that we've still got hope and we can still get to where we want to go at the end of the year. We're excited to head back home for Wednesday night and we hope to have a big crowd."
Texas Tech Players
Monique Smalls, So., G
On Setting Momentum for the Team
"We did. We didn't want to lose this game. That was not even a question to ask. It all starts with defense. It was good. It boosted a lot of people's confidence. Now we've just got to bring it on to Iowa State."
On Defense
"Our outside shot; players were hitting them. And we were getting it to the post, they were hitting it, and it opened up the lanes up for others. "
Casey Morris, So., G
On Redemption
"That's not really what I had in mind when I played. I just want to play harder. It doesn't really what points I have. As long as the team is playing hard together and we're getting a win, that's all that I worry about. It doesn't matter how many points I have. A loss is a loss, and a win is a win."
On Being Contagious
"I think our energy was good today. We should play like that every game. We obviously have success whenever we do play as hard as we can."
