Washington vs. Northern Iowa Post Game Quotes
November 26, 2006 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 26, 2006
2006 Basketball Travelers Husky Classic Washington vs. Northern Iowa
Washington Head Coach June Daugherty
General Comments:
"I think Northern Iowa is a tough team, well coached and very disciplined. They too have played a very tough preseason schedule and you could see it. They didn't fold by an stretch of the imagination. We didn't have our regular go-to players firing on all cylinders tonight like they were last night, with Hicks and Plouffe. But what is exciting is to see the rest of the team step up and play big like they did. I thought our bench was huge. There was a great boost off the bench. We talk about how important it is to be ready to come in and not maintain, but take us up. Other people stepped up, like [Breanne] Watson. I thought Emily Florence had a great tournament and those young kids too."
On rebounding:
"We were definitely better. I think some of that is coming because we were a little more patient offensively. We understand how important it is to go inside-out. Now our teammates are anticipating when a player is going to go and score or kick it back out, which puts our rebounding in a better situation. Better shot selection will always help our offensive rebounds."
On other players stepping up:
"We were out of sync with Hicks [on the road] and she was definitely not herself. We didn't respond in the right way. It was more of a sense of stepping up and helping the team, but not doing in the framework of the offense. So we made a big maturity step in the tournament. There were breakdowns it created that helped us get some easy looks and it is certainly a lot easier to score that way. That is a good step for us when a few days ago on the road it was a big concern."
On Hicks and Plouffe:
"They are just sore. We don't have the time or luxury of resting them right now. They want to go. They don't want to sit. We have a day off tomorrow so hopefully we can get them calmed down and get a little more treatment."
On winning three-straight games:
"I think it is a confidence builder. We are certainly not where we can be as a team. Hicks couldn't go and Plouffe couldn't go, so we had other people step up and take bigger roles. That is the expectation with this veteran team, so it is great to see. So it's a confidence builder, but we have a lot of work ahead of us. We have to get back and see some film and continue to make the improvements we need to make on both sides of the basketball."
On what needs to be improved:
"I think shot selection in the tournament was better. There were still a few that are probably going to turn me gray one of these days. I think that because our shot selection was better and we could go inside-out, we did a lot better job with the rebounding. That is big because up until the Eastern game we were getting out-rebounded by bushel-loads."
On Sara Mosiman:
"We haven't had her in practice very much. It's a little bit of trial by fire because we don't really know what she can do. Her athleticism is amazing. The move she had tonight is just flat out being an unbelievable athlete. I love her poise. She went into both situations where she had to keep the team going and it was against some pressure tonight. She looked totally confident tonight and I thought her decision-making was great all the way around. Offensively is not the concern right now, it's defensively and that's just because we haven't had much time with her."
On Breanne Watson:
"I think that Breanne really got smashed around a lot last night. The game was so physical and she was on the ground a lot. Tonight she came back, let that go, played basketball and got after it. I thought she showed great poise and leadership. She was relentless on the boards. There was just no denying her."
Washington Player Quotes
Forward Breanne Watson
On stepping up after players are hurt:
"I just went out and played. Obviously I knew they were hurting, and June has been talking about needing someone to step up. I don't necessarily look at myself to take on that role or whatever, but I guess I went out there and played hard, and I was able to get some easy lay ups and to get to the line."
On rebounding:
"I think so. I like to pride myself in rebounding. I don't necessarily get all the boards I want to, but I think as a senior I kind of decided it's time to crash the board every time, and to box out every time. So I think mentally I have told myself to do that more, and it has translated to that."
On the confidence boost:
"It is huge. I keep on talking about starting the season 0-2, and I was really tough on us, and we were very disappointed with that. To get three wins in a row--that is a huge confidence booster for going back on the road again this coming week. It is going to be good for us."
On getting MVP:
"I don't know how to answer that. I am kind of surprised that I got it. Like I said, I just go out there and play hard. It is nice to be recognized for what I do."
Forward/Center Jill Bell
On stepping up when players are hurt:
"I just try to go out every night and play hard and if that is the case, of course you are going to want to step up and the whole team does. We have all collectively done a great job of having a balance team effort. We have all been playing hard, and we have been doing a good job these past couple of games."
On rebounds:
"I think I just kind of focused on that. My numbers were down last year, and I realized I needed to get back on the boards, and I just tried to crash the board every time the ball is put up. It is nice that it is finally working."
On the confidence boost:
"I think our confidence has come up a little bit. We shot the ball a lot better, and I think our defense has come together these last couple of games. I think it is always good to get two solid wins, and then going into our road trip it is going to be pretty tough. Hopefully this will help our younger players, and our 6 seniors that we have translate for this coming week."
