Feb. 12, 2009
Women's Basketball Head Coach Beth Burns
Press Conference Quotes - Cox Arena
On last night's win over Utah:
"It was a fabulous opportunity that I think, in the scheme of things, probably meant a little more to our team, not just (because of) the fact that we didn't want to have three games in separation from the top to ourselves. Playing only three, now only two in the second round, home games looms really large. I think the opportunity to beat the team that no one else has been able to beat, from a confidence standpoint, to keep ourselves a game away, it is a great race. I think right now we have five teams that could be postseason teams. No one is there yet. Everyone has work to do in these next six games. Utah (game) was yesterday, and that was great, but now it's time to move forward and focus on a really challenging road trip at Wyoming."
On if it was a point to come out strong early in the game last night:
"They're champions for a reason; we threw a lot at them. We learned a lot from our game at Salt Lake and really, I think for our team, played to our strengths. I know that sounds simple, but it's not always. `What do we do best? What do they do best? What do we think we can attack in them?' I think you could see that they can run such good offense that it's not even as much (effort) to turn them over as it is to disrupt them - make them get down the floor and only have 10-12 seconds to run their stuff. She played with a very short bench and we thought eventually it could pay dividends. I thought our forwards, specifically Paris (Johnson) and Jennifer Layton-Bailes, did an incredible job. They played 40 feet and were kind of our key disrupters. We're used to our guards being all over the place, but we really did some different things with our forwards. I thought they really committed to playing 95 feet and in the end, that was the difference in the game."
On getting steals and turning them into points last night:
"We count on that. We like to have at least 30 percent of our offense come from our defense. Sometimes we call those double points because, psychologically, you take it away from them. As a team they average 11 turnovers on the year. To force them into turnovers is huge and I think it gives us a little bit of a psychological edge as well."
On keeping the team in the right state of mind after last night's win:
"I talked last night after the game to our older players, Q (Quenese Davis), Jene' (Morris), Paris (Johnson), which sounds crazy for her (Paris) to be considered an older player, and LaSandra Dixon. People who have been around the block. People who know the challenges that face us when we play in the Front Range. (They need) to be able to focus on one game at a time, to be able to make the eight a nine. They know what they are getting into. When they haven't done it before, if no one has ever done it before, it is a whole different ball game when you're playing at 7,500 feet. You coach differently, you go deeper into your bench and you pick your spots. Last night, I knew that I didn't have to pick my spots. We love (playing at) sea level. We're all about sea level. When you go on the road, you have to do things a little bit differently. We know there are six games to go and five different teams can win it. It's going to come down to me trusting in the maturity level of our older players."
On if the team is ready to be the hunted rather than the hunters:
"I think so. I don't think that has ever been a problem for us, being either role. I think it's more just their psyches relative to speed. We talk all the time about having speed and quickness. Speed and quickness, if you slow yourself down, negates your strength. That is our challenge at altitude, which is picking our spots and being able to play with the same kind of aggression. We can do things that I don't think many other teams in our league can do, but we have to be able to maintain that mental focus to put up with the physical pain it takes to do that when we are away from home."
On how big last night's win was toward playing in March at Cox Arena in the NCAAs:
"I don't think that it could have been any bigger. I think that when we beat Texas, it was a great thing. People were saying, `Well they beat Texas, but a lot of people have a great night.' Then when we won in The Pit (at New Mexico) it was like, `Well gosh, how many teams have won in The Pit over the last x amount of years.' Now you beat a team that was on a 25-game league winning streak and has national respect. So I think putting those three together, as well as really taking care of our business at every other stop on the way, has put us on the radar. We can control our destiny. We all know that when you're the new kid on the block sometimes you have to get breaks. It's not always fair. To face nationally recognized programs and emerge victorious every time, and proving (so) not just on the road, but also at home, I think it was huge. I think that when it comes down to when they are splitting hairs as to who does what, who gets in and who gets out (of the NCAAs), those are really quality wins. Quality wins in February count double, November is long gone. They are about what you have done in the last 10 games."
On the kind of message last night's win sends to the rest of the conference:
"Our team has felt great respect from our conference. We were preseason pick No. 2. We were that pick and people respect our ability level, but then you have to actually do it. We did it. I can't know, the way our (postseason) tournament format is, if people were cheering for us or against us (against Utah). I don't know whether people wanted Utah to go away and hide and have us drop down. You can't really know, but I think we have proven ourselves. We have beaten everyone in league and we've proven ourselves. Now I think we have a little bit more of a target on our backs. We're used to being the ones who are getting out the bow and arrow and not used to having the target. That will be our next challenge to face."
On if she is worried about a letdown this week:
"No. I would tell you, if you had asked me January 1 before we started Mountain West Conference play, what is our toughest road game? I would have told you Wyoming. So whether we were 8-2 or 2-8, I would tell you that this is a big game and our team knows it is a big game. It is a difficult place to play and it's their Pink Zone (cancer awareness) game. It will be a great atmosphere, it will be a big game and we will be ready to play."