Postgame Quotes
March 5, 2011
Recap | Final Stats | Notes |
Kansas 51, Kansas State 56
March 5, 2011
Postgame Quotes
Kansas Head Coach Bonnie Henrickson
On playing in the Big 12 Championship next week:
“We have to win it, we have to win it. There are a bunch of teams that understand like we do, we have to win it to go to the NCAA Tournament. Obviously we are NIT eligible, and that speaks for itself, but we know that and there are a bunch of us that have that on our plate right now.”
On senior forward Krysten Boogaard:
“From the very first time I talked to her, just great respect and admiration for her goals for herself, her goals, her vision, what she wants to do. It has been crystal clear: I want to play professionally, this is what I want to do, I want to grow my game, and she has never let go of that. Her willingness to be really good with the young kids has been important as a senior, whether you are a captain of not, you are a senior, you have been through it for four years.”
On senior guard Marisha Brown:
“Her energy, her defensive toughness, she is great with the young kids, she is brutally honest about everything with everybody, which I appreciate with anyone in life, I love people who are honest. She is great off the bench, as a senior who is not a captain; they listen to her when she has something to say.”
On what she took away from the game:
“We did a great job on (Brittany) Chambers, when you hold her to nine (points), you have to find a way to win; but for a kid who is coming off a career night, and has had big nights down the stretch for them, it is the difference between losing and getting beat, and we lost.”
On playing Colorado in the Big 12 Championship:
“Everyone says it’s hard to beat a team three times, but would you rather have lost to them twice and them play them? That makes no sense to me. We feel good going into it, and I’m sure they feel good too, because they have played really well down the stretch, and (Brittany) Spears is on fire right now, and they have won on the road, they beat Nebraska in a close game, they have beaten Missouri in a close game, played well and had some big wins at home, so it should be a great contest. The eight-nine game is always the closest one in the tournament. Our bench does a great job, they go on a nine-zero run to get us out of there alive in Boulder, and we jump on them here right away.”
Senior center Krysten Boogaard
On how she has matured:
“I have matured a lot since my freshman year and I think that I have gotten better as a basketball player. I have become more open about my feelings and have grown in the sense of being able to express my emotions since being at Kansas.”
On what lessons she has learned:
“I have learned to always be on time. My freshman year I had a bit of a problem with being on time to things, but my coaches and teammates helped me out with that. I have also learned how to stay positive and always have a positive attitude because it can be contagious.”
On coming off the bench:
“I have realized that was a role and I know that even though I came off the bench I was still able to contribute and help my team be successful.”
Senior guard Marisha Brown
On the loss to Kansas State:
“This was definitely a tough loss. It was hard losing on my senior night, but I also know that we still have games to win, so it isn’t over yet.”
On losing on Senior Night:
“It was frustrating because there were some balls that we could have gotten. We missed some crucial free throws and those things matter in a close game.”
On playing against Brittany Chambers:
“My main goal was to shut her down. She had come off of two big games, but she is a good player and we couldn’t stop her towards the end.”
Sophomore center Carolyn Davis
On losing to Kansas State:
“There were some mistakes that we made throughout the game. We should not have turned the ball over as much and should have gotten our hands on more 50/50 balls. I think that we did not execute very well.”
On turnovers:
“We beat ourselves and a lot of our turnovers were forced turnovers. It is tough to lose at home and on Senior Night.”
On playing Colorado next week in the Big 12 Championship:
“We have to put this game behind us and get focused for Colorado. They are a good team, but we have to stay focused and get ready for them in the Big 12 tournament.”
On her struggle shooting from the field:
“They were putting a lot of pressure on us and it was hard to get the ball into the paint. I think that they rotated pretty well which allowed them to be in the best position for a charge.”
Kansas State head coach Deb Patterson
On the game overall:
“We are just really proud of our basketball team. We had an unbelievable performance today in terms of toughness and courage from Jalana Childs. Nobody would know it, but she played hurt today. She just really brought it for her team. It was an amazing, courageous step up moment for her. It’s what you see about the really great players in the game and I think Jalana is one of the best in the Big 12. This was a classic KU vs. K-State game. No one could really get a run and sustain it. That’s just the nature of competing in this league. That’s a great basketball team we beat today. It took everything that we had. It seemed as though, in the first half, that we might have made a lot of individual mistakes, but in the second half we made a lot of individual plays in the framework of our offense. It took a lot of courage and a lot of stepping up in any given possession, whether it was Mariah (White) making a big play or Taelor (Karr) hitting a floater off the glass. Brittany (Chambers) continuing to run the offense or Branshea (Brown) getting a rebound or Jalana being willing to take the big shot or knock down free throws, it was a team accomplishment and effort. That’s really how our season has been. I’m just really proud of our team. I have the utmost respect for Kansas and what they bring–40 rebounds and a possession-by-possession battle. We are happy to be on the upside of it.”
On playing a rivalry game after an emotional win over Texas A&M:
“That’s another aspect of being so proud of our team today. It was an unbelievably emotional experience beating Texas A&M. To come back and counter that with a road game and then rivalry game is just about everything you could picture putting on the plate–unless it was Texas A&M and Baylor back-to-back. To us, this game between K-State and KU always takes on such a dynamic personality. It’s not like any other game you play in the league. Again, all compliments to our basketball team for the emotional toughness they brought to the floor. Seeing what Jalana (Childs) did hurt and seeing the minutes we got out of both Brittany (Chambers) and Taelor (Karr), in this game, is just the toughness that this team has brought all year. (That toughness) is what put them in position to win. They had to be not just physically tough, but mentally tough. This is a good statement game in that respect.”
Kansas State junior forward Jalana Childs
On playing hurt:
“I actually didn’t think I would be able to play like I did because I was in a lot of pain today. The pain has lessened from the past two day. I talked to my coaches and it was my decision to step up. I could have tanked it or do what I did. It was a mental game with myself. I had to be here for my team. I did have some mental lapses during the game and I think they were evident. It was just a mental war with myself.”
Kansas State sophomore guard Brittany Chambers
On needing a victory to solidify a berth to the NCAA tournament:
“That’s always in the back of our minds. We didn’t want to come off a win against A&M, such a great win that we needed, and lose. We knew it was going to be a different kind of challenge than A&M. It’s a rivalry game. Emotions are flying. That can be good and that can be bad. Tonight we proved that we can handle ourselves in a mature manner in such a harsh environment. It’s always in the back of our minds that we need to pull it out and to also put us in a good position (going into) the Big 12 tournament.”
