November 16, 2006

Postgame Quotes

Nov. 16, 2006

Kansas 66, UMKC 53
November 16, 2006

Head Coach Bonnie Henrickson
On the Ivana Catic:
“I thought Ivana was really, really good, she played well against these guys (UMKC) last year. Her court presence on the offensive end is what we’re looking for, and I thought she made good decisions. That’s important for us and important for her. She has not played big minutes, and her role is changing as far as starting. She’s been trying to get it right and has been working hard everyday. She’s not been selfish about this. If you are sitting over there and you’re mad, you’re never ready when you get in. She had big shots in the first and second half because she’s mentally prepared to help us win. That’s important for us.”

On forcing 25 UMKC turnovers:
“We got fouled a couple of times, some opportune layups and unselfish kids that make the extra pass. That’ll be critical for us. We’re still working a half-court offense. We’ve said the whole year, we’ve got to get more shots, and we’ve done that. Aggressive on the ball, rebounding and running, always getting ahead. I thought the post players ran pretty well – it’s good that they’re doing that. Not only do you want possession in transitions. Our goal is to shoot over 60 percent. I thought we did a decent job on that (shooting) tonight.”

On preparing for Creighton:
“Defensively, we have to be much better inside. They are a penetrate-and-kick team, which is what they did the last two years against us. We came out on the right end here last year. Two years ago we did not in a close game. Overall, we have got to get better offensively, and we have got to get better taking shots and take good shots. I thought it was slightly better at times, and I still think we can make several things that fall off the rim.”

On UMKC:
“I thought we did good job not letting them get off that many three’s. They are a team that shoots 22 threes, but they were 2-for-9. But then they hit some tough shots off the dribble and a couple of jumpers. We didn’t rotate well when they went to the rim and fouled there. Free throw numbers create anxiety for me because we’re just sending people to the free throw line. Offensively, you have to step up, look better and be a little more efficient on that end. I’d like to shoot it better and get 65 shots. I like 65 shots, I can make more of those than 27.”

Freshman forward Sade Morris
On the second half:
“We could not allow them to get any closer. We had to continue to play hard defense and push them out of their comfort zone. This is something we had to continue to work on throughout the game so that they wouldn’t come back and pull off a win.”

On improvements for the next game:
“We have to be more consistent. We have to speed up the lines and ball-pressure on every single play, not just in spurts. We can’t afford to slack off on defense.”

Freshman guard Kelly Kohn
On her shooting:
“Coach (Bonnie Henrickson) is always encouraging me to shoot. She has a lot of confidence in me, which makes it a lot easier for me, especially because I do not have that much experience at the college level. The coaches were great after this weekend (in Kansas City). They never discouraged me from shooting, they just encouraged me to take better shots. That is something I had to learn, and now I can walk away from this game with the experience that I can knock down some good shots.”

On not shooting in the first 13 minutes:
“In the first 13 minutes I did not feel that I had any good looks for my shot. My teammates were getting the job done offensively. If my role is to pass the ball, get some assists and run the offense, then that is how I will play.”

On her 9-0 run in the second half:
“When you’re in the moment you continue to play. I was trying to get stops on the defensive end and if I was able to turn those into points it’s all for the better. After the drought I had this past weekend in Kansas City it feels good to finally start hitting some shots. I like to bring any type of intensity I can whether it be on the offensive or defensive end.”

Sophomore guard Ivana Catic
On Kansas’ shooting:
“We had great poise and composure. We took some balanced shots that we have been struggling with in the past couple of games. Kelly (Kohn) hit some big shots, and Danielle (McCray) had a couple important rebounds with put-backs. I think everyone shot really well tonight.”

Head Coach Bo Overton
On the game:
“KU is just bigger and stronger and really took us out of anything we wanted to do in the first half, but I thought we got a little tougher ourselves in the second half and got the ball where we needed it to go. But you have to give Kansas credit for that, because that is how you play. You have to take people out of what they like to do and we have to figure out how to not let that happen in the next game. But I’m proud of our team. We have a tough stretch here, we play at home on Saturday and we have to be ready for that one. These games really prepare us for our league. I thought (sophomore guard) Heather (Wimberly) handled it (defensive pressure) very well and (freshman guard) Chazny (Morris) got to see it for the first time tonight. Their athleticism and pressure was too much for us tonight, but I’m glad we saw it and we will work on it and get better with it.”

Sophomore Guard Heather Wimberly
On the KU defense:
“They played defense like we had practiced against all week, but we just have to get used to the pressure on every one of our possessions.”

On the team’s second half play:
“I think we came out with more intensity. We never really got that rattled even though we were down. We went into the half with the attitude of getting stops on defense and playing hard. We tried to get to the basket and get fouls called to go to the line. We just tried to pound it in there.”