Feb. 6, 2011
Recap | Final Stats
On how her team responded to the loss to Michigan State:
I’m just really proud of the way our team responded. We had a really tough loss on (Thursday) to Michigan State and when you go on the road and respond the way we did today, from inside and outside, I credit the players. Our team really responded the way you’re supposed to respond. In my opinion, it’s a statement game for our team. To come on the road in a tough place to play – Wisconsin has only won here four times in the history of our program. We shot the ball well from everywhere – inside, outside, free throw line.
I told the players at halftime that we really executed well out of timeouts. We came out of a timeout and scored each time. They were really honed in, very focused. That’s how you respond to a slug in the stomach and I’m really proud of the players. They really responded defensively. We really did a nice job on Jori Davis. Indiana is much better than their record shows. (We) really needed this one and needed to respond like we did.
On spreading the offense:
(We had) great sharing of the ball. They played a match-up zone and you’re going to get some inside-out. There should be an even distribution. A great team effort, (they) locked in and didn’t let Indiana get back in in the second half. We withstood a little bit of a momentum switch and did what we had to do at the end. I thought we were able to seek open opportunities against their zone and knock some shots down.
On being led by the starters:
They’re veterans and you have to lean on them. They’ve been here before and they’ve been in Indiana before. When you’re in the trenches against a pretty high-powered team, that’s a credit to our defensive I thought we were able to seek open opportunities against their zone and knock some shots down.
On facing Northwestern again on Thursday:
Northwestern is looking that game as one they thought they could get at home. Our last home game was a slug in the stomach. When I look back at the Michigan State game, we played really well. It was just unfortunate we didn’t get the win. But we responded today like you’re supposed to. That’s the players, a credit to them.
On getting the lead and maintaining it:
That first half, it was see saw midway through the first half then we caught fire Being up at half but still there’s another half to play and you want to make sure you don’t like them get confidence and get momentum. I thought our team played very well together.
On the ball moment in second half:
It went inside, out. I thought we did a good job of clock management. Took a couple of quick shots here and there. We went cold for awhile and I think it was a six-point swing inside of 10 minutes where we fouled and gave them an and-one. What I like is that we were getting good shots. I thought we had good shots today. We had open looks, we had really good shots. The players really fed off each other. That’s what I like to see as a coach this time of year. You want your team to have a comfortable feeling about each other.
On how the team maintained focus with a lead:
You want to close out the game. It’s less about what the scoreboard reads and more about executing and finishing the game – make free throws, be aggressive to the rim, don’t turn it over and play solid defense. You want to finish strong. You want to finish on a solid note. I thought our bench came in and did a nice job.
On the free throw shooting of the team:
We’ve had our games of lots of turnovers and poor free throw shooting. We’re getting better. We’re shooting the ball better. We’re spending more time talking about free throws. Our players are conscious about free throws as well as taking care of the ball.
On her 500th career win:
I’ve been doing this a long time. I’m blessed because I’ve had great staffs, great players, a very supportive family. There’ve been good times, there’ve been some tough times. It means I’ve been in the business a long time. This is a special team, this is one of my more enjoyable years that I’ve had. We’re not done yet so we’ll keep on going and battle for a Big Ten championship.
