University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Host Annual Media Day
10/17/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
The Minnesota women's basketball team held its annual media day press conference, today (Oct. 17), at Williams Arena on the U of M campus. Golden Gopher head coach Pam Borton and senior Emily Fox took questions from the Minnesota media and their statements are below.
Pam Borton
On the non-conference schedule...
“We are playing a non-conference schedule with several teams with postseason experience. We will get tested but I really believe that we can win a lot of those games. I feel really good about our team, our experience and the lessons that we learned last year. We were right in the mix for the Big Ten title. We lost a few close games, maybe from the free throw line or just getting the one rebound at the end of the game. Those are lessons learned that we will take into this year and finish off those games, hopefully with wins.”
On the freshman class...
“We need them to ready to play tomorrow; there is a little sense of urgency. Obviously though, we have to be patient and let them grow into the college game. They are a very talented group. Three of the four of them have won state championships, so they know how to win. They all played at highly competitive programs and three of them were top-100 recruits in the country.
We added two guards in Kiara Buford and Brianna Mastey, with good size to give us a more athletic perimeter. They provide us some depth too so hopefully Emmy can sit down for a couple of minutes a game.
Jackie Voigt is our post player who we will look at to replace Leslie Knight. She is a very athletic player, highly skilled and owns a very high IQ in basketball. She is going to step right in and play for us immediately. Nicole Mastey is probably one of the hardest workers on the team. She has a great attitude and a team-first mentality.
We need these kids to be ready. Obviously, we are going to push them out of their comfort zone from day one. They will be expected to do more and play right away compared to a typical freshman class. I think that is a big reason why they came here to Minnesota. They want to contribute right away. It’s exciting, they are going to be major impact players for us.”
On integrating the freshmen into the team quickly...
“It is a great challenge especially with how talented they are. Emmy can attest to that. They have fit in from day one and have worked extremely hard. These freshmen pick up things very quickly. One day they will look like freshmen and the next day they look like juniors. The best thing about these Minnesota kids is that they want to wear the uniform and play at home in front of a great crowd.”
On the Big Ten Conference...
“I think the Big Ten is a lot stronger than last year. Last year there were a lot of injuries to key players in the league. Purdue, for instance, had two starters out with injuries both whom are back this season, in addition to a solid recruiting class coming in. Michigan State had two players out as well that return so Michigan State’s going to be reloaded. They had a great post-season in the WNIT with a young team. Ohio State is always Ohio State and they return the Conference Player of the Year (Jantel Lavender). Iowa has a roster loaded with seniors.
Last season, we also had a lot of new coaches in the league and now that now have year under their belts. Those teams are now used to their coach’s style and systems.”
On Minnesota’s returning players...
“Veterans are always a key for any team. We now have experienced players on the floor who know how to work hard. They know what is expected. Emmy is like a coach on the floor. We have Katie Ohm returning. She was the Big Ten’s best three-point shooter last year. I think with Emmy and Brittany (McCoy) in our backcourt, we have two of the best interchangeable guards of the Big Ten in that both can take the point. They both had over 100 assists the last two seasons.
In the post, we will need Ashley Ellis-Milan and Zoe Harper to be solid and consistent players for us.
We have a lot of freshmen, but we also have a lot of experienced players on the roster. It’s going to be a really fun year.”
Senior Guard Emily Fox
On the freshman class...
“The freshmen have such a great opportunity, and like coach said, they are ready to work hard. I think one thing that is different from last year is that everyone is on the same page and everyone knows what we want to do. We have been working this whole preseason with that goal in mind.”
What do you do to help the freshmen?
“I need to be a leader. Lead by example. I’m showing them how to work hard in practice. Every single time we’re on the floor our effort needs to be 100 percent and that is the only way we are going to get better. That is different from high school because the pace is so much faster. It is all about support and making them feel part of the team.”
On the lessons learned last year...
“Coach mentioned that we were a young team last year and now we are considered a veteran team but I think just that level of experience we have is very valuable. I think we can show that to the freshmen and help them along because they are going to have to come along quicker then normal freshmen.”
