University of Minnesota Athletics
Postgame Quotes
2/4/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Head Coach Marlene Stollings
Opening Statement:
"I would like to say that I'm very proud of our young ladies for picking up the first win ever against Rutgers since they joined the Big Ten. It's a big accomplishment and we know that they are obviously very well coached, and their program has a storied tradition, since Coach (C. Vivian) Stringer has arrived. I just thought we were very solid, focusing in on the game plan the entire game. We've had spurts and lapses, rather than spurts, in some of our games recently, and I thought tonight we stayed solid for the entire duration of the game. That's going to be crucial down the stretch. Rebounding was outstanding, and these young ladies just lit it up from the outside. It was just a fun evening for us and we're proud of our kids."
On the decision to move Shayne Mullaney off the bench and into a different role:
"We all know Shayne could easily start. We like the dynamic that it brings, bringing her off the bench, in terms of our rotations and rest ratios for people and all of that. Shayne has been very mature in handling it. She's a senior and she didn't hesitate for one minute. I talked to her and she accepted it, and she's performed at a very high level. She's scored in double digits for us every night and she's taking care of the ball. I just really like the whole dynamic that it gives us in terms of our rest ratio and our energy off the bench."
On the team's consistency from start to finish:
"I think it's just been a point of emphasis. We feel, on any given night in the conference, that it's anybody's game this year. There's not just a particularly dominant runaway team. For us, lapses have hurt us. People have gone on big runs in a short amount of time against us. So I think the important thing is we've learned from that and we're at a point in the season where that cannot continue to happen. There's a sense of urgency and understanding in that. We've got a lot of experience on our team, and knowing that you cannot have those lapses. I thought that tonight was probably the first time that we have, recently, stayed true to that for the entire duration of the game."
Senior Rachel Banham
On her mentality going into tonight's game:
"Just being aggressive. That was kind of our game plan from the start, just being super aggressive coming off of ball screens because we knew big girls were going to be guarding us. That's just the kind of stuff I was thinking about."
On how they moved the ball in the second half:
"We had great ball movement. We found some isos for Carlie [Wagner] and got her to the basket. Shayne [Mullaney] was scoring in different ways, as well. Jo [Hedstrom] hit a couple threes. Just a lot of variety. We're really hard to guard because we all can shoot and we all can drive. It's fun when we play like that."
On what Shayne Mullaney brings when starting off the bench:
"She's great. She just brings a little spark. She can shoot just as well as the rest of us. She comes in and attacks the rim. She's not scared and that's great. She gets in there and gets fouled. She can make some crazy layups and she loves the step through move. It's her classic. She just brings a lot of variety in. She the kind of person who can just attack and it's hard for a lot of people to guard that because they're going to be tight on me and Carlie and that opens it up for her."
Sophomore Carlie Wagner
On picking it up when Rachel Banham isn't scoring:
"Just being really aggressive coming off ball screens. Moving the ball while driving in hard, in deep and then kicking out for open shots. Just really good ball movement and driving. Just being aggressive will get us to the free throw line and shooting baskets."
Senior Shayne Mullaney
On how she tries to be an effective player off the bench:
"When I start off the bench, I'm just really focused and locked into the game plan. It's almost helpful coming off the bench because you can see things that you can't see when you're on the court. It was different at first coming off the bench, but I think that, surprisingly, I've been playing better. Just trying to maintain that."
On the key to maintaining consistency in this game:
"We emphasize discipline and focus a lot, so just being locked into the game plan. We had a pretty good first half. We just talked about doing the same thing we did in the first half. We have highs and lows game to game and quarter to quarter, so consistency is something we really need to work on and I think we brought it all together tonight."
