March 20, 2010

2010 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship
First and Second Rounds
Purcell Pavilion | Notre Dame, Ind.
Sunday, March 21, 2010

Wisconsin Press Conference Quotes

Head Coach Lisa Stone

On her overall feelings of the team…
“Well I’m certainly proud of our team. To sit here and listen to the three players that were selected to come in here, I’m overcome with joy. This is a team that does serve one another. Our philosophy has been team unity and that unity and servitude is how we play defense. We are a defensive-minded team, and it is our identity. Our defense is our best offense. When we look at getting stops, playing together, and being there for one another on the defensive end it turns into our offense. It’s not one player, it’s a team, and it’s not just the starters, it’s the bench. Every player on this team is an important part of our family, and I am very excited to bring this team and their style of play into the national scene. I’m very proud of this team and excited for them to play tomorrow. We can’t wait to get started.”

On the team being a reflection of coach’s attitude…
“Well, we have been waiting. It’s been 15 days and during the break from the Big Ten tournament, we had rest and then started having game simulations by bringing officials into practice and trying to keep our edge. Players mentioned an underdog mentality, and we have been that all year and need to have that tomorrow. Our preparation has been the same for every game. This is another game, granted it is the NCAA tournament, but we prepared in the same way. It has worked for us, been successful for us, and our players understand the level of consistency. We try to reflect that in practice my making it more game like.”

On her impressions of Vermont…
“They are a very good team. Obviously they have two very good players, numbers three and four. It’s not just three and four, their starting five play very well together. They are a system team, and they are very much like we are. They share the ball very well, and they are a team that plays well together. They play hard-nosed defense and are well coached. It’s going to be a slug-match with two system teams going at it. We reflect each other very much. Their two guards are obviously fantastic and look for each other. They can shoot it, drive it, and get to the free-throw line. What Vermont does is they play very hard and rebound the basketball very well. We are going to have to play very hard for a longer time. We are going to have to bring a lot of aggressiveness and play like we have been playing.”

On two keys to the game…
“We have to play our style of defense. We play the pack defense, and if you’re not on the ball you’re in the pack. Number two is that we have to rebound the basketball by physically blocking out.”

On keeping the underdog mentality…
“Every single game this entire year, it has been the biggest game of the year. We have treated every game the same way. We can’t get wrapped up in who is the favorite or not the favorite. We go in with this mentality and need to play as hard as we can for as long as we can.”

Teah Gant | Senior | Guard

On being in the NCAA tournament…
“Definitely coming into today, with all the different rules, has made me realize how big this is and has opened my eyes to lots of things. Last year being in the WNIT and then being in the NCAA tournament this year has been a great feeling. I’m excited to start it off.”

On her expectations of the Big Ten…
“In the beginning of the season we were picked to finish very high in the Big Ten, and that kind of motivated us to work harder. We have always had the underdog mentality and knew that we have to work hard everyday. It really motivated us to this point, and we know have to work hard to be successful the rest of the season.”

On the same five starting all 31 games…
“I think it just adds a level of consistency. We know that everyone is ready to play and ready to contribute to the team. The starting five has a great connection on the court and has been playing together for two years. I think that really helps us out, but everyone else on the bench is ready to play. We are all together as a team.”

Alyssa Karel | Junior | Guard

On defending Vermont’s two guards…
“I think we are coming into this game like we come into any other game with our defensive mentality. We pride ourselves on defense. We are going to guard them as a team regardless of who is guarding them. They are going to know that the rest of our team will be there to help. We are approaching this game like we approach any other game with great solid defense.”

On waiting to play…
“Everyone is really itching to get back on the court. I think some people are worried that this wait will get us out of sync, but I think that our team knows what is at stake, and we aren’t going to let ourselves have that mentality. We’ll come back in stride. We are all excited and have been practicing like it’s a game and that keeps us in game mode.”

Lin Zastrow | Junior | Forward

On servant attitude…
“It has been our attitude since the summer and since I’ve been here. It was brought up by all of us and has become our slogan. We just want to serve each other and serve our teammates because we are one big family. That is what family does for each other; they serve each other, and if it produces something on the court that’s great. We always just try to serve each other.”