March 24, 2003
Notre Dame Head Coach Muffet McGraw
Opening statement…
“We are happier to be in Manhattan, Kansas, than South Bend, Indiana, today. I’m really pleased with the effort of our team. I think we are playing with a lot of confidence. We are excited that we are playing so well. We think that we are peaking as a team and we are just thrilled to be here.”
On Jacqueline Batteast…
“She responded very well today. She has had a great week of practice. I thought she did a lot of great things in the game yesterday. She rebounded well, played great defense and had some really nice passes inside. I think she wants so much to play well and so was just trying so hard last night. She knows what she means to this team and this team knows how much we need her. And I think she put a little too much pressure on herself and I think she will respond very well tomorrow.”
On who K-State reminds her of…
“They are a lot like Villanova, with the exception that Villanova doesn’t have the strong post player. They are a very good three-point shooting team. They run a lot of motion offense. They don’t really pressure full-court for the 94 feet for the full 40 minutes. Their style of play is a lot like Villanova.”
On K-State’s Nicole Ohlde…
“I think she is a great player. I saw her last summer at the USA Basketball trials. She was one of the first players we picked to make that team because she is so versatile. She does so many things well. She is terrific around the basket. She is very mobile, especially with her size. She is very difficult to guard. She puts the ball on the floor probably better than any post player I have seen in the country. She can go either way. She can score with either hand. I think she is a phenomenal player.”
On K-State’s Laurie Koehn…
“I expect that she is going to have a great game and we are certainly prepared to guard her. I don’t think we can leave her open from anywhere. She is tremendously talented. She has a great three-point shot. I think her injury slowed her down a little this year, but she is a great player and another player I am familiar with through USA Basketball.”
On does the team’s past success give the team confidence…
“I definitely think so. It is more of an attitude. The level of expectation is so much higher having won. It is actually difficult when they come in as freshmen because they think there is so much that they have to achieve. I think that is why this year we had a little confidence problem, because their expectations were so much higher than the level we were playing at. Right now, I think we have a renewed sense of confidence and I think it has been really helping us.”
Notre Dame Players
Junior, Guard, Le’Tania Severe
On winning after a poor shooting night…
“We knew we had to go out and play great defense to win the game. We know that the offense will come and as long as we’re playing great defense, we don’t have to really worry about the offense, it will come.”
On their defense against Arizona…
“We worked on double-teaming and pressuring the ball and I think that really helped us on defense and getting steals and frustrating them with their shots.”
On playing a tough schedule that prepared them for the NCAA Tournament…
“We know the level of play we need to perform at to be productive on the court and come out with a win. We played Villanova on the road, that was a very hard fought game, and we came out with a win. Playing at UCONN is very hard with their fans and the atmosphere, so it really prepares us for the situation we will have tomorrow.”
On K-State’s crowd…
“I think it will have prepared us for what we will see tomorrow because we played in front of big crowds and I think that will help us out for tomorrow.”
Freshman, Guard, Megan Duffy
On the possibility of getting to play back home….
“I would love to win this next game and be able to get back home. But really we’re just focused on Kansas State and the game.”
On the Notre Dame’s tradition…
“We have a winning tradition here and I think it starts with our coaches and our National Championship here in 2001 and that’s still motivation. We want to get back to that point. That just requires a lot of hard work and I think it’s always in the back of our mind. For the players that weren’t there, that’s our motivation and goal to get back, deep into the tournament.”
On having a few days to rest…
“Definitely, having a few days off helped us physically and mentally. To come back to practice fresh and ready to get down to business for a start of a new season. I think that showed a little bit last night, we seemed fresh and could get up and down the floor and I think that led to victory.”
On what impresses them most with K-State…
“I think the biggest thing is that they have four great shooters around Ohlde inside. We have to get out on every shooter and we’re going to have to shut down all five players because we know they can all score. Defense, is definitely going to be the key again.”
Kansas State Head Coach Deb Patterson
Opening Statement…
“Our team is thrilled to have the opportunity to line up against a great Notre Dame basketball team here in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. These are two teams that play similar games in a lot of respects; two teams that bring a great deal of balance. We’ve got a great deal of respect for the versatility that Notre Dame brings to the floor. I expect it will be a great matchup.”
On Notre Dame’s recent NCAA Tournament history…
“We’re lining up against a very seasoned program. That composure and expectation of performing well in a tournament carries over from year to year to year. Your teams understand the tradition, they understand that it’s commonplace to compete well and long and hard into the tournament. Once you’ve won a national championship, it’s obvious that there’s a high level of overall confidence and poise that you bring just by virtue of the tradition and the previous performances by your program.”
On Notre Dame’s team personality…
“It’s a very smart basketball team; they defend extremely well. They take up a lot of space on the floor; that’s the first thing that comes to my mind when I watch them defend. (Jacqueline) Batteast brings great athleticism, as does (Le’Tania) Severe. There’s great quickness and athleticism there and just a solid, strong physical presence with the post players and the ability to drop down the three and extend the floor with (Alicia) Ratay. It’s good balance. They play very smart. They did a tremendous job of asserting their will of how that game was going to be played. They never allowed the game to get away from them in terms of style and tempo. That takes a great deal of focus and consistency. They appear to be very calm in their demeanor; I don’t see them getting extremely rattled. It’s not necessarily easy to stay composed when you’re not making shots; a lot of teams fold in scenarios where they’re not making shots, but this Notre Dame team understands there’s a lot of ways to play the game and ultimately to win it.”
On Nicole Ohlde nearing the KSU career scoring record…
“How great an achievement could you ask than to have Nicole to break the all-time scoring record as a junior. I’m just so impressed with her, day in and day out. I do believe she’s an all-American-caliber player. She is on the way to breaking every attainable record there is at Kansas State. I think she is a very strong candidate to become Kansas State’s next first-team all-American. It certainly is a privilege to coach her. Her teammates are a big part of the success she’s experienced. She is a tremendous talent. We are very, very grateful to have her here.”
On Ohlde getting more defensive attention…
“I think Nicole Ohlde will get as much attention as anyone every time we take the floor from this point on. I expect her to be the center of a lot of game plans and certainly expect her to be the center of the Notre Dame game plan at this point in time. Anyone that approaches Kansas State basketball team and isn’t preoccupied with and doesn’t direct the game plan toward Nicole Ohlde will suffer the consequences.”
Kansas State players
So., Guard, Laurie Koehn
On Notre Dame’s poor shooting percentage in the first game…
“You can’t judge a team by one game. We know they are going to come in ready to go. Like any team in the tournament, they are going to come in and give it their all.”
On trouble going to sleep last night…
“Just winding down a little bit. It’s always hard to do that after a game, I think for all of us. We’re excited that we get to play again tomorrow. We can’t wait to practice today.”
On the team getting back into the flow of things…
“It was really nice to get back out there and play another game. I think we had a good week of practice and hopefully we got a little bit better. It was nice to be playing again and now we have a quick turnaround which is a lot of fun too.”
On the importance of making Notre Dame extend their defense…
“That’s not something that we have really talked about. I’m sure that we are going to find out more about that kind of stuff today at practice. I think we know what we need to do as far as our offensive execution and stick to our defensive concepts. I’m sure we will find out more about that later.”
Jr., Center, Nicole Ohlde
On memories of Notre Dame winning the National Championship two years ago…
“We haven’t really talked about it a whole lot. I think when we were out there watching Notre Dame and Arizona play we were talking about how they just won the championship two years ago. I think it is something that we all remember. They have a really good tradition there. I think it is going to be fun to have the opportunity to play them.”
On earning the most wins in a single season…
“I actually didn’t know that. It’s an awesome feeling to know that I’m on a team that has been able to do that and the accomplishments that our team has been able to do. Hopefully, we can continue to keep advancing through this tournament and see how far we can get. It’s been a lot of fun. I’m enjoying the ride.”
On the two things she noticed about Notre Dame…
“I think they are very athletic. They have a really tall lineup. They are able to bring in a lot of height from the bench. They play a lot of height. I think they are a blue collar, hard working team. They are going to be very tough.”
On Harvard’s late run in last night’s game and the panic of the team…
“I don’t really think so. Like Laurie (Koehn) said I don’t think there was any panic. It was a matter of us getting to our spots and continuing to execute on offense. I think there were a few positions where we didn’t quite stay true to our set plays and stay in the offense. That is something we have to continue to work on. Hopefully, we will do better next game.”