Postgame Quotes vs. Elon - Jan. 30, 2012
1/30/2012 9:26:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Postgame Quotes
Elon at Chattanooga
Chattanooga, Tenn. - McKenzie Arena
Jan. 30, 2012
Opening Statement:
"I'm really proud of our kids. We had some adversity there. Kayla Christopher was in shoot around and we thought we were okay there, and we found out a couple of hours before the game that she wouldn't be playing. Then right before I walk out of the locker room, Nikki tells me that Whitney Hood's knee is bothering her. In the first two minutes I could tell she wasn't herself. To lose two starters and our two leading scorers within a couple of hours before tipoff, that doesn't do a whole lot for your confidence and patience. Our kids stepped up and I'm really proud. In the long run it's probably good for us. Meghan Downs steps in and does a great job, scores, has three assists with no turnovers, which I'm proud of. Faith Dupree in the post with 24 points just played phenomenal. Kavonne Townes is really coming on and is doing a lot of good things for us. Taylor Hall had eleven rebounds. Tenisha Townsend had nine assists and just two turnovers. It was a team win. Like I said, I'm really proud of our kids for not hanging their heads and not feeling sorry for themselves, but coming out and getting it done."
On the his team's play without their top two scorers
"Meghan Downs and Faith Dupree were our two top scorers tonight but we had four people in double figures. People made plays on defense. We scored 25 points off turnovers and our bench had 44 points. It was a great team win."
On if questions about his bench were answered tonight
"I think it's good for the players to experience that success and hopefully that is going to help their confidence. I told Faith before the game "We're going to need you tonight," and needed her to step up and she did. I know she's capable of doing it. Meghan has the best jump shot on our team probably. She's just got to make sure she stays under control. Both of them get in a hurry sometimes and get a little over anxious. Maybe tonight will help in that regard."
On Kavonne Towns play defensively
"I think Kavonne is giving us a big lift defensively. When you come off the bench and make a play or two I think it gets everybody else going. I think we can put her on the other team's best scorer and she's got the size and athleticism to make things tough on them. She came up with a couple of steals that really gave us a boost when we needed. It's nice having that off the bench."
On finding out she was starting:
"Last minute. We were warming up and they said that Kayla [Christopher] was sick, so I ended up taking her spot."
On not having any time to think about it:
"If I had any time to dwell on it. It probably would make me a little more nervous."
On being a more consistent scorer:
"I hope so. It kind of catches me by surprise. It is not like I can tell it's going to be a good night or I can tell it's going to be a bad night. It just kind of surprises me. Hopefully, I can have some more."
On having a young lineup on the floor:
"It kind of starts off the court. We are really tight off the court. It kind of leads to chemistry on the court. We are all really comfortable with playing with each other."
Sophomore Forward Faith Dupree
On anticipating to play more minutes tonight:
"Hoodie, her knee was hurting a little bit before the game tonight. They said if it starts hurting, then be ready to play a little bit more minutes. I am glad that they told me like Meghan [Downes] right before the game, so I was not thinking about it too much."
On the strong first half:
"Especially with people being sick and injured, we had to have somebody step up. It happened to be us tonight. K'Vonne [Towns] stepped up as well. Taylor [Hall] had 11 rebounds. There was a lot of people that contributed to the win."
On winning tonight impressively without your two leading scorers:
"I think it says that we are an all-around good team. We play together well and are able to step up when needed too. It is going to be different people each game. We can always count on somebody each game."
