Lady Vols vs. Kentucky Postgame Quotes

Tennessee Head Coach Holly Warlick

Opening statement:
"We just dug ourselves into a hole in the first quarter. We did not shoot the ball very well at the basket. I thought those two things hurt us. We missed a ton of free throws. Kentucky battled, give them credit. They weathered their storm. We could not overcome a lot of things that we did not do."

On what caused the slow start:
"We were not committed to the defensive end. We missed easy shots. Just a combination of a lot of things."

On if she can remember a game in which Tennessee dominated the boards like they did against Kentucky and still lost:
"Not off the top of my head. You've got to do something with those boards, and we missed a lot of shots around the basket. We work on that every day. We are physical with them around the basket. It was not going in today."

On if it felt like a great opportunity to win the game when (Maci) Morris fouled out and their best players were on the bench:
"We cut it to two, and we had the clock run out. They pulled up a three, and that was a back breaker for us; it was solid defense, and she got one to go down. Instead of getting the ball two down, you are getting the ball down five, and that is a big difference."

On how they were able to shut down Rhyne Howard:
"(We were) just kind of aware of where she was and played solid defense on her. Rhyne (Howard) is a really good player, and she is having a good year. We wanted to focus on Rhyne, (Maci) Morris and (Taylor) Murray. Down the stretch, I thought our defense was pretty solid and we could not do a lot on getting the ball back. Again, making free throws."

On if she was more disappointed in the team's defense or free-throw shooting:
"Both. Our defense did not start out solid. We didn't hit free throws and didn't hit shots around the basket. You are not going to win a lot of games when you do not have that focus."

On if this team has an identity yet:
"Sure. I think this team works hard. I think we're a transition team. We are an aggressive defensive team. We make you play fast, and we play fast. We have been a pretty solid offensive shooting team as well. (It's just) the last two games we haven't."

On (Evina) Westbrook's performance and her turnovers:
"I am going to give Evina credit, she was attacking the basket, and she was aggressive with the ball. She is going to try and get people involved. I know she threw balls that led a couple of us too far. She will reel those in. Evina is a competitor, and she understands the game. She will get that corrected."

On Meme Jackson's shooting slump:
"I have to watch the tape. I thought she took some good shots, but I think she is pressing a little bit. So we will get her in the gym and put up shots – get that confidence back. She is one of our best shooters, but she hasn't shot the ball well the last two games, and obviously it has hurt us. We have to get her confidence back and her offensive scoring ability, which she can do."

On the energy level after halftime and (Cheridene) Green's charges:
"Cheridene taking those two charges was a highlight of the game. I have been trying to get our kids to step up and commit to defending and taking charges. That is huge for us. That is a highlight for this basketball team."

On how to get team out of the losing streak and if the team wasn't over the last game:
"I didn't notice a hangover (from the last game). We are young. We are freshmen and sophomores. We've just got to keep learning and putting them to the test and practicing. We have to go back to defending one-on-one. We have to go back and continue to score when there is somebody around and bumping into us. We have to continue to get in the gym and shoot free throws. These kids play hard, and they are getting some great experience. By no means am I giving up on them. We have a great basketball team and we are going to keep grinding. If we have to start on the road, we will start on the road

Sophomore Guard/Forward Rennia Davis

On the slow start:
"We knew that Kentucky was going to come out and deny us and play hard defense. They picked up full court, and we weren't able to cross half court a couple of times. We have to get the ball moving consistently and do the little things."

On preventing the offense from getting stagnant:
"We just have to move the ball consistently. I think there are times where we don't do that and the ball gets stuck. We have to move the ball consistently, and that is something we are going to work on in practice."

On bouncing back:
"We have great players on this team. We just have to get back to practice and play together as a team. We have to get better every day, and we cannot continue to have these mental lapses that we have sometimes."

On Jaida Roper's play for Kentucky:
"She was able to finish the game off for them. She hit a big three and some free throws. She was able to make plays. We have to step up and guard those players. We know it's coming; we just have to guard them."

Redshirt-Senior Forward Cheridene Green

On bouncing back:
"We just have to watch film and prepare ourselves for the next game. We have to understand our mistakes."

On the slow start:
"In the first half we were slow. We had mental lapses. We picked it up after halftime because we wanted to win, but we just fell short."

On the challenges of guarding Kentucky:
"I think we tried our best to contain them. I think we need to talk better on defense and know where the shooters are when people are cutting. I think that will help us down the stretch."

On Mimi Collins and her strong play tonight:
"She was pretty focused before the game. She had the energy and confidence to finish her shots and to be aggressive. She was really good."

Kentucky Head Coach Matthew Mitchell

On the outcome of the game:
"I am very proud of our team. We had a lot of toughness and beat a really talented and tough Tennessee team. It is a great win for us, and we are proud of our players for hanging in. Everything did not go our way tonight. There were plenty of times that we could have been turned back. We just kept coming at it and fighting. I am really proud of our players and the way we played tonight. There was a lot of toughness, a lot of grit, intensity, and we played good enough defense out there to win it. I am proud of our team."

On an injury update for Taylor Murray:
"We are hopeful. We had a preliminary examination by our trainer, and we appreciate UT and their doctor looking at her. We are really hopeful that it is good news. I will put it this way, sometimes you know already, and we do not know, so we are hopeful."

On what it took to beat Tennessee:
"Well we had trouble on the boards, there is no question about it. I have to take ownership of that. We just need to emphasize that on a level where we can compete. We are not where we want to be, and we have to get better at that. We started together as a group in June and talked about not what we did not have, but what we did have. We have some high character people on the team that want to win and work really hard. We just try to stay focused on being tough and sticking together. We really stuck together tonight, just tremendous adversity, we were all concerned at halftime about Taylor (Murray). We did not have her back, and she is such a big part of what we do. We made a few more plays, kept our poise, and made one more play than Tennessee. I would characterize it as sticking together and believing. We talked about confidence before the game, and I think we were able to maintain our confidence through really difficult periods during the game. The play could describe it better than I could."

On Rhyne Howard's impact on the team:
"(She's had) a tremendous impact, and these games only help us grow. The tough road game at Mississippi State and at Thompson-Boling Arena, these are the games we have had to grow. You go through tough times as a freshman and she has been an unbelievable addition to our program. She is a great person and a great person to coach, and she will only get better from it. I am really proud of our team sticking together on a night when everything did not go our way."

Kentucky Guard Maci Morris:

On the performance of the team:
"The second half just showed me how much our team has in toughness. Jaida Roper was frustrated in the first half and came out in the second half and played amazing. She hit some huge shots for us and battled through adversity. She came up big for us as well as others. I was super proud of our team, and we are only going to get better from here."

On having Rhyne Howard as a teammate:
"I love it. She gives me a lot of relief from pressure. We try to have each other's back every game, and tonight she said, 'I let you down.' But I told her we won, and that is all that matters. So, we have each other's back, and I love having her as a teammate. As good as she is, you would think she is selfish, but she is one of the most unselfish players I have ever played with."

On what it means to get a road win:
"It is a great win for our program. Tennessee and Kentucky is a big rivalry. I was just talking to coach about how going out and getting that win on the road is really big. It will help us later on. We are going to enjoy it today and just get back at it tomorrow."