University of Tennessee Athletics
Lady Vols vs. UTC Postgame Quotes
December 27, 2021 | Women's Basketball
Tennessee Head Coach Kellie Harper
Opening Statement…"I'm excited that that this game went the way it did. I'm glad that we were able to play a lot of players. I'm really proud of our team and the maturity that we had handling the Christmas break and handling this game. I thought we executed about as well today as we have executed all year. Offensively, obviously, when you pick up the stat sheet and you see 30 assists, you know something's going right. I thought our team was focused, really proud of how they how they played. About 5:15 talked to Jordan Horston, and she was just not feeling well at all. Not COVID-related, but she just she just was not feeling well. So, she was unable to go. She was actually at shoot around today. Not feeling great (then), but it just got a little worse. Hopefully, we'll be able to rest her and get her back in a day or two."
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On if it shows that players worked over break…
"For sure. And when we came out, we came out and opened up the court a little early, and I think we had like we had nine players, seven or nine players, out shooting and they shot it really well in that shoot around on their own. So, I can tell right then they'd been in the gym. If you have a team like this that's going to get in the gym, they're going to find a way to get in the gym. They're going to take this very seriously when they get back. I think as long as the calendar falls where you have the time to do it, it worked. It worked for us last year, worked for us this year. Last year we stumbled upon it. I wasn't excited about it. This year, I was excited about it to try it again. What it did it allowed us to play game instead of having that first practice that I don't feel like you're getting a whole lot out of them. You just run it up and down just to be running up and down. So, I think the last two years, this was much better for our team."
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On the impact of Tennessee's program on local players…
"One of the things that I mentioned to our team in the pregame locker room chat is, you know, this team, a lot of these players are from the area and they grew up loving this program. A lot of them grew up dreaming about wearing the orange and white uniform. So, for a team like that to have the opportunity to come and play here on this court, in a place that you loved so much growing up and it meant so much to you, I think it's really special. I understand why people get emotional. That's one thing that we try to express to our players. Not all of our players are from this area, but they understand; they understand the tradition and what it means. I think that's important. I think it's important for our players to know how they feel when they take the court, and it just reminds you how impactful this program has been."
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On freshmen progressing in system…
"I think, in the non-conference (schedule), it's really the last two games they have gotten a lot of minutes, but it's everything. It's sometimes not getting minutes in a game. It's sometimes getting a couple of minutes and being productive. It's the whole entirety that has allowed them to grow. And you know, you don't just get to step out on the court. I think they've learned how valuable experience is. Our veterans have that. The other thing is they have shown how hard they're willing to work and how great of teammates they are. You know, in today's society, it's really easy for freshmen to get a little quick and a little bitter when their minutes aren't what they want them to be. Our freshmen, all four of them have been amazing. They have been true teammates. They are team-first kids. They're working hard; they understand what goes into it. They're a big reason that our culture is so strong right now."
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On what Karoline Striplin did in this game…
"Well, we kept pounding it inside. I think first we look inside, and we should, that's what we're going to do anyway. When you have the advantage, we're really going to do it. Karoline (Striplin) works really hard. She's open all the time, because she works really hard. I've said this before, she's one of our best post-ups. She does a great job posting up, and we were able to throw her the ball, and she's able to finish it. She's one of those… just keeps coming back at you, back at you, back at you. I think she's just going to get better and better as a player here at Tennessee. She's just going to keep working. What she's going to do now is just add game experience. She's just putting that right under her belt, how she can be successful against a lot of different players."
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On Alexus Dye's adjustment offensively…
"Yeah, we talked about it. As a team, we kind of broke down where everybody needs to go and we talked about, like, we talked about Alexus Dye needing to get to the basketball because she had that ability, and I think she's very aggressive. She's a very aggressive player, so she can get that jump shot off about anytime she wants. We wanted to look for that layup more or the drive, and she was able to do it. I'll tell you, she had a really good one there in the second half where she started to drive and found a kick. I think we hit a three. I think Tess Darby hit a three on that kick, and I thought that was a really good play by her, and it was being aggressive trying to get to the basket. I think we were also able to get post touches that got us to the basket as well, which I think is really good."
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On Brooklynn Miles being able to stretch the court…
"I think Brooklynn (Miles) played really well. Today, she was clocked for three turnovers. I think, two of them are kind of unfortunate errors she had; she had one true turnover. I thought she played well. The fact that she's knocking down shots is going to be critical for our team. She is going to stretch the defense now, and she's got a quickness to get around you. She has a really good understanding of the game. I'm sitting on the bench, and I was trying to get her to do something, and she knew before I told her what, whatever it was. I came to the bench, and I said, 'Man, she has savvy.' I mean, she gets it. She understands it. And right now, she's playing with great confidence. I love the way she is coming in, and I love her pace and just everything about her game right now has been positive."
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Tennessee Junior Center Tamari Key
On how the team feels about their non-conference play performances…
"I think, for us, in nonconference play, every game for us isn't going to be a dogfight like in the SEC. For us, when we have games like these, we try to focus on playing Tennessee basketball and just being able to get better each game. We just know that with the competition that we do have coming up and going into SEC play, we just have to stay on our P's and Q's."
On the team trying to find its identity…
"I know we have a lot of good pieces to our team, and everybody on the team knows their role. We care about each other, and we want to play for each other. I feel like, because of that, it helps us harden our identity more, because we know what we're capable of and we know what each other are capable of. That just pushes us to keep wanting to get better for each other."
Tennessee Junior Guard Jessie Rennie
On how she feels playing basketball after going to see family for the holidays, and the team getting 30 assists…
"I'm feeling it. When I first got here, I decided to not sit around and kind of unpack a little bit of my stuff. I came straight to shoot around, because I knew I'd feel worse if I didn't. Thirty assists is really awesome for us. Like coach said, we share the ball really well. I think that's something that this team does;Â we pass the ball around until we get the best shot or when our teammate is in a good position to score. I think that we showed that tonight."
On teams' non-conference game performances…
"Starting non-conference to now, I think every game we've gotten better. We've identified what we need to work on, and moving forward, we've done that every game. It's not about the team we played tonight, it's about the next two games we have this week and from now on for the rest of the season."
On Karoline Striplin's performance…
"We've seen it in practice; we've seen it all preseason, all summer. To see her come out and do it on the court and be confident, things are just going to get bigger and better for her. It's exciting to see for all of our freshman."
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Tennessee Freshman Guard Kaiya Wynn
On having a more intense shoot around due to the game being two days after Christmas…
"It was definitely tiring in shoot around. She (Kellie Harper) kept saying that it's better to have it right now in shoot around than in the game, so I was super appreciative of the up-and-down drills that we did to help us get our first wind."
On teams' non-conference game performances…
"In the tough games, we kind of figured out what our identity was. In the games that we had to fight back, and the competition was really good, we kind of figured out that we were a gritty team and a team that's going to fight. That was good for us going into conference games."
On how comfortable she feels in this offense…
"I'm definitely feeling more comfortable in the offense, just being able to get my teammates in position to score. Their strengths, we've discussed that a bunch. Knowing where your teammates get most of their shots and knowing how they like to shoot. Each game I'm getting more comfortable and confident in the offense and playing with my teammates."
ÂChattanooga Head Coach Katie Burrows Â
Opening statement..."(I'm) disappointed in some statistical things. We didn't shoot the ball well at all. I was talking to the group in the locker room about some things that were disappointing, including the fact that we didn't shoot the ball well. I felt like our shot selection was pretty good, getting good looks and moving the ball well. Twenty-one turnovers do not bode well in games like this, and so we have to do a better job as some turnovers were self-inflicted. We are going to work on getting better at that. Bottom line is that they knocked down shots and we didn't. However, I felt my group stayed true to who they are, and they fought just like they have the entire season and never backed down. I am thankful to see they continued to battle and fight. Even though we weren't shooting it well, we were still able to battle."
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What it meant to your player, and Knoxville native, Abbey Cornelius playing against Tennessee...
"She had a ton of family here at the game today. It was a special time for her and her family. They bleed orange, and to be honest, I am not very happy about it (said in jest). We did this for her so she could have the opportunity to play in front of her family."
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Playing against Kellie Harper who was an assistant at Chattanooga when you were a player...
"It's a lot of fun. I didn't get to spend any time with them – I wish I had been able to. I have been able to spend more time with Jon (Harper) than Kellie (Harper) just because she is pulled in so many different directions and he handles the behind-the-scenes stuff. It's pretty cool to go from Kellie being my favorite player - such a fun player to watch and model after and an even better person - to her coaching me, to us playing against each other. It was nice when I found out she was going to coach me at Chattanooga, and she would be on the court kicking our butts every day. I wonder if she still does that to them – get out there and play around with them? She's intense, and I also think it is pretty cool we both get to coach at our alma-mater and to be a part of that. The coolest part of the day was when we first got here, and she was out on the court and her kiddos were running around, and I got to see them in person. It was really neat to see her little munchkins and wonder what they are going to be like one day. Are they going to be kind of like momma? But you know dad is pretty cool, too, I guess. Jon is pretty cool. I would like to continue this, Tennessee and Chattanooga playing each other, in some capacity. I think it is fun for the players and a nice quick buzz up the road and maybe even try to get them to come back to our place. It has been a few years. I think that would be exciting for the fans in Chattanooga, as well. I think you will hopefully see us play each other more in the future."
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Chattanooga Junior Guard Amaria Pugh
ÂOn having 17 points against Tennessee and what was working…
"I kept telling myself, just be aggressive and play my game handling what I could control."
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On building off this game…
"I think being able to see what I can do against such a talented team like Tennessee… I can carry that over to Southern Conference play and help us get where we need to be in the SoCon."
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Chattanooga Junior Guard Abbey Cornelius
ÂOn coming home to play at Tennessee...
"It's special. I grew up coming to Tennessee games, and to get to come back and play in front of everybody was a special moment for me. It was really special to play on this court that I watched Pat Summitt win so many championships on."Â
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On when it hit her that she was playing at UT…
"As soon as I stepped on that court. Like Coach Burrows said, my family bleeds orange, so it was really exciting, and the emotions started as soon as I stepped on the court."
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