Lady Vols vs. Texas A&M Postgame Quotes

Tennessee Head Coach Kellie Harper

Opening statement
"That was a really good win for us. That's a tough basketball team that we played against, and we knew it was going to be physical. We knew it was going to be a challenge on both ends of the court. I'm proud of our team for our execution and the toughness that we had and resiliency throughout the game."

On Rickea Jackson passing Tamika Catchings on the all-time scoring list and her overall performance tonight...
"I'm really really proud of Rickea (Jackson). I think we made some adjustments for her coming out of our LSU game that really benefited her. I thought our ball movement and execution was really good, and I thought she benefited from that, and then she played very free tonight. I thought we got her the ball in the open court. I was really proud of
her competitiveness and her fight today. She looked really good."

On the message during the third quarter time out following Texas A&M's run...
"We had some breakdowns defensively. We gave up three straight threes.
For one, I thought we had it defended pretty well. The next two were breakdowns, and that's what we talked about mostly - just trying to clean that up. Then, being tighter with the basketball on the offensive end to make sure we were going to get a good look."

On the importance of having a strong rebounding performance tonight...
"We needed to rebound well in this game to get the win, to be honest with you. We were out-rebounded at their place in the first go around, so I thought we did a pretty good job of attacking the boards and obviously the numbers show."

On the difference between being a four and five seed ahead of the SEC Tournament...
"Again, we've talked about it so much. There's so much parity in the SEC this year, and you know, there's a lot of things that can happen each game day. I think the SEC is better. I think the teams are so competitive and we have so much talent. You have to pay attention because you never know what's going to happen on game day."

On Tamari Key surpassing 1,000 points...
Obviously 1000 points, I was kidding folks 'that's a lot of buckets'. She's (Tamari Key) on a very special list. I'm really proud of her because that's a pretty big milestone for someone to have gone through what she's gone through. I'm just proud of her for being herself and hanging in there and fighting when things weren't easy."

On the importance of Jewel Spear having a bounce-back game tonight...
"We knew we needed to try to free her (Jewel Spear) up and get her some open looks and she was playing pretty aggressively. I think that was important. She got down hill quite a bit. Sometimes you just have to see one go in, and she shot the ball well and I think that freed her up also on some drives. I also think she is very similar to Rickea (Jackson), I think she benefited from our team's offensive execution. I think that was good for her as well.

On if there was a different energy surrounding senior night and how nice it was to see the team have a good night...
It was really good. You always want them to have a special night, or a special day when you're playing your last game at home. I always tell people, to me, the emotions are not overwhelming because there's more basketball, so there's no clean break right after this game. We've got a lot left on the table, so the emotions don't come until later. I'm just happy for them. It's always fun to celebrate your seniors and what they mean to your program and to your family, to the Lady Vol family. Also, it allows them to kind of reflect on this program and what this program has given them.

On Rickea Jackson playing freely and enjoying her last home game...
"I'm so happy for her. I'm so proud of her. To see her kind of finish it out really in classic Rickea (Jackson) style made me feel good. Hopefully, it will also help her confidence moving forward. That's who she is."

On focusing on ball movement from January to now, comparing a stagnant game against LSU to Texas A&M…
"It's been a big focus of ours. Obviously, we look at that game, we knew we had to do some things differently on the offensive end, but also coming out of our LSU game, we knew our offense needed to look a little different, and we worked on it, and I think our players understood the assignment. They understood what they needed to do. Sometimes, understanding it and then going out and executing is not always the same thing, but they did a good job, and I'm proud of them."

On the third quarter loose ball scramble to Rickea Jackson's foul…
"Oh, yeah, it was a big play, obviously. Sometimes, when you know the opponent's, the opponent has the momentum, A&M had the momentum and, you know, things were going their way, and sometimes you just need that play. You just need a score or a stop or a rebound. You need something in that moment, and for us it was that moment it was, it was the ball finding Rickea (Jackson), and Rickea finding the basket and getting to the free throw line, so that was a big play that kind of settled us down. We can take a breath. We've got this."

On Jillian Hollingshead physicality…
"I think she's giving us some presence inside. I think she's comfortable right now. I don't know where she was today, but she's been doing a good job on the boards for us. I think it's been a nice combination or complement to Tamari (Key), and then you still have Karoline (Striplin) who gives you even something different. I think the three of them have been working positively as of late. I think, you know, Jillian (Hollingshead) has been…her trajectory has been going up. It's not just in games, it's in practices as well. I think she's working hard and hopefully playing with confidence. We need that from her. We need her to be a player that we can count on for boards, a bucket and some defense."

On Coach Joni Taylor saying Tennessee was tougher than Texas A&M tonight…
"I thought we thought we got a lot of boards. I think, you know, a lot of, a lot of coaches will associate toughness and boards together. I thought we got some loose balls. You know, I thought we, we were pretty active on the defensive and think that shows some toughness. We had a charge or two. I think we made some tough plays out look, I think she's got a really tough team. I think they play tough every night out. So you know, for us to, for her to say that as a huge compliment."

On Jillian Hollingshead's growth…
"I think for Jillian (Hollingshead), just needing her to be physical I think has been important. We've been working hard on that. Then also just the mental game and playing smart and knowing where we need her to be. I think she's done a really good job of being aggressive, so that's a little move in physicality. I say aggressive and confident, and then aggressive going to the boards. I think that's important."

On how difficult it is to end SEC play on the road against South Carolina…
"There's no doubt about it. To go down the stretch with what we've had, it's the SEC. It's just that physical. You have to be prepared to be that team every single night. That's where I think we struggled with that early on this season, and we've gotten a lot better in that area. I think that's helped us. It's helped us definitely on the defensive end. Just being able to handle the toughness and the physicality. Carrying that over, obviously, you have to be tough and efficient and effective to go and compete with South Carolina, there's no doubt about it. We did some good things, they're going to make some tweaks, they're going to make some adjustments to try and keep us from repeating some of those things. To me, we have to find ways for our team to be better than the first time we played them."

On an area they want to improve this matchup against South Carolina…
"We had too many turnovers in the fourth quarter, I think we had seven in the fourth. That was I think a fatigue factor. When you're playing South Carolina, your focus has to be elite for 40 minutes. That's hard, it's really hard, really good teams can do it. That's what we're going to be asking our team to do. As a team, we'll really try to find some things that we can do better, try to anticipate some changes that we might see from them as well."

On how their performance in the game tonight can translate to the South Carolina game…
"I think we've played some stellar inside presences here recently with South Carolina, LSU, A&M, among others. I don't want to leave anybody out, because there are some good ones, but I think we understand the physicality that you have to have in the paint. I felt like we did a better job of finishing this one, they obviously made a run, but we were able to step back up and get enough stops and finish it out. We had a few turnovers there late I didn't want to see, but just we did what we needed to do. That's what I'm proud of."

On if the team can carry a chip on their shoulder mindset entering the South Carolina game…
"I love having a chip on the shoulder mindset. I think we have a little bit of a better edge when we have that mindset. I don't think we're going to be intimidated, but I think we understand that we have to be really good."

Tennessee Fifth Year Forward Rickea Jackson

On what the Lady Vol fanbase means to her…
"It means a lot. The constant support day in and day out. We know that we have such a strong fanbase that will go to war for us. It means a lot. For them to support us on and off the court, not just as athletes. They care about us as people too. Lady Vol Nation, I'm so grateful for y'all taking me in with open arms. It means a lot."

On having fun in her last game at home…
"The last night in The Summitt and Food City Center. Having fun out there. I love playing with this team, and that was my last night playing on this floor with them, so I wanted to go out with a bang. They make it fun for me as well. It was pretty cool to have a night like this. Basketball does not always have to be serious. I feel like we implemented the fun part tonight."

On if she knew she was close to catching Tamika Catchings in career points…
"It means a lot to even be in those conversations. I'm not downplaying myself, but they did it in three or four years, and I had a fifth year. To even be in that conversation, I'm just pretty blessed to be in the names of the greats. It means a lot, and those are people who I look up to and whose games and highlights I watched after and things like that. It just means a lot to even be in that conversation."

Tennessee RS-Senior Center Tamari Key

On how much of an emphasis was on rebounding tonight…
"We worked a lot in practice on our transition defense, boxing out and pursuing the ball. All five people coming to pursue the ball was something we emphasized as well, especially when there's more physical post players that you have to handle as well with the guards coming in and getting it. I feel like we did a good job today on executing that."

On hitting 1,000 points for her career…
"It means a lot. I love it here, and we've all been through a lot here. The years have gone on, and we work really hard. Last year was hard for me, so I think it's really special for me to keep persevering and taking it one day at a time."
On the third quarter and Rickea Jackson changing the momentum of the game…
"She's a dog, and we know that when she gets the ball, she's going to get a bucket. We can count on her to get a bucket. She got it back in for us. They had a few good shots, and we knew that when we got here the ball on the offensive end that she would make plays."

Tennessee Senior Jewel Spear

On how she resets knowing senior night was tonight…
"I think it was nice seeing my parents here coming all the way from Texas. Seeing their faces and with it being senior night, there are a lot of emotions. Going out there, we knew the task at hand. We took care of business."

On how being aggressive from the start of the game helps her…
"I think it just goes to my preparation and nutrition. I love to eat peanut butter. I like to get extra shots up before the game with my coaches and teammates. Coach Kellie has been on me, and Coach Liza (Fruendt) has been putting extra shots in with me. Being aggressive from the start, coming off the last game when I was not hitting shots. When I saw my first three go in, my confidence just went up."

On Tamari Key and Rickea Jackson passing career milestones today…
"They are huge numbers. Tamari Key can put the ball in the basket. We know the impact that she makes on both sides of the floor. Rickea (Jackson) was just unstoppable tonight and almost every night. Her being confident on the floor helps us out. We try and help her out when other teams try to double team her or dig in on her."

Texas A&M Head Coach Joni Taylor

On if Tennessee out-rebounding Texas A&M tonight was due to foul trouble…
"I think that's some of it and I just think they were tougher than us, especially at the start of the game. I think you could tell they wanted it more, it's atypical of us to get out-rebounded. They came out on a mission to box us out and to get rebounds. It was very clear. We have to be better about pursuing the ball and having a level of toughness that just because we're boxed out we don't get stopped. They just wanted it. They were much better attacking the glass, going after rebounds and being aggressive tonight.

On Rickea Jackson in the third quarter and the effect it had on the game…
"She came out, and number one: she's a tough cover. She's similar to Sole (Williams) in the sense of, she's a three-level scorer but she has the size to go with it. You could just tell her last time playing on this floor, she was on a mission to not be stopped. She got it any way she wanted it for most of the game, but when we closed the gap at halftime, you could tell she put the team on her back and wasn't going to let them walk out tonight without a win. We didn't do a good job of crowding her space, of letting her see multiple people guarding her, and she was really phenomenal."

On how you close out the season on a positive note and how wild the SEC Tournament could be…
"I feel like Greenville, or wherever we are, every year is, because that's the SEC. That's why you come to Tennessee, it's why you play in it. There is obviously a high level of importance and sensitivity to making sure on Sunday we honor our seniors the best way we can. Obviously we'll try to close things out with a win. I think for us it's also, we did a lot of really good things tonight. We tied in field goals made, we didn't turn the ball over, we score off of their turnovers and capitalize. We're still trying to figure out how to play without our point guard. I think for us is to continue to take the next step and to go back to tomorrow and show up and be ready to practice and lock in for an Alabama team that's playing really, really well. Everybody knows what's at stake, everybody is going to be playing for something not only on Sunday but when we get to Greenville next week."