March 26, 2007

Tennessee Head Coach Pat Summitt

Opening Statement
"Well, obviously, we're excited to be playing in the regional championship game here in Dayton. When you look at our opponent, certainly we are both very familiar with each other. Just watching Ole Miss and seeing how they've played in post season, they've been very impressive. There are obviously two teams that have a great commitment to defense, and certainly we have to understand that our ball security is number one on our list and our rebounding will be number two on the list. Armintie Price, to me, she's an All- American. She's played that way all season long and just watching her again in this tournament, I just think she is what really has led their team to this kind of success. The fact that they've put up an average of 89 points a game in the last three games, I don't care what you say, that's impressive. They've done it with intensity on the defensive end."

On defending Armintie Price:
"I think Armintie [Price] is going to be a real challenge for us from a defensive standpoint. I do think that we have some players that we might even rotate defensively. [We] may change up our defenses. I try to go into a game with a game plan, but so many times you have to have some flexibility there. You may have to alter your plan as your progress through a game. Certainly in Knoxville, she got in foul trouble. Had she not been in foul trouble, it might have been a different outcome because we beat them by twelve, and they shot the ball well in the first half without her. To me, she is a player that makes them go at both ends of the floor. Not a player that you have, I wouldn't even go into a game like this saying, `we're going to shut down Price', but we would like to think that we are going to bring some defense and make her work for everything that she gets."

On being the favorite and motivating the team:
"Well, I hadn't had the same team all these years. Players come and go. The philosophy doesn't really change that much. But I think with this team, I think, that you have to have your defense and your board play and take care of the basketball if you want to win at this time of the year because people that turn the ball over obviously give up easy points. Certainly in the last few teams that Ole Miss has played, they just got better toward the end of the year. I just think they just got a lot more in sync with what they wanted to do. They're not a team that's going to make you guard five, six, seven passes, necessarily. They're going to come down. They shoot early. They rebound the ball. They play great defense. They like that hectic pace. I think for us we just have to go in. It's going to be a battle of wills, which team controls the tempo, which team controls the boards, which team takes care of the basketball. I expect it to be a game to be played with great intensity on the part of both teams. A typical, SEC [Southeastern Conference] matchup, without question."

Having played Ole Miss earlier in the season and having them in your conference, is it a detriment to your team to have face them?
"I don't think necessarily it's a detriment to our team or will influence. I think the good thing after our game against Marist, they wanted to quickly go out and watch Ole Miss, and I think that was probably very telling for them. You can watch them on TV, and you can watch them in person and that's two different opinions of how they play. On TV, they don't look like that they're that much faster and quicker and more aggressive. But when you see them actually play, when you saw them against Okalahoma, it was glaring. Their overall team speed and quickness and they're ability to get up and down the floor on both sides of the ball. It was obviously very, very impressive, and I think our players, even last night at dinner, they were talking about what they saw from Ole Miss now that they didn't see earlier and probably, early on, they were not pushing the tempo. That's the biggest change. They've always been committed to defense. Coach Ross does a great job getting her teams to play with passion at both ends of the floor. I just don't think they were coming down and pushing as hard and taking as many early shots."

On preparing for a team that goes so fast and frenetic:
"It's probably a lot like playing against our practice guys. They don't run a whole lot of sets. They like to shot it, and they are aggressive. I mean that as a compliment. It's hard to guard when there's not any patterns, but there's a lot of individual plays, one-on-one plays. I would call their offensive finisher one-on-one. They're hard to guard one-on-one, and you really have to be disciplined and very committed to your defense, and in particular one-on-one game. The one thing I thought about the teams that we've played this year that might reflect what Ole Miss brings now, North Carolina would be one, obviously LSU, as well as Ole Miss. If you think of teams that really push tempo and play off the dribble with a great deal of success, they're right there with those two teams in particular."

On taking care of the ball:
"We put a high premium on ball security, and we understand against teams with the speed and the quickness and athleticism overall of an Ole Miss that a turnover usually results in a layup. I think we just have to be disciplined in our action. We have to have great spacing. We don't need to be risk takers with long passes. Short and obviously tight action and our screen-in action has to be there. We really have to do a good job of playing together in that regard. I do feel like this Tennessee team in particular understands what they need to do, and they do a great job of correcting themselves through the course of the game. I do think that taking care of the basketball and making sure we have sureness on the offense, and that's going to be a real key."

On Tennessee players predicting earlier in the tournament that they would be playing Ole Miss:
"I wasn't that surprised just because of their overall team speed and quickness and just knowing what [Armintie] Price brings to their team. Also, it's a situation where we're much more familiar because we play in the conference, and if you haven't seen this team, I'm sure that probably Sherri Coale [Oklahoma head coach] saw a different team on the court than she saw actually on film. It's hard to really appreciate the speed and the quickness of the speed and the quickness and the athleticism of this Ole Miss team if you haven't been on the court and played them or been in the stands and watched them play. I thought that that was where they had the advantage over Maryland and obviously, again over Oklahoma, that speed and explosive and just coming and just running the ball up your back constantly."

Did you recruit Ashley Awkward?
"No, we did not. We knew of her, but as far as offering her a scholarship to Tennessee or recruiting her, we did not. But she's obviously done a great job there, a terrific job."

What is the biggest difference in tempo between you and Ole Miss?
"Obviously, we are going to look to attack in transition and push tempo, but if we don't have it, I think you'll see us be a little bit more deliberate in the half-court game and try to get certain players touches. Obviously, Candace Parker is a go-to for us. In that situation, just be a little more patient. I think with Ole Miss, they're not as patient, but that plays to their advantage because they're so good at their half-court attack and attacking early in their offense. We may not have our early offense, and that's when we become more deliberate than just all-out aggressive to the rim."

On the tournament's predetermined site set-up and lack of attendance:
"Well, I do think it's time to re-think, to look at where we are in the women's game. I supported neutral sites because there were so many people that I think out there, that felt like we were ready. Clearly, we're not ready. It's disappointing to see all the empty seats in almost every gym. Obviously, Dayton's had the largest crowd. If you take that into account, I think what we have to do as coaches and administrators throughout this country is to decide what is the most important thing to grow our game. We need to demonstrate, through our seeding and not just seeding, but where we place our teams in terms of arenas. Maybe we need smaller arenas. Maybe we need people guaranteeing X amount of people in the seats. This has been really something that I think is a cause for concern and a reason to reevaluate where we are and what we're doing and what we want to go as we move forward to protect and promote our game. I think it has to happen now. I would hate to see us go into another post-season and experience what we have this year. If it ain't broke don't fix it, but right now it appears that it may be broken."

Tennessee Student Athlete Quotes

Candace Parker talking about her style of play compared to Ole Miss player Armintie Price:
"I feel like Armintie and I different styles of play. She plays on the perimeter and mostly I'm inside playing the four. I respect her as a player and I faced her a couple times during my career. She is hard-nosed and plays both ends of the floor. She just provides a tremendous boost for her team."

Candace Parker on what the difference will be in the game tomorrow night: "I think the difference will be taking care of the ball and rebounding. On defensive end, it will be taking them out of the things they like to do."

Alexis Hornbuckle on how important will be in rebounding in this game: "I think it is very important to control the boards. Who ever rebounds controls the tempo. Getting offensive rebounds and putbacks makes it harder for them to get their transition game started. If we can control the ball on defense and limit their second or third chances, it will help us."

Shannon Bobbitt on taking care of the ball, knowing how aggressive Ole Miss is: "Definitely, not playing around with the ball. Just getting it up the court as soon as possible and staying intense."

Alexis Hornbuckle on keeping the game under control:
"Taking care of the ball is very important. They want to create Helter Skelter game. It is very important to take care of the ball, make sure things are open before you throw it. They live by getting in the passing lane, disrupting guards, doubling teaming the post players and creating turnovers. It's very important to move the ball and get good shots."

Nicky Anosike on what sets the SEC apart from other conferences: "I would have to say our commitment to rebounding in the SEC. In the SEC, LSU has a great rebounder, Ole Miss has a great rebounder. We are committed to defense and rebounding which is what wins game."

Candace Parker about her style of play:
"I feel like I played inside and out ever since I have been younger. Moving the ball and getting through the holes in the defense, I think it is also important to have a defensive presence. I think I have developed that over my career."

Alexis Hornbuckle on seeing Ole Miss pressure play and how it helps her prepare:
"Facing them earlier in the season, it gives us a great scouting report. At the same time, they are a different team from when we played them last. They are playing aggressive and a lot better together and with a whole new attitude."

Shannon Bobbitt on playing with Candace Parker:
"Candace is a great player. She takes a lot of pressure off me at the point guard position. That is a hard position to play. Just playing with her, she has done a good job for us this year."

Alexis Hornbuckle on playing with Candace Parker:
"It's an honor to play with just a versatile player like Candace Parker. She is well-known but she also lives up to the hype on both ends of the court."