Missouri Quotes
11/19/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 19, 2001
Recap?|? Final Stats?|? Notes
"There wasn't a second in my mind when I felt they were going to pull away," said Natalie Bright. "We're going to go all-out. We're not going to let someone have an edge on (hustle). We're not going to back down, we're going to dive for every loose ball. "They're an excellent defensive team. I think our team did a great job. We kept after it. I'm really proud of our team effort."
"We knew they were going to make a run. You don't make it to the Final Four by giving up when you're down five," said Kerensa Barr. "We had to control it, fight it off. We have to play every game as a hard as we can. I got to the free-throw line a lot and converted there. I got some easy points there so it's tough to say I came out and took over the game." "We have to make the plays at the end of the game like we did tonight," said Barr. "We have to do the little things right. We're not going to be able to count on someone to score 25 points a night. We have to have everyone contribute."
"My teammates found me when I got open and I knew I had to finish the shot," said Lauren Podratz, who sank a 3-point field goal and another basket for her first collegiate points. "It was a good feeling to come out and make a big shot like that."
"I think it's a huge step of confidence for us that we can come out and play tough teams and win," said Melanie Fisher. "I wanted to get in there, be explosive and attack. I knew we needed points right away so if I went in there and attacked, it might open things up for 'KB' (Barr) and the guards."
"We just needed to calm them down," said MU head coach Cindy Stein of her squad in the second half. "They jumped on us in the second half and it rattled our cages a bit. We needed to settle down and set up some plays. We called three different cold plays, plays we drew up during the time out, that we executed perfectly. We were going on all cylinders. When you can have that energy and defensive effort, you can win a lot of ballgames.
