Jan. 15, 2002

Recap?|? Final Stats?|? Notes

Missouri senior guard Natalie Bright
"We felt it from the start. Our team is at a good place right now. We're coming together, we're working well. Our chemistry is on and we hope we can take that into our Baylor game and that's what we're looking forward to. It's a great opportunity for us to keep winning, especially at home."

On Missouri's upcoming stretch of games:
"Those are must-wins, especially in the Big 12. If we don't win on our home floor ... it's so tough to win on the road. That's why we have to take care of our games here. We just have to take care of business here and knock off a couple on the road and we should be good."

On the competition in the Big 12
"I think everyone knocking off big teams, that just shows you that every team in this conference is huge. Look at K-State, where they were last year, a total turnaround. Look at Texas A&M beating Iowa State. You know it's going to be a battle every night. There's no clear-cut winner in any game and I think that's the biggest surprise. It's fun, this conference is great."

Missouri junior guard Kerensa Barr
On the game:
"I thought tonight our defense really came together for us. In the first half, everyone was rotating, we were right on top of things. We have a tough four-game stretch coming up, playing some ranked teams, but that's the Big 12 and that's why we play in this conference and we look forward to the challenge. We start off at home against Baylor and we look forward to it."

"It was physical in there. We had people that were getting chucked around and we were chucking people around. It was a fight. It's hard to play on the road, it's hard for them to play on the road. We expect a battle when we go to Nebraska."

Missouri sophomore guard Tracy Lozier
On her increased playing time this season:
"I'm a lot more comfortable, just getting out there and getting experience is what I needed. Before Big 12 (play started) I got to play a lot more so I think by being out there I get a lot more confident and I don't let things bother me and let my game come to me."

Missouri head coach Cindy Stein
On the game:
"I thought that we started out really well and we were hitting. I thought that we had a lot of energy on defense. I did think that towards the end of the half we got a little flat and then started out a little flat at the beginning of the second half. At the same time, we were getting done what we needed to get done. Obviously, that's not the team that is probably indicative of them. They're a lot better than what they played. I'm not complaining, but we know that the second time, we're going to see a lot different ball club."

"I thought they (Nebraska) were flat. They weren't hitting really well early. They started pressing a little bit as far as their shot. I thought they looked flat, for whatever reason. Of course, that wasn't my problem. I was worried about us."

"I thought our defense was good, I still think our intensity could have been a lot better. Through our substitutions, some came in really well and other were a little flat and at times our guards got a little lackadaisical with the ball. I think 18 turnovers is too high for us. We had nine at the half and I thought we should have kept that number down a little bit better."

On this year's defensive team vs. last year's squad:
"I think last year's team was a good defensive team, but last year's team took a lot more chances. As far as team defense, this team is pretty sound. They play really well together, they make reads off each other. It's better position defense than last year."

Looking ahead to Saturday's Baylor game:
"It's the same story. Every team we play is pretty good. We know Lambert's a handful, we know Crockert's a handful. They've got some other kids that are very talented also, so it's not going to be a two-man show out there. We're going to give our kids a little break tomorrow because they need it. We've been going full-steam here. We want to give them a little mental break and then come back strong on Thursday and Friday."

Nebraska head coach Paul Sanderford: "I'm getting to the place that I don't really like Columbia. My last two trips down here have been really horrible basketball experiences for us. I don't have any explanation. Our jobs are to get our teams ready to play and I thought Missouri physically dominated the first 10 minutes of the ball game. I thought they were ready to play, they jumped on us early, physically dominated us on the inside. They look quicker than we are and they're not. We looked a step slow all night. I think their defense had something to do with our early problems but at the same time our impatience -- eight or 10 turnovers, we're down 15 before we even turn around tonight. Missouri's played hard and with confidence. (Natalie) Bright I thought was really good tonight. She kept them in their offense and did smart things all night long. Their post people played hard and played smart defensively all night long."

Nebraska guard Keasha Cannon on the start of the game: "It surprised me. It seemed like once we got down, we lost the fight. Their hearts were bigger than ours and it showed tonight."