University of Tennessee Athletics
Postgame Quotes: UT 77, Pitt 67
March 23, 2015 | Women's Basketball
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Tennessee Head Coach Holly Warlick
(Opening Statement)
"It was a great win for us. We had to battle. I am really happy that these two seniors could go out the way they did. They have been through a lot and they have had a lot of pressure put on them since their freshman year. I am just excited that they get to keep playing basketball, I am really glad that they got to have two great performances here. They didn't want to be out done so B [Bashaara Graves] had to step up and do somethings, but it was a great team effort and Pittsburgh was so solid. Suzie has been a very good friend of mine and I know what she does and I know how she gets her team to play. It was a battle and as you all know it was down to the end. What a gutsy performance by their point guard. She was incredible. She was a handful but that is what you do when you get to this point, you play hard. We are happy and thrilled that we are moving on."
(On Bashaara Graves)
"Cierra is right, we are getting her the basketball. She is really doing a lot of work before she gets it. When you have Izzy [Isabelle Harrison], not meaning to, I think Bashaara kind of, everybody thought she stepped back a little bit. I think when Izzy went out she understands that she has to step up and do things for this basketball team. How she is playing now has been a result great practices, very intense, very focused. We got her the basketball, we are going to get her the basketball. We play the game inside, out. We are going to go through Bashaara Graves. I don't think that is a secret, that is how we play. As long as she keeps producing, 14 rebounds and she shot the ball well from the free throw line, we are going to get her the basketball."
(On being dominant inside)
"I thought that we needed to move the basketball. I thought they were going to guard certain people, certain ways. They were going to sagg off people, they were going let [Ariel] Massengale get the ball. I thought it was really important for us to move the ball and cut and not stand. I think we did that. There were a lot of things we missed. We didn't shoot the ball fairly well inside and I thought we took a couple ill-advised shots. [Alexa] Middleton, it was great cut, she was wide open. We wanted our players to do the work before they got the basketball, when they do that they should get open looks. I didn't realize their inside player didn't score. We were going to go inside. We posted Jaime [Nared] up. We wanted to try to get the ball inside and not just focus on jumpers."
(On career high wins in a season)
"I didn't even know that. That is awesome. I am probably more worried about the five losses than the wins. I think you will have anyone tell you that your record is a reflection of your staff and great players. It just is and we have grew players. And we are going to continue to get great players because we are going to recruit. We want to keep winning one more and one more. So we are on the course of doing what we want to do regardless of our record."
(On Gonzaga)
"We have scouted them. They spread the floor. They shoot the three really well. They are a difficult team for us to defense because they don't so much post up, everyone can shoot the three, everyone can handle the basketball. So for us, it is not a traditional basketball team, they all can play all positions. We are going to have to play a lot better one-on-one defense than we did tonight. That style of play, when you have to help and rotate your defense, that is how they get open looks. We have to really understand the importance of one-on-one basketball. We will work quite a bit on that this week."
(On closing out games)
"We obviously have to play between down the stretch. We have to understand time and possession. I think we turned the ball over, we quit shooting the basketball. You to get the ball inside, move the ball, use the clock. You have to get stops. I thought when they started closing in, we fouled, we gave them and-one plays. You just can't do that. Those are the things we have to clean up. As I love how we battle and we go down to the wire, we figure out how to win, I would much rather us win by 13 and keep it 13. That is really fun for me. I don't think they want me to have any fun so they like to make it interesting."
Tennessee Forward Cierra Burdick
(On relief of starting 2-for-2)
"You could say that. It's always nice to see the ball go in the bucket. I was just trying to stay positive. I knew today I had to bounce back. It was nice to see the ball go through. My coaches and teammates did a great job of continuing to encourage me and telling me to shoot the ball and not sweat what happened Saturday. I just tried to stay positive."
(On Bashaara Graves' effort in the NCAA Tournament)
"I think she has been aggressive, and we have been getting her the basketball. She has been working and getting great position on the block. She is just a mismatch for every team we play against. She is so strong and so physical that the smaller players can't really handle her. Then, you have the big players that she is just too quick for. She is a tough matchup, and we are going to continue to look for her. She has done a great job of stepping up in Izzy B's absence, and she is a lot of fun to play with."
(On playing last game in Thompson-Boling Arena with Pat Summitt present)
"It was a great feeling. We have had unbelievable fan support the entire career that we had. It was loud in there today. I loved it. I just tried to soak it up and take it in and enjoy the moment. To do it in front of Pat, it was an awesome feeling to look over there and see her smiling and know that she continues to have our back in all that we do and just to know that she is supporting us."
Tennessee Guard Ariel Massengale
(On playing last game in Thompson-Boling Arena with Pat Summitt present)
"It's a great feeling. In the past, she gave us the opportunity to wear this Lady Vol uniform, and we are more than grateful for that. We hope that in these four years that we made her proud."
(On mindset heading to Sweet Sixteen)
"We are very excited. We are going to take this win in and enjoy it. We are going to take a day off tomorrow and rest up, get back to school. We had a week off of Spring Break. We'll catch up on that and other things, but we are going to be focused. Our coaches are going to prepare us for the scouts, and we are going to go out there and take it one game at a time. We are looking forward to it. A lot of us have not been to the West Coast, so we are definitely going to enjoy the moment."
Tennessee Forward Bashaara Graves
(On tonight's defensive effort)
"I think we wanted to just push them out of the paint and not let them get any paint points. I think we did a great job of that and just trying to box them out as best as we can."
(On strong performances in big games)
"I don't think it's really just big games. I know I need to show up in these games. Since Izzy has been out, I knew I needed to step up and do my part."​
Pittsburgh Head Coach Suzie McConnell-Serio
"I couldn't be more proud of our players, the way they responded and came out in the second half was amazing. We went into this game with a game plan, we executed the game plan, defensively we were doing a lot of good things but we talk about doing the little things and free throws being those things and I thought we were a little nervous a little rattled through the first half and then at half time I pick and choose who I'm going to challenge and it was probably one of my calmest half time speeches that I have given them all year because I knew we need to settle down and they responded to see us come out of the locker room and be efficient on the offensive end, get stops and cut into the lead. They just never quit, never stop believing in themselves and each other. They played their hearts our, they wore their hearts on their sleeve, couldn't be more proud of the effort. To speak of Brianna Kiesel who I believe it was a career high, against TN, in the NCAA Tournament on their floor played 40 minutes being dogged from end to end. The entire possession she had the ball in her hands, working hard defensively for her to end her career I know it's a said day for me for her because its now we never have a chance to be together again. That's the disappointing part is I never have the opportunity to coach her anymore. I'm so proud what she had done this year and what she has meant to our program taking it to new heights and the young lady sitting next to her, Yacine Diop, for a Freshman has come in and raised the level of expectations, came in and was an impact player right from the beginning of the year and to help us get to the NCAA Tournament along side Brianna Kiesel and the other players on the team, three freshman and a volleyball player nobody expected us to be here but our players did and they just never stopped believing and fighting and focusing on our game plans and Yacine and Brianna having those types of performances on this stage we couldn't ask anymore. A disappointing ending because we gave everything we had and couldn't pull it out but so proud of the effort our players had."
(On what Brianna meant to the program the last four years)
"You know it was no secret if you watched us on film or watched us play all year long. We played through Brianna Kiesel. She was our playmaker, our scorer, our three-point shooter. She dictated the tempo defensively. For her to come in and have that type of performance, down the stretch I wasn't putting the ball in anyone else's hands but her whether she was taking the shot or making the pass. She was going out with a bang. I knew she was going to give us everything she had. There was no doubt she was playing her heart out and she didn't want it to end. We talked about before the year, this senior year being special for her. We couldn't envisioned this happening but I'm so proud of the person she is. The pride that she has in wearing a Pitt uniform after what she endured in her first three years and to come out this senior season and lead this team and bring us to the NCAA Tournament. She put this team on her back and they responded. They followed along, they fed off of her leadership and we went and she went. She brought us here. I couldn't be more proud of the year she had."
(On freshman Stasha Carey's game)
"It was all of you. She didn't like attention you were giving her. It really depends on the matchup and defensively I didn't think she backed down from the challenge. She gave us some great minutes defensively and challenging rebounding. I just thought she got a little anxious. They were leaving her one on one. They were physical and I think Bashaara Graves is one of the most physical players she has played against and a very talented post player. She knew coming in she had her hands full, just needed to slow down a little bit, tried to play a little too fast. This is such a valuable experience for our three freshmen, for our entire team. This is a time that they will never forget as far as having game experience against a talented team in Tennessee.
(On the difference in Brianna Kiesel's game in the second half)
"Teams key on her right from the beginning of the game. Tennessee came out and we knew and we said they are going to come out they're going to be aggressive. They're going to be physical. They're going to deny our entry passes. We have to be able to match their intensity right from the beginning of the game and they were physical and they were disruptive. I think we were playing too quickly, making poor decisions, picking up our dribble led to some turnovers and I think there was some frustration and then they shot the ball really really well. As the game wore on we started to play defense. Their percentage started to go down. They tried to take her out of the game. They tried to take Bri out of the game and she just kept fighting. I think we just had to get used to the physical play in the first five minutes and we couldn't withstand that run and that really was the difference in the game, in the beginning of the game the run that they made."
(On rebounding against Boise State)
"I did watch that game in person and then on film as well and Boise State did a great job of hitting shots. I think any time you can hit shots in the NCAA Tournament you give yourself a chance to win. Coming into this game and focusing on Tennessee, we saw they'll send four players to the offensive glass. I think [Andraya] Carter is one of the best rebounding guards and it was an emphasis on all five players. It was on our board, all five players must box out and there were too many times where we had two or three boxing out and then they would come in, get a hand on it. They got second or third chances. Against a team like Tennessee, it will kill you. They make a living on the offensive glass and it was a big difference for us tonight and we're not deep and we're not as physical so that was something that hurt us."
(On how tough Tennessee's depth was)
"You practice all year long. We know we're not deep. You practice all year long for this moment and the team can't be a factor. They're just very good. They have five scoring options on the floor at all times. When you try to defend the on ball screens and if your post hedges too much they make the extra pass and they get a layup. If you support and guard doesn't get over quick enough to the other side of the screen to cut them off guards are getting to the rim if you hop off of someone else. This is a team I thought moved the ball very very well when I watched them on film. They see the next play. They know if this options happens this is where they're going. At least it looks like that on film with me. I just thought they were very good at executing their offense. I give our players credit. We got some steals, we disrupted. We just didn't hit enough shots. I think that was the bottom line. We dug ourselves a hole too much in the first half."
(On if teams in the ACC match up physically with Tennessee)
"We finished seventh in the ACC and the top six teams were ranked in the top 25 in the country so coming into this game I don't think there was that awe factor coming in to playing Tennessee because of the caliber of play that we've seen every single game in the ACC. Notre Dame can probably be a comparison, North Carolina, Duke plays a zone, but there are a number of teams that have similar styles of play, similar players. As an overall team I'd probably say Notre Dame possibly."
Pittsburgh Guard Brianna Kiesel
(On handling their speed and physical play in first half)
Answer: "I believe they did that well, they slowed us down in transition, so we are a transition team, they are long and lengthy we had a lot of contested shots but we got looks it's just we weren't finishing and they closed the offensive boards. I thought the second half we did a much better job boxing out. I mean they are a very good team, they are nationally ranked just playing them today and having the honor of playing one of the best teams in the nation it was just a great amazing game that I wouldn't have asked for a better way to go out."
(On most physical team you faced all year)
"24 is a lot of shots? They were very physical. Every shot I took was physical. I got to the free throw line but I missed too many free throw way too many but when they came out, when they guarded me, I had number 14 on me who was one of the defensive players of the year in the SEC and she's very good and every shot I took was contested. I wish I had shot 20-24 and maybe we would have won."
(On being down 14 with 6 min to go what was it like)
"As long as there is time on the clock there is a chance to win. I thought we really buckled down and we hit some big shots and we ran fist down and I thought that when I missed Yacine or someone was there to rebound and we were attacking the basket we took care of the ball expect my six turnovers, I thought for the most part we took very good care of the ball I mean they are a good team and they closed out."
(On her performance today)
"I gave it all I had today, I absolutely love the University of Pittsburgh, the last four years I couldn't have asked for a better university to play for. Even though I will always bleed blue and gold I couldn't have asked for a better coach to play for the last two years she's the one that changed me into the player that I am and no one expected anything from us, this last year we were ranked 15th in the ACC out of 15 and we made it to the second round in the NCAA Tournament and that goes kudos to coach and I'm just so honored to be able wear Pittsburgh across my chest."
(On what Holly Warlick said to you after the game)
"She just said I was a good player and that I played my heart out and did all I could, I left it out there."
Pittsburgh Forward Yacine Diop
(On being a freshman and playing along Brianna Kiesel)
"It was a pleasure playing with Brianna Kiesel, she was our leader and I always looked up to her. It's sad that this is our last game playing with her, I wish I had another year playing with her so I can learn more from her leadership wise and more things."
(On how beneficial was the experience)
"This is very beneficial because I think that every game that I play I learn from it whether we win or lose like I gain more experience playing in the games. This is my freshman year and I made it to the NCAA and that was a big step, like coach said no one believed in us at the beginning but we made it so far in here so im just so proud of me and my team."​
