Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball versus North Carolina on November 2, 2026 at TBA
TBA
Women's Basketball
vs North Carolina
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Postgame Quotes
March 22, 2011 | Women's Basketball
Return to Recap
Opening statement:
"It was such a blessing to be a part of this game tonight. It was a beautiful women's basketball game. Miami is a fantastic team. Katie [Meier] does a tremendous job for her kids and they play so hard for her. They are unbelievably talented defensively and they rebound like crazy. We were fortunate and made plays down the stretch. I could not be more proud of our effort and resilience. We have brick by brick built some toughness that is pretty special in its own right. We are thrilled and very proud of the team."
On Danielle Robinson's six point streak late in the game:
"That was huge. Not ever giving away the lead, just hanging on. Danielle Robinson going to the rim. They knew we were going to call her number, we knew it, everyone in the gym knew it. But she was still able to go make a play. Those weren't easy lay-ups she was making either. They were tough drives to the rim against a lot of athleticism. She converted them because that's what she does. All the good things Danielle does as a basketball player: her speed, her quickness, her mid-range jump shot, her crafty finishes at the rim, her ability to take the ball away from the ball-handler. All that stuff is great, bur her competitive will is what separates her. It's what makes her special. And you saw that on display at the most important part of the game tonight."
On the tough regular-season schedule paying off tonight:
"I think it played a huge role on the type of poise we were able to have, especially as Miami was so good in the second half and we had to weather that for an entire 20 minutes. That schedule is not very much fun while you're in the middle of it, but we do that. Year in and year out we have played one of the most competitive schedules in the country, for just this reason. To be prepared for whatever comes our way in the NCAA Tournament. I don't think you can put a price tag on the value of those minutes. Sometimes it's tough to take them. When you get it handed to you when you're at Connecticut, it's hard to swallow. But if you can swallow it, and go back to work and get better from it, it will pay dividends. And I think that is a big part of why we were able to handle it tonight."
On the speed of the game:
"I think that you just have to play your strengths, whatever those strengths will be. I've seen [Riquna] Williams take some crazy looking shots, and when they go in, everybody loves them. But when they don't, then they say, 'You should have made six or seven more passes.' It was like when we were going against James Madison and we'd come down, penetrate, pitch to the corner then take an early three. It's fantastic when they're going in, but if you miss two or three, everyone says, 'What are you doing? You're shooting too early!' And sure, you have to play toward that and recognize the rhythm of the game, that's part of it. But I think that you go with the girl that took you to the dance."
On the play of Joanna McFarland:
"All year long, I've said, 'If they all show up at the same time, look out.' We've had two players here and two or three no shows. Then two different ones, the other no shows. The biggest difference here though, has been the play of Joanna McFarland. I don't think there is any doubt about that. When you get second chance points, every basket attempt looks easier. The rim just gets bigger. When you're one and done, one and done, one and done, the size of that cylinder just shrinks. And when Joanna [McFarland] can give us offensive rebounds, when we can get second chance points, when we can just get another offensive possession, it lets that rim grow again. I cannot tell you how much her presence in there has helped us. Carlee [Roethlisberger] is fantastic. Carlee and Danielle [Robinson] did not want to stop playing basketball at the University of Oklahoma. That was evident. And Whitney Hand, I don't even know what to say. She couldn't walk at shootaround today. She couldn't go through it. And she is a tough kid, it's not like the knee hurts a little bit and she doesn't go. She really couldn't go. Tonight she mustered up the courage and got lost in the game. I really do think she gets lost in the game, she's immersed and she doesn't realize how much pain she is in until she's done. It's not very good then, but she's a tough, special kid. You ask if she was more comfortable, but she has become comfortable with being uncomfortable."
On expecting such a game out of Joanna McFarland:
"The last week of practice I did [expect it], but before that, no. We had four days of very intense, productive practices. Sometimes you finish a conference tournament and you do shooting drills and lighten things up but we did not feel we were ready as a team to just polish things for a few days. We felt like we had to keep getting better. We kind of rolled the dice with that. You might be too tired to play at the effort level we need to, we just had a long season [and then a] conference tournament; we just made a decision that we need to work. It paid off for [Joanna McFarland]. I could see her just almost physically busting through the barrier that she'd built for herself. She's a perfectionist, a 4.0 student, she wants to do everything right. She wants to please me all the time. She has just kind of figured out not to worry so much about it being just right, but making a play. I tell you there's nothing better than watching a kid find a way out of that, because if they can do that, they can do anything. We're a better team for it; we're a deeper team."
On the pace of the game:
"I think we really thwarted the way that [Riquna] Williams wants to play. I didn't think she ever got in the rhythm that her team needs her to be in to be really successful. Other guys stepped up and were able to play fantastic, but I think that she's the key to them. Our ability to find her early and converge on the dribble and make her make a few more dribbles and make a few more passes than she would like really affected her. Our answer to their runs were really good early, and then we slowed a bit in the second half. But after we started attacking again, we were much better. Pace is about learning to use it to your advantage."
On taking over towards the end of the game:
"The team challenged me to get to the rim. I had been a little bit passive previously, but they told me to get to the rim. I was fading a little bit on some shots into the lane so I had to get into their bodies and that's what I did."
On controlling the speed of the game:
"We did have some turnovers, but we were in control at all times. We knew if we turned it over once, the next possession we had to be sure we would protect the ball."
On playing Notre Dame in the next round:
"This is going to be three out of four years playing them. We are very familiar with them and they are a great team. We are going in there confident coming off of two big wins. Right now we are going to get some rest and then get back after it."
On the pace of the game:
"I think we are comfortable playing at either pace. We definitely had to buy in to transition defense tonight because they push it. Pushing back at them worked."
On Joanna McFarland's game:
"She is possessed right now. We love it. With 15 boards and a double-double in the past two games, she has been a veteran. In the NCAA Tournament you need people who have been there and I think her experience is showing up right now. I'm really proud of her and how strong she is playing right now."
On the Sooners' early run:
"We were very loose before the game and feeling good with our preparation. We were in rhythm before the game even started. Everything was going in at the beginning and we got off to a great start."
On how she is feeling physically:
"I feel good. I feel comfortable in that I'm super comfortable with my team. You get lost in the game and don't really think about it when you are out there. I feel very confident in our team right now and confident in myself. This is the NCAA Tournament, you give 100 percent or you go home."
On defending Miami's comeback:
"When Miami scores, they score in runs. They scored a few points and we knew we had to do something to get ourselves going. Everyone was shooting really well tonight. Once we noticed that they were going on runs, people wanted the ball and took control of it. Someone stepped up every time."
 |
Head Coach Sherri Coale |
Opening statement:
"It was such a blessing to be a part of this game tonight. It was a beautiful women's basketball game. Miami is a fantastic team. Katie [Meier] does a tremendous job for her kids and they play so hard for her. They are unbelievably talented defensively and they rebound like crazy. We were fortunate and made plays down the stretch. I could not be more proud of our effort and resilience. We have brick by brick built some toughness that is pretty special in its own right. We are thrilled and very proud of the team."
On Danielle Robinson's six point streak late in the game:
"That was huge. Not ever giving away the lead, just hanging on. Danielle Robinson going to the rim. They knew we were going to call her number, we knew it, everyone in the gym knew it. But she was still able to go make a play. Those weren't easy lay-ups she was making either. They were tough drives to the rim against a lot of athleticism. She converted them because that's what she does. All the good things Danielle does as a basketball player: her speed, her quickness, her mid-range jump shot, her crafty finishes at the rim, her ability to take the ball away from the ball-handler. All that stuff is great, bur her competitive will is what separates her. It's what makes her special. And you saw that on display at the most important part of the game tonight."
On the tough regular-season schedule paying off tonight:
"I think it played a huge role on the type of poise we were able to have, especially as Miami was so good in the second half and we had to weather that for an entire 20 minutes. That schedule is not very much fun while you're in the middle of it, but we do that. Year in and year out we have played one of the most competitive schedules in the country, for just this reason. To be prepared for whatever comes our way in the NCAA Tournament. I don't think you can put a price tag on the value of those minutes. Sometimes it's tough to take them. When you get it handed to you when you're at Connecticut, it's hard to swallow. But if you can swallow it, and go back to work and get better from it, it will pay dividends. And I think that is a big part of why we were able to handle it tonight."
On the speed of the game:
"I think that you just have to play your strengths, whatever those strengths will be. I've seen [Riquna] Williams take some crazy looking shots, and when they go in, everybody loves them. But when they don't, then they say, 'You should have made six or seven more passes.' It was like when we were going against James Madison and we'd come down, penetrate, pitch to the corner then take an early three. It's fantastic when they're going in, but if you miss two or three, everyone says, 'What are you doing? You're shooting too early!' And sure, you have to play toward that and recognize the rhythm of the game, that's part of it. But I think that you go with the girl that took you to the dance."
On the play of Joanna McFarland:
"All year long, I've said, 'If they all show up at the same time, look out.' We've had two players here and two or three no shows. Then two different ones, the other no shows. The biggest difference here though, has been the play of Joanna McFarland. I don't think there is any doubt about that. When you get second chance points, every basket attempt looks easier. The rim just gets bigger. When you're one and done, one and done, one and done, the size of that cylinder just shrinks. And when Joanna [McFarland] can give us offensive rebounds, when we can get second chance points, when we can just get another offensive possession, it lets that rim grow again. I cannot tell you how much her presence in there has helped us. Carlee [Roethlisberger] is fantastic. Carlee and Danielle [Robinson] did not want to stop playing basketball at the University of Oklahoma. That was evident. And Whitney Hand, I don't even know what to say. She couldn't walk at shootaround today. She couldn't go through it. And she is a tough kid, it's not like the knee hurts a little bit and she doesn't go. She really couldn't go. Tonight she mustered up the courage and got lost in the game. I really do think she gets lost in the game, she's immersed and she doesn't realize how much pain she is in until she's done. It's not very good then, but she's a tough, special kid. You ask if she was more comfortable, but she has become comfortable with being uncomfortable."
On expecting such a game out of Joanna McFarland:
"The last week of practice I did [expect it], but before that, no. We had four days of very intense, productive practices. Sometimes you finish a conference tournament and you do shooting drills and lighten things up but we did not feel we were ready as a team to just polish things for a few days. We felt like we had to keep getting better. We kind of rolled the dice with that. You might be too tired to play at the effort level we need to, we just had a long season [and then a] conference tournament; we just made a decision that we need to work. It paid off for [Joanna McFarland]. I could see her just almost physically busting through the barrier that she'd built for herself. She's a perfectionist, a 4.0 student, she wants to do everything right. She wants to please me all the time. She has just kind of figured out not to worry so much about it being just right, but making a play. I tell you there's nothing better than watching a kid find a way out of that, because if they can do that, they can do anything. We're a better team for it; we're a deeper team."
On the pace of the game:
"I think we really thwarted the way that [Riquna] Williams wants to play. I didn't think she ever got in the rhythm that her team needs her to be in to be really successful. Other guys stepped up and were able to play fantastic, but I think that she's the key to them. Our ability to find her early and converge on the dribble and make her make a few more dribbles and make a few more passes than she would like really affected her. Our answer to their runs were really good early, and then we slowed a bit in the second half. But after we started attacking again, we were much better. Pace is about learning to use it to your advantage."
|
Senior Guard Danielle Robinson |
On taking over towards the end of the game:
"The team challenged me to get to the rim. I had been a little bit passive previously, but they told me to get to the rim. I was fading a little bit on some shots into the lane so I had to get into their bodies and that's what I did."
On controlling the speed of the game:
"We did have some turnovers, but we were in control at all times. We knew if we turned it over once, the next possession we had to be sure we would protect the ball."
On playing Notre Dame in the next round:
"This is going to be three out of four years playing them. We are very familiar with them and they are a great team. We are going in there confident coming off of two big wins. Right now we are going to get some rest and then get back after it."
On the pace of the game:
"I think we are comfortable playing at either pace. We definitely had to buy in to transition defense tonight because they push it. Pushing back at them worked."
|
Sophomore Guard Whitney Hand |
On Joanna McFarland's game:
"She is possessed right now. We love it. With 15 boards and a double-double in the past two games, she has been a veteran. In the NCAA Tournament you need people who have been there and I think her experience is showing up right now. I'm really proud of her and how strong she is playing right now."
On the Sooners' early run:
"We were very loose before the game and feeling good with our preparation. We were in rhythm before the game even started. Everything was going in at the beginning and we got off to a great start."
On how she is feeling physically:
"I feel good. I feel comfortable in that I'm super comfortable with my team. You get lost in the game and don't really think about it when you are out there. I feel very confident in our team right now and confident in myself. This is the NCAA Tournament, you give 100 percent or you go home."
|
Senior Forward Carlee Roethlisberger |
On defending Miami's comeback:
"When Miami scores, they score in runs. They scored a few points and we knew we had to do something to get ourselves going. Everyone was shooting really well tonight. Once we noticed that they were going on runs, people wanted the ball and took control of it. Someone stepped up every time."
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