Postgame Quotes

Head Coach Sherri Coale

On the game:
"We beat a really good basketball team today and I was proud of our guys' poise. At the start of the night we didn't shoot it very well, obviously, but we didn't let it affect our energy level. We didn't let it affect our confidence. We continued to defend and rebound. This team is growing. They're still getting better; every day they're getting better. Just a huge second half, and I'm so happy for Nicole [Griffin] to have the kind of performance she had today. On this stage, it was so appropriate, and I'm happy for her. And Sharane [Campbell] getting all the rebounds that she got. Just growth across the board, growth with our team. I'm just really proud of them."

On what establishing Griffin early did for the offense:
"I think more than anything, we could tell with the matchup immediately, put Bias on Vegas [Aaryn Ellenberg], they're not going to let her get anything. So that means there will be no help from whatever side of the court she's on, and we try to take advantage of that. And we felt too, Nicole [Griffin] has gone up against great post players all year and her confidence is just continually building because of that. So go right after Toni [Young], get her in foul trouble, and go right at her and make her defend you. She did. She did a great job of putting the ball on the floor and laying out, and not just settling for a jump hook. Her jump hook is great and that's a tough weapon, but what she really did this afternoon that was effective was laying out and using her legs to the rim, or shoot a reverse, or get underneath the defense."

On what changed from the first half to the second half:
"A lot of times those are the results of loose ball recoveries, coming up with 50/50 balls, or getting offensive rebounds and then defenders are lost and you're able to kick it out and shoot a three. And that's how we were able to really get it open. And sometimes it just takes one. You make one and then everybody feels better, and then here you go."

On Sharane Campell's rebounding:
"We mentioned that at halftime, as you might imagine, mentioning those rebounding numbers. But as I've said repeatedly about Sharane, she is conscientious. That's the type of person she is. That's part of her character. And there's an element of her game that is not where it should be. Just like repeatedly working on her left hand, she's going to work at it until it becomes a strength. And that's something we've pointed out. Boy we miss Whitney [Hand], getting all those offensive rebounds from the perimeter. Who can do that? Well, she can do that. And she focused on it today. And it felt like she got more than four offensive boards, it really did. But overall, they have 12 rebounds. You know Jo's [McFarland] going to get 15. How awesome is that? To have a player on your team where you can go, 'I know she's going to get 15 boards.' What? I haven't felt like that since Courtney Paris was here. So that's a luxury. I'm not taking that for granted."

On if the team accomplished more than just winning a game:
"Well, our team is still evolving, and I keep saying that to you guys that have to talk to me every day. But Vegas not being present was really more than not making shots. She couldn't catch it; she couldn't dribble it; she couldn't pass it. And really, we didn't have her in any element there. And to just go ahead on, we say that a lot, just take care of our business with the next play and plod and grind and get the lead, I thought was significant. You know in a minute she's going to wake up and be a part of it, and certainly was. When I took her out and said, 'who plays like that and has 17 points?' When I grow up I want to be able to play like that. What in the world? But these guys, it's really an extension of what we've been through this year. Something happens and oh, we don't have her for a while? Well ok, we'll win this way. We don't have her? Oh, we'll go win this way. And that's good for everybody because Vegas isn't going to play like that very often."

On Griffin's progression throughout the years:
"Presence, a sense of understanding how she can affect the game on both ends of the floor. Confidence comes from a demonstrated ability and she got in the gym and worked on her shot in the off season. And now she posts harder because she wants to be able to receive the benefits of that. She knows that if she catches, she's going to get a score. So those things are all sort of roll into one another. I think sometimes confidence reveals itself as much on the other end of the floor where she's sliding over and helping, and affecting shots, and blocking shots, and being a presence on both ends. And that's part of the growth and the maturation of a player that you want to see, especially in her junior season. I think the ceiling is really high for her still."

Junior C Nicole Griffin

On the improvement of her jump hook:
"I think it's progressing and I'm continuing to work on it. The closer I am to the basket, I don't have to shoot it as hard. It's more wrist than when you're further away."

On the Bedlam crowd:
"I would say that I notice it when we come out for the last time before the game starts. That's when most everyone is at the game and you just look up to see people all the way at the top. There are people everywhere and I just think 'Alright! This is the time!' That helped me out personally; you want to show up for your fans."

Sophomore G Sharane Campbell

On improving her 3-point shot:
"I don't want to say it's something that I've really been focusing on; I've been focused on my left hand more than my three. I just guess that comes along with it, so I've just got to keep on working on my left hand."

On the Bedlam crowd:
"It was pretty great having the gym full and seeing everyone's support, because we feel the love. It gives you an extra umph."

Junior G Morgan Hook

On coming back from a slow offensive start:
"We didn't let our missed shots at the beginning affect us, like we have previously. In our tight huddles, we just said, 'The ball is going to go in this next time.' We just started moving the ball more and feeding the post and moving in and out. We had more rhythm, and I think it all developed from being able to feed it to Nicole (Griffin) any time we wanted to."

On forcing turnovers:
"I think I was playing too fast and once I stayed poised, I could see who was open. At the end of the game I was just playing too fast and forced things."

On the Bedlam crowd:
"It was awesome. Our fans are incredible. I couldn't hear our players yell, and it was because our fans were so loud. It was just so incredible to see after yesterday's game at the guys' game, and how many fans there were, and there were just as many there today. It was really cool for our fans to come support us like that."

Head Coach Jim Littell

On the game:
"We played pretty well for 17 minutes and then we had a little adversity and it did not end with adversity. That's what disappoints me about our basketball team. We were right in the game. Granted, Oklahoma, they played extremely well. It was quite evident that the game plan was to attack our post and Nicole Griffin had a great game. Joanna McFarland hustles after every loose ball and competes and plays extremely hard. That's where we're trying to get our team to be and we're not there right now."

On the end of the first half:
"We missed five or six layups. We were right at the rim and had some opportunities to make shots and maybe saw somebody out of the corner of our eye or whatever. But when you play a good team on their home court like OU is, you've got to make easy shots. You have to make some tough shots, but you sure have to make some easy shots and we didn't make those easy shots."

On foul trouble:
"You lose your leading scorer and your leading rebounder and it has a great effect on you. You probably have to play some people too many minutes that aren't used to playing that many minutes. It takes away from some of the things you want to do scheme wise to get her the basketball. She's had numerous games where she picks up two quick fouls and it changes the dynamics of how we play."

On Oklahoma's Nicole Griffin:
"She's long and has gotten a lot better over the last couple years. She shoots that little jump hook and keeps it high and has got a nice touch on it. You know, she does a good job of working. She does her work before the ball comes in there on getting you down low in the paint. We allowed her to catch the ball too deep in the paint and she is a handful there. We're guarding with Toni and she's listed 6-2 but realistically she's six-foot and there's a six inch discrepancy there and we have to do a better job of guarding and not letting her set up so early."

Freshman G Brittney Martin

On the difference between the first and second half:
"I think we needed to pick it up in the second half and we came into halftime looking like we were getting killed when really we weren't down by that many points. We needed to come back and play our game and we didn't.

"I feel like the whole team needs to pick it up when we lose a big part of our team. I think the whole team needs to step it up and not just one person."