Pitt Women's Basketball Postgame Quotes

Jan. 15, 2017

Pitt Head Coach Suzie McConnell-Serio

Opening Statement:

"Going into this game we knew that North Carolina was very dangerous on the perimeter with Stephanie Watts, Destinee Walker and Jamie Cherry, the way they game off of on-ball screens and the range they have from the three-point line. We had to be well aware of where they were at all time and how we were going to defend them. I couldn't be more proud of the way our players bought into our defensive game plan. We ended up making an adjustment when they adjusted and we were able to create offense from our defense. In the first half we were able to put some points on the board. Kauai Bradley had a tremendous performance at both ends of the floor today, rebounding, defending, and offensively shooting the ball with a lot of confidence. It is exactly what we need from her. In the second half, we knew UNC wouldn't back down coming out of the locker room, we knew they'd make adjustments and come out more aggressive both offensively and defensively, and it's exactly what they did. They went to a lot of on-ball screens and went to a smaller lineup, so to combat that we went to a smaller lineup and we ended up switching all on-ball screens, one through five. That ended up being more effective and with the lineup going smaller, we went with a five-out motion that gave us some good looks. I thought Alayna Gribble hit some key shots. Destinie Gibbs created some good ball movement. We were more aggressive offensively. I thought we got complacent when they started attacking us full-court when we had a chance to extend our lead and we were taking tough shots with the shot clock winding down. It was a tough situation to be in where the other team is playing with a sense of urgency and you have a lead so you don't want to shoot quickly and you end playing into their hands, taking bad shots as the shot clock winds down. It was a great team effort all the way through offensively and defensively. Any win in the ACC is a huge win."

On the team's offensive performance:

"I thought we had some good moments and moments of struggle just like any other game. Kauai Bradley gave us great scoring from the perimeter being able to knock down threes, along with Alayna Gribble, another guard who can extend defenses. Kalista Walters is someone that I will continue to harp on to not turn down open looks inside just because of how effective she is around the rim. She has a great shooting percentage and makes good decisions, but I thought she was a little unselfish. Brenna [Wise] I thought had a lot of good looks, but she just struggles with those looks today; those are shots she can typically hit. I thought out ball movement was good. Jasmine Whitney was a spark off the bench for us as a playmaker and taking care of the basketball. She and Aysia Bugg did a good job of managing the game during the course of UNC's run and everything they through at us. I thought offensively we handled everything they threw at us. They'll throw a one-three-one trap at you, they'll run man-to-man and switch all on-ball screens which tends to disrupt what you are trying to do offensively and then they showed full-court pressure and I thought we did a good job of handling that as well. Overall, we put 68 points on the board. I'm not sure the last time we saw 68 points so it was a great effort offensively I thought."

On not starting Jasmine Whitney:

"This is the second game in a row that she hasn't started. With Jasmine, she is dealing with a back injury that has really bothered her leading up to games. She has been hardly practicing days before games. Two days before games she hasn't been practicing. I felt that it was disrupting the rhythm we had during practices. I was playing Aysia Bugg at the point in practice and then moving her to the two [for games]. Someone else would be starting in practice and then coming off the bench in the game. To give us a better rhythm going into games, coming off of practices, we thought it was the best decision to have her coming off the bench. Dealing with the back injury, I felt like she wasn't the same player and my expectations of Jasmine Whitney were from earlier in the season when she was healthy. I thought today she looked more like herself than in previous games."

On the team's depth giving them an advantage in the ACC:

"There are so many teams in this league that are deeper, that are bringing All-Americans off the bench. At Notre Dame, Florida State and Louisville, you're looking at teams that are eight, nine, ten, eleven deep. We are basically playing with eight players after shortening our bench a little bit. When you have Alayna Gribble coming off the bench and hitting shots and you have Kalista Walters who can be a scorer inside, you have that tandem to give you a spark off the bench. Add in Jasmine Whitney and you look at those three players that come off the bench. I like our rotation right now. Cassidy Walsh was sick and I think that affected her getting minutes in the last couple games."

On Kauai Bradley playing the most minutes on the team today:

"We talk about this all the time. She and I sat down and had a conversation where I said you need to make it impossible for me to take you off the floor. I don't go into a game having a preconceived rotation of who my first sub is. It is a game-by-game thing. It could be Aysia [Bugg], it could be anyone. Kauai was having a great game; she was rebounding, hitting shots, making plays and she didn't come off until she picked up her second foul, with about 2 minutes to go in the half. She is someone that we have talked about how she can impact our team offensively and defensively and when she plays like that you can expect those minutes."

Pitt Sophomore Forward Kauai Bradley

On the mentality after a tough loss at No. 6/6 Notre Dame:

"I think we were energetic and more determined because we knew what we had to do to come back from the loss. We executed more, we were more effective, and we just took our time and played confidently."

On her second career double-double:

"I give all the credit to my teammates and coaches for having confidence in me, and then my teammates for getting the ball to me."

On keys to the team's victory:

"It was just our all-around game, just being decisive in what we wanted to do, finding the open holes and open players and things like that. Just staying consistent and effective."

Pitt Women's Basketball Postgame Quotes

Players Mentioned

Kauai Bradley

Aysia Bugg

Destinie Gibbs

Alayna Gribble

Cassidy Walsh

Kalista Walters

Jasmine Whitney

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