Pat Summitt Teleconference

Coach Pat Summitt
UT Lady Vol Coach Pat Summitt teleconference transcript:

On her team's performance last night and against the recent PAC-10 schedule…

“I thought our Stanford game was one in which we stepped up and played together defensively and offensively. We managed to get in a little better rhythm with our offense and our spacing was better. We did a better job of extending our defense and changing our looks. Overall, that was a good win for us, and we executed better than we did against Arizona State. ASU extended more, but I was pleased with our play there. Against Louisiana Tech last night, in the first half, we played with a lot of energy and aggressiveness. In the second half, I thought we lost our intensity at times and we did not have necessarily as strong a commitment across the board from five players. It was good for Cait McMahan to get the experience of starting and playing 24 minutes. I thought Alberta Auguste, Dominique Redding and Alex Fuller did a good job off the bench. That’s the difference from this year’s team to last year’s team. We can maintain our lead and extend on it off our bench.”

On the upcoming game with North Carolina…

“Looking at North Carolina, they are very balanced and deep. They have great support off the bench with the point guard play and with what they have down the middle. Erlana Larkins was a really tough guard for us last year, and Camille Little can make great plays. They just have great balance and depth. Playing them on their home court will be a good challenge for us and just what this team needs. It will be a good measure of how good we are and where we can improve. When we play against a talented team like North Carolina that can expose weaknesses and challenge us, it will be good for us.”

On playing a difficult schedule so early…

“It gives you a better or more realistic view of where you are. I think some of the games that we played in were much more one sided, so we don’t expose our weaknesses in games like that. When you play quality opponents, Arizona State was aggressive on defense and UCLA had offensive players that were skilled and Stanford with their inside game, I think it gives us an opportunity to learn more about ourselves and identify where we need to get better. That is why we play the tough opponents that we face.”

On memories of UT-Martin…

“I had a wonderful experience there. I always tell our players, you have no idea, you have a lot of friends in high school but I think your lifelong friends come from experiences of college. That is certainly my experience from Martin. I had a chance to go to the first AIAW National Championship Tournament. It was more than I ever anticipated coming out of high school. It will be great to have a lot of those people at Thompson-Boling Arena and to play against UT-Martin.”

On coaching against UT-Martin head coach Tara Tansil…

“I have a lot of respect for her. Having a chance for their team and staff to be on our court and to see everyone from Martin, it is always a battle when we play them. I’m glad we could work out a game here in Knoxville.”

On naming of courts…

“I learned a lot just playing the game at UT-Martin. We played a lot of tough competition. Tennessee Tech was one of our biggest rivals in-state. Having the opportunity to compete against great teams and go onto the AIAW Nationals. We had a lot of support on campus. It was fun to have the student body come to our games and to have the relationships that I did with friends there, that was really special for me. The naming of the court was a tremendous honor and respect for me. I take a lot of pride in UT-Martin which is one of the reasons I went back to do their graduation commencement speech.”

On the growing rivalry with George Washington…

“We’ve had some great games. I always learn a lot just from their style of play. They do some similar things to what we do, but they mix up their defenses. Last year was a challenging game for us, and it is good for us to see their style of play. They are tough-minded and obviously well-coached and well-prepared.”

On relationship with George Washington Coach McKeown…

“I think it’s more than just basketball. We’ve developed a friendship and been able to talk basketball and to share. Typically we only play once during the year. When you have people that you respect and you’re not fighting in your conference for it, you can give and take and learn from them. I’ve been able to learn from not only the friendship but the coaching and competition as well.”

On how the experience will help in playing George Washington…

“It does help to have prior knowledge and experience of playing against them. I think for our team, they have grown accustomed to quick turnarounds. I think you have to manage your schedule. It does speed up the scouting if you’re familiar with an opponent. I think you have to manage time and preparation. That’s been a big part of our players understanding how we operate. Today we will go in and have preparation for our game at North Carolina, take tomorrow off and Friday come back to it. I am trying to manage it and use our time wisely so they don’t feel overwhelmed.”

How important will a fast start be at North Carolina…

“I’m very hopeful that we handle their pressure better. I think we’re better equipped in the backcourt with our guard play this year. I thought that was a big difference in the game, matching their intensity and taking care of the ball better. Last year we turned it over way too much early on. I don’t think we’ll see anything different from their pressure than last year; that is their style of play. I have to believe that as a basketball team we’re more skilled and experienced.”

On having an identity early in the season…

“Early on, without question, it’s been our defense that has defined us. It is a complete 180 from last year. We had to rely so much on our offense last year and couldn’t generate easy points off of our defense. That’s been a significant difference. Our shooting percentage, and just our play overall, starts on the defensive end. Our games have been more efficient. The improvement of Nicky Anosike, Alex Fuller and Candace Parker has really helped us, and Sidney Spencer is shooting the ball well for us. No doubt defense has been the turnaround of our team.”

On quick turnarounds and the role of assistant coaches…

“My staff is tremendous in their preparations. Our daily practice preparation with my assistants have allowed us to get much better on the defensive end in particular.”

On the series with North Carolina…

“Sylvia Hatchell (North Carolina head coach) approached me about scheduling again. She said she needed some time to deal with when she cancelled the series years ago, obviously she didn’t need much time. I thought it would be appealing for us, for them and for basketball fans, so we decided to do it and got the games scheduled. I’m looking forward to the series with North Carolina. Our game against them last year in the Elite Eight convinced me even more to stick with the series. Any time that there is a program out there that has a chance of being one of the best in the country, I try to schedule them.”