Coach Hillsman Quotes
Carrier Dome –
Opening Statement:
“I’m very disappointed in the loss. I thought it was a very physical game and overall they were just a little more physical than we were – that was it. They really beat us up on the glass and I thought that was the difference in the game. They really took advantage of us on the rebounding end and if you can’t rebound the basketball then you can’t win.”
On the difference in rebounding:
“They went to the glass every time. We went to the glass but they went a little bit harder.”
On Chandrea Jones:
“She got shots, she took them and she didn’t make them and I don’t think it was because she didn’t try to shoot. She got the shots that she has been getting all season long, she just didn’t make them.”
On the correlation between rebounding and losses:
“Every game that we haven’t won, we have been out-rebounded. That has been the deciding factor on every game that we have lost – we were just not rebounding the basketball. If we aren’t rebounding the basketball we can’t win, and that is what most frustrating. We started off the season rebounding the ball really well, and I thought in the last week and a half or so, we have been in a little bit of a decline in getting on the glass. We just have to compete. We have to continue to play hard and that is going to be the difference in us winning basketball games. If we don’t compete and play hard for 40 minutes, we are going to have a problem.”
On whether Notre Dame was more physical on the boards:
“I don’t think they were more physical. I thought a couple things went into that, too. They were able to stand in the lane a little bit for three seconds, they never left the lane and that is a big thing in rebounding when you can stand in the lane for three seconds the whole game – you’re going to get a lot of rebounds. I have to give the kid credit because I wouldn’t leave the lane either if I didn’t have to, and she didn’t have to leave so I can’t be mad at her. She did what she had to do and she was physical and she really steeled inside. It was something that I thought was a constant thing throughout the game, that they were really able to get in at the basketball and stay in the lane. We were down their battling and pushing but when you can stand there and maintain that position for an entire possession, it is hard to box out.”
On the game after
“I don’t think we played bad after tying the ball game up. One shot, the kid didn’t even look and threw up a hook and it went in, and then they tapped one in by accident. Two of their field goals were like accidents so when you go on a 10-0 run and two of your field goals are accidents then the ball is kind of bouncing your way. I thought that down the stretch, Chandrea (Jones) made a great block that turned into a flagrant foul. I thought it was a very good block but those things don’t really determine games. I don’t think the referees really determine games, I think players determine games, I am never going to stand up at the podium and say they lost the game because of bad officiating. We have to adjust and do what they let us do and they have to do what they are able to do. I thought that at times we didn’t take advantage of the things we could take advantage of throughout the game as far as being a little more physical in the paint.”
On the final three minutes:
“One of the big things was we got the shots and there was a lot of contact going to the basket. We go to the basket and if they can get contact and we can miss shots then it is going to be a long three minutes because we attack the rim. We do a good job of going to the basket every possession and we are going to continue to do that whether we’re making shots, whether they’re calling fouls or not. That is our game and we can’t deviate from that plan.”
On whether contending with a higher ranked opponent is a moral victory:
“They’re ranked, we’re ranked. There are no moral victories, we don’t do that. A loss is a loss.”
On what the team can take away from this game:
“One thing that we did was that we really rallied back down the stretch to tie the game up and our goal every game, home or away, win or lose is to have a chance to win the basketball game inside of four minutes. I thought that inside of four minutes we definitely had a chance to win the basketball game, and that is where we want to be night in and night out, to have a chance to win the game. I felt that tonight we definitely had a chance to win the game.”
On whether the “almost victory” is frustrating:
“I don’t want to call it frustrating because it is a top 20 team, so when you have a top 20 team on your home floor, it is more of a missed opportunity than it is frustrating. They are a good team, I am not going to take anything away from them, they are a very talented team and they do a good job of getting into their offense. They are very strong and experienced and I thought they just made a few more plays than we did tonight.”
On getting the team to bounce back:
“We just go to practice tomorrow and get after it first thing in the morning. That is real simple, we just have to get back to work. There really isn’t anything to say, it is just something you have to go and try to fix. We have to make sure we do a good job of being aggressive and continue playing at the rim and squaring our shoulder to the basket when we’re taking shots in the paint, and those are the things that we have to do.”
On Erica Morrow:
“Erica is going to be aggressive and we are going to get the ball in her hands. They went to a box and one on her and at the end of the game it didn’t limit her touches, because their box and one didn’t stop her from getting the catch. We still got the ball into her hands which I thought we had to, and we did that. We got the ball to her and she made some free throws, she made three late I think it was. She is a tough kid and I admire her for coming to this level night in and night out and competing.”
On Chandrea Jones going 1-for-12:
“Not a big thought, if she had went 9-for-12 we would have been talking about how great she is, but we just continue to run our offense. We’re going to continue to put the ball in the hands of the people that can score and tonight I thought Erica (Morrow) did well, I thought Vaida (Sipavicute) played pretty good down low, I thought Vionca (Murray) played well in the paint, so we tried to get them the ball.”
On focusing on getting points in the paint:
“Our game plan is to play at the rim and be aggressive, so that is a conscious effort night in and night out. We really want to get the ball at the rim and be aggressive so we aren’t going to stop doing that, and I thought we played pretty well at the rim.”
On Notre Dame center Erica Williamson:
“I didn’t think that Vionca (Murray) or Fantasia (Goodwin) did a bad job against her, but when you can stay put underneath that rim and just stand there it is tough no matter who is guarding her. We could have had Arinze Onuaku guarding her and if she is standing there the whole game she might get one or two. Really, when you think about it she just stood there and she was physical and she was aggressive and I give the kid credit. I wouldn’t have left the lane either, I wouldn’t have left and she didn’t, all night and I can’t be mad at her for that. She did what she had to do to win and I thought she was a big factor, clogging the lane up on offense and defense, she was a presence down there and I was impressed with her play.”
On Notre Dame making shots in the final stretch:
“That was huge, the whole night (Melissa Lechlitner) wasn’t making baskets and down the stretch for her to make two big shots that was huge. She is a good player and we knew that she was a good player, so we weren’t ignoring her. She just shook loose twice and made two plays that I thought were huge and that was the difference in the game.”
