Nov. 25, 2006
Head Coach Michelle Bento-Jackson
On the win:
"The win definitely helps our confidence. The two losses that we've had this year, it felt like we were right in those games and we had the opportunity to win but unfortunately didn't pull it off. Today we were just trying to improve on some of our weaknesses. It's a progression, everyday we have to work to become a better basketball team."
On having five players in double-figure scoring:
"It was huge, one of our goals throughout this season will be to get balance in our scoring attack, and when we have that, we can be very dangerous and difficult to defend. Tonight, I thought we had spurts of playing really good basketball, but there were moments where our intensity dropped a little bit. We just need to get to a point where we can sustain that for 40 minutes."
On Jen Gottschalk's performance:
"Jen's been huge for us, obviously with her rebounding and scoring, but in addition to that she is also a good passer. When she gets the ball and defenders collapse on her, she can find the open shooter. She has just really been a bonus for us this year.
On the post play opening things up for the guards:
"We can't just rely on our outside shooting, so once we get the contribution from our inside players, its just going to open up. When you can score from the outside and inside, it becomes very difficult to defend."
Guard Chandice Cronk
On the team's second-half comeback:
"We panicked a little when they came back, but we did a really good job of having a solid last four minutes to close out the game."
On the team's long-range shooting success: "We've been a good three-point shooting team, but I also think that our posts have done a good job in helping balance our offense."
On the post players opening up the perimeter for the guards:
"Our posts have stepped up tremendously. Some teams may deny the guards open looks, and when our posts start scoring, defenders are going to have to collapse and it gives us open looks on the outside."
On beating a Pac-10 school in Washington State:
"It feels great. We only lost to a ranked BYU team in the last few minutes, and it gives us a good sense of confidence, especially since we're playing Stanford next week."
Forward Jen Gottschalk
On winning the rebounding battle:
"That's something we've really been working on, because we know that when we rebound well, we're going to win games. Its our job to get in there and box out, so we knew what we had to do today."
On her strong play this week: "Our guards are so good at seeing the openings and getting the ball to the posts. I know that when they give it to me, I have the green light, and its been working out well lately."
On the win:
"We're really excited to play Stanford, and I think that this game was a good realization for us in that we know that we can beat any team. We just have to continue to work hard and get better everyday."