Louisville vs. Georgetown
February 01, 2011 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 1, 2011
Recap | Box Score | Notes | Photo Gallery 
Louisville Assistant Coach Michelle Clark-Heard
(On Louisville's second half breakdown) "I think the biggest thing is, we've got to find some answers. There's going to be a quick turnaround for us so he's in there now talking to the team, trying to figure out what exactly was the problem. There were supposed to be adjustments in the game as far as handling the press. We worked on it for three days after knowing they were going to press. There have been games when we've been able to come back from making mistakes. We let our offense dictate our defense tonight. We can't win big games like that. I think that's one of the things we'll talk to the team about. Defensively, they ran the same one-two-two press we run. We call it Mad Dog, but they were really aggressive in their one-two-two. In the first half, we adjusted. We had our four player cutting to the middle, scored a couple of baskets off of it. We came out in the second half and they went to a two-two-one, which we still should have been able to attack. We told them exactly what to do and it just didn't happen. When you you're in a primary situation like we were tonight, we have to figure out how to get them to understand the adjustments we have to make to put us in a situation to have a chance to win. Coach always tells them, if you can get me to the last five minutes, I'll help you win the game. Well they didn't put us in that position tonight. Sometimes they didn't listen to the adjustments coach was trying to get them to make by communicating and listening. That's what he's in there talking to them about."
(On the rough first half) "I just think we didn't handle it. This was probably the most athletic team and quick team we've played in the [BIG EAST] conference, by far. I don't know if they really realized how athletic, how quick they were, how they could recover from one spot to the next spot so fast. I think they were in the situation and then it hit them. I think that's where as a coaching staff and as a team, we have to continue to get better. We have to put them in a situation where they can understand that we have seven more games left in the conference, and we have to get better."
(On Shoni Schimmel) "I think the greatest thing about her is--I mean you've all seen her play this year--she's going to adjust. She's very coachable and she wants to be good. A lot of times in the game, she is able to adjust on the spot. She continued to keep doing the same thing. Coach kept telling her "Don't put the ball over your head, don't put the ball over your head. When they're aggressive, they're going to trap you." But she kept doing it. In other games, she's been able to get away with it because the teams are not as athletic. She'll be fine. She and Coach Walz have a great relationship. She's going to listen and she wants to win so she'll listen and do whatever it takes adjustment-wise."
(On if they were the best guard combo Louisville has faced this year) "Hands down--we talked about, and I just expressed a few minutes ago, athletically, being able to put the ball on the floor and being able to shoot it, yes, by far. I think that is a big positive for them because they played really, really hard. You add talent. [Monica] McNutt is a senior. [Sugar] Rodgers is just a ball player. She's Freshman of the Year in the conference, she's big time. We told them, she's not going to go 1-11. She went 1-11 in the first half, and she took some good shots and missed some good shots. We told them, when she gets on a roll, she can shoot it and she's going to get it. That's what happened. Those are things that we have to understand. We made a couple of adjustments where we went triangle and two. There for a moment it worked, but when you leave a shooter and they got the feel, they're going to feel it. To answer that question yes, they're very talented. On top of it, they played really well."
(On Georgetown hitting 67 percent of threes in the second half) "It's like I said, when you're a ball player and you come off a 1-11 shooting in the first half and you hit your first one or two shots, you're going on a roll. That's basically what happened. [Sugar] Rodgers and [Monica] McNutt both have quick releases on their shots. McNutt is tall, so with her height advantage, if you don't get your hand up and challenge the shot, if you give her any room, she's going to score. That's what happened."
(On the similarities between Antonita Slaughter and Monica McNutt) "I think if Coach Walz was standing up here, he'd probably tell you Antonita has got to get tougher. She can shoot the ball just like McNutt, but McNutt is tough and she's a senior. Antonita has to continue to keep working. She's got to get in the gym, get dedicated. "
