Kentucky-Ole Miss Women's Basketball Postgame Quotes
Kentucky-Ole Miss Postgame Press Conference
Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center
Feb. 29, 2024
Head Coach Kyra Elzy
On the start of the game…
“Yeah, I thought we started flat defensively. We gave them way too many open shots we did want to close out short because they hadn’t been shooting at the three well, but close out short to the three-point line. We needed more active hands. We gave them way too many 12 to 15-foot jumpers which they could nail that. So that was not the game plan, but when we did get them to miss, the offensive rebounds, on the other end, you know I thought we had layups and you know we finished 5 for 17 in that first half and I thought that really deflated us which didn’t help our defensive intensity.”
On what the team needs to do to be more competitive…
“Yeah, you know obviously. Well, let’s talk offensively first obviously we are not where we want to be. We always want to protect home and obviously, we haven’t done that you know offensively when we’re getting layups, we have to make people pay. We were downhill, we were at the rim, um we got to finish some of those we finish the game 11 for 35 so playing off two feet is what we worked on. We got to be able to finish that. We shot 29 percent but also taking care of the ball. We talked about short passes, meet the pass. 17 turnovers they scored 32 points offensively. You know better spacing, timing, and we just have to be able to knock down shots. We shot 29 percent. We are not going to beat very many people with that. And then defensively we just have to have better intensity so it might not be the first shot that gets you. We can’t let people continue to drive downhill but the offensive rebounds are really hurting us.”
On what finishing strong means to you…
“You know we want to win. And to finish strong you need some wins. You know I want to make sure we are getting max effort offensively and defensively. You know selling out pride for this program. Which we have shown we can do so we need to get back to that obviously. We’re going into a tough environment at LSU but it’s another game, it’s another opportunity before we head into the SEC tournament. And then we always want to make a run in March.”
On how to fix shooting slump…
“Well, you know some of its mental when you start missing. One of the things we committed to before this game, trying to make 800 makes trying to make them confident seeing the ball go through the net and actually in practice we actually shot the ball relatively well against our practice team who was pressuring us. I think one of the things is when we miss a few shots we got to think that next play mentality. Shoot when you’re on shoot when you’re off shoot until you come back on. You have to have that short-term memory when you miss a few, and keep the confidence you have worked on it and that they will go in.”
On what Ole Miss did today to secure the win…
“I thought they were very physical on the offensive board. Some of the time we had the position, and they still got it, but you’d have to be able to push back, make contact, and jump. We’ve talked about being relentless on that end, but we ended up giving up 18 offensive boards, some of which came off long turning them into 50/50 balls that our guards had to help us go get.”
On your team’s performance after halftime…
“We came out at halftime, and we were down 15 points. We said we wanted to cut it down by ten by the first media timeout. We also wanted to be solid defensively and push the ball in transition. Overall, I thought we cut it down to 11 points and then we missed a few shots, let our offense affect our defense, and then we quit sprinting back. In terms of defensive transition, I thought we gave Ole Miss some open looks and they were able to knock them down.”
On your future at Kentucky….
“I believe I am going to be back here. No one has told me any different. So, until then, my job is to coach this team and get us ready. Heading into the postseason, that is where my mind is. I’m sure I will meet with administration after the season, but as for right now I am the head coach here and I’m going to put my head down and grind and continue to work.”
On Emma King’s and Cassidy Rowe’s steadfastness even in challenging situations…
“Cassidy Rowe and Emma King just continue to play with great pride, that’s why you love those kids. They are willing to sacrifice their body, which is tough to do day in and day out and is something I am extremely proud of them for. They are going to give you all that they have. It was the last home game on the floor for Emma King so I am disappointed that we could not send her out with a win, but we still have games left to play.”
Player Quotes
#2, Saniah Tyler, G, So.
On flipping the switch to play fearless basketball…
“Just knowing that I put the work in and knowing that I have the confidence in myself to make shots, even when I have a slow start, and knowing that I put the work in so there is no reason to get worried about not making shots or not helping my team.”
On the first quarter struggles…
“We just kind of settled in a little bit. Shots were not falling; we were off on transition defense. We just had to find ourselves and that’s kind of why we had a slow start for a little bit.”
#20, Amiya Jenkins, G, So.
On how it feels to go against players three to six inches taller…
“I would just say playing aggressive and fearless. Not being afraid of the challenge. Because regardless you’re gonna have to do what you need to do.”
On her aggression towards the basket…
“I feel like I need to be aggressive every night. My shots weren’t falling today, but that’s okay. Overall, we just need to play aggressive all around.”
