UK ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC RELATIONS
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL POSTGAME QUOTES
#13 KENTUCKY VS. PRESBYTERIAN
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2021
MEMORIAL COLISEUM – LEXINGTON, KY.
Kentucky Head Coach Kyra Elzy
On what Coach Elzy said at halftime to improve the team’s performance…
“I just told him I don’t know what Kentucky team this is, but let’s leave them wherever they are and bring out the real Kentucky team. We just really challenged them, we have to bring defensive energy. We had more in the tank than we showed. When we got after it defensively, it led to easy scoring opportunities to ignite a run.”
On whether the team’s defense influenced the team’s offense in the first half…
“Yes, I definitely think we let our offense affect our defense. We were not levelling off the drive, so they got some easy layups. Offensively, we became stagnant. We fell in love with the three-point line early instead of attacking the gaps. But when we start playing inside out, getting the ball at the nail, we had great scoring opportunities. I think Treasure Hunt was a big target for us early. I thought she was willing to put her feet in the paint and score which really opened us up from the outside.”
On if Rhyne’s 3-pointer at the end of the first half changed the momentum..
“Yeah, I think that was a momentum changer. We went in up and we talked about how we were not doing what we needed to do defensively, and we just had to regroup. One thing I like about this team, they will respond. Dre got into foul trouble early, but she settled down offensively, which we talked about at halftime. She went nine for 11. I thought she gave us a real burst of energy offensively. But Jazmine Massengill, I thought she settled us, and she was the leader on the floor. She was our Blue Heart Award-winner, which is an award that we give to our hustle player in honor of Blair Green. It was not so much about her points. I thought she made timely buckets; but it was her hustle plays defensively and keeping us steady offensively when we were not scoring consistently.”
On if Hunt’s performance tonight was what Coach Elzy envisioned when she recruited her…
“Absolutely, (Hunt) was the marquee player. She was a program changer. It was a tough transition for her but give credit to her. She has stuck with the process. She continues to work. She is just gifted offensively, has a great feel for the game. She can score at all three levels, has great size, so she makes us different offensively.”
On if she is happy with the guards’ defensive play tonight…
“Well, I thought we played harder defensively, but I still think we can take a step forward. We did force 25 turnovers, so you have to be excited about that. So, I am happy, but I just think as a coach you can never be satisfied. In our one-on-one defense, when you’re thinking about big picture, what we’re going to have to do across the perimeter. We’re going to have to do a better job of leveling the basketball off.”
On how she plans to balance rest and repetition in this upcoming six-day, three-game stretch…
“Well, it is a balance. Even if we had more players on the roster, three games in six days are a lot, especially with the style of play that we play. I mean, we play up tempo, aggressive defensively. So even with eight, we have enough, and we’ve talked about it, we’re tough. We are resilient and we are fit. So, we just have to weather the storm right now. We’ll change up our defenses, but we have enough, so it’ll be a good balance. This is a great test for us early.”
Kentucky Student-Athletes
#12 Treasure Hunt, Sophomore, Guard
On the game flow from the first half to the second…
“We just had to get to the open spaces of the court. They were playing the zone most of the game, so the middle was open. That’s all we had to do, get to the middle, get to the open.”
On becoming a post player…
“It’s been tough. I’ve been a guard my whole life and changing in one season was really tough, but I just had to practice, keep working and had to learn how to be a post player”.
#1 Robyn Benton, Senior, Guard
On the difference in her confidence between last week and this week’s game…
“I had an unorthodox week last week. I was sick and some other stuff happened, so I had an unorthodox game. I knew this week I was going to act right, do right, and play right. ”
On getting into the paint to score…
“We were just saying how we needed to drive the ball more, penetrate and stop settling for 3s.”
On Rhyne Howard’s buzzer beater…
“When she hit that 3 I was turned up.”
#10 Rhyne Howard, Senior, Guard
On her buzzer beater before the half…
“It was definitely a momentum swinger. We were down, so hitting that to take us into halftime and give us the lead was big. Everyone was hype, and we went out there, and you see what happened when we came out. We went on a 17-0 run to start, so I definitely think it was a momentum changer and got us going.”
On Coach Elzy’s message during halftime…
“We pretty much had to fix everything really. They were getting too many easy buckets and we just weren’t playing like Kentucky. They were like ‘we needed to lock in and do what we know what to do and do what we do best.'”
On the Blue Heart award in Blair Green’s honor…
“Just having the award is big. This year is definitely for Blair. She works super hard, and this was supposed to be our last season together. When she went out it was tough, but she still keeps us going. She’s always in everyone’s ear. I know it hurts her but she’s making sure everyone is doing what they’re supposed to do and that we’re working just as hard as she did. ”
