Kentucky Women’s Basketball
2001-02 Media Day
Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2001
Coach Bernadette Mattox
On the time available to practice before the team’s first exhibition…”Of the seven years that I have coached, the three weeks we have this season is the shortest time we’ve had to practice before our first exhibition. I’ve been really pleased with the progress of the players. I think with the experience they had last year, it helped them to come right back and put our offenses in, our defenses in, our presses in – it was still fresh on their minds on doing those things. I believe their progress is predicated upon all the time they had last year to play.”
On the summer trip to Paris, France…
“At the end of last season, it was very beneficial for us to have that extra month of practice. I have to commend Larry (Ivy) for allowing the team to go to Europe. I can’t say enough about that trip and what it did for the players. It gave them more experience, it gave them the opportunity to bond and come closer together, it gave them the opportunity as a team for individuals to step up. More importantly, it gave them some extra work on the floor. They got better and it was very noticeable on the first day of practice.”
On guard Danyelle Payne…
“I think Danyelle is our team’s best all-around player. She can do it all – she can drive, she can shoot, she can penetrate. She is the type of player that you wish you had at every position. She brings a different element to our team and I’m really pleased in what I see in her.”
On forward Sara Potts…
“She going to give us an advantage at 6-0 at that wing spot. She’s a great left-handed three-point shooter and can control the basketball. She’s very poised for a freshman on the floor and she has really jumped in and found her niche with the offense. She’s relaxed and will be a nice addition to this basketball team.”
On freshman Keiko Miller-Tate…
“At 6-2, she has long limbs that takes up a lot of space inside. She’s been the truest post player that we’ve recruited to this point. Great, soft touch around the basket and I think she’s going to be an outstanding rebounder. I am pleased with her ability to get offensive rebounds and put-backs and she’ll help our inside presence.”
On guard Kristin Connolly…
“Kristin went back home this summer and really worked on extending her range. One of our Achilles’ heels last year was our ability to score from the outside and Kristin has come back with that extended range. She’s shooting with a lot of confidence and we’re really looking for her to bring some perimeter shooting to our team.”
On sophomore Dasieka Hawthorne…
“She really committed herself to getting back her three-point shooting over the summer. She was a two-guard and we turned her into a point guard and that’s a totally different mentality than a shooting guard. This summer, she went back and really worked on her shooting. The Paris trip really helped her – she ran the floor, she ran the team, she controlled the tempo and she made sure we were in our offenses and that’s what I wanted to see from her.”
On sophomore Shambrica Jones…
“Much, much improved. She’s developed a consistent jump shot and even developed a step-back jump shot. At 6-0, you’ve got to have something against the 6-6’s and 6-7’s in this league and she’s developed that shot. She is really going to command a lot of respect when she puts the ball on the floor this season.”
On sophomore Alvine Mendeng…
“She added about 10 pounds of muscle to her body. You’re going to see how strong she is, she finishes inside and that’s really going to help her create a big-time presence inside. She’s likes the 10 pounds and its been effective for her. She adds that dimension of power inside.”
On sophomore Stephanie Stoglin…
“Stephanie really worked on bringing back a jump hook. She’s really worked hard on her shooting touch and she’s probably our most improved defender- she’s improved her defense and is really getting after it. I think that she will step up and give a lot more minutes than she did last year.”
On sophomore SeSe Helm…
“A great offensive player. She’s got great touch around the basket and has a great percentage from the free-throw line. Right now, we’re totally focusing on defense with SeSe. Last year, she stayed in foul trouble because of defense. She starting to become a real presence inside, we need her on the floor not on the bench with three fouls.”
On junior Rita Adams…
“I’ve moved Rita from the two primarily to the one position. We need a backup one and I think she’s capable of doing that, it gives two different elements at that position. She’s done a great job of distributing the basketball, keeping us in our offense. She’s been a trooper and is doing what’s best for our basketball team.”
On senior Niecee Patterson…
“She’s a fifth year senior who right now is still nursing her knee. It’s not back to where we want it and there’s been some more swelling on it. We’re not sure what’s going to happen with her right now but if she can go, we’re going to use her as a utility player. She’ been around, she’s mature, we can play her in a lot of different positions and I like her experience on the floor.”
On senior LaTonya McDole…
“I am very pleased with LaTonya right now. She’s come back as a senior and has really been a presence on the floor. She’s all over the place – rebounding, shooting, and defending. Every coach wants their seniors to have that kind of presence on the floor. I can see her being one of the top five or six players in the conference.”
On the goals for the season…
“We’ve just had two weeks of practice and our immediate goal is basketball and the team. We need to continue to work on our fundamentals. We can’t afford to turn the ball over like we did last year so we are fundamentalling our team to death. Shooting – we have to become a better perimeter shooting team and I have been please what I’ve seen that we can have an outside shooting presence.”
On the young roster…
“They’re learning, they’re maturing and they’re understanding what it takes to win at this level. It’s being able to compete for 40 minutes and they’ve learned that. They started learning when we went over seas. We were down 13 to the team that won the championship and I told our coaches this was going to be a turning point for our team. They stepped up and went on to win by 15 points and their confidence was up and they learned how to win in certain situations. The playing time they got last year helped in their maturity and confidence on the floor.”
On the schedule…
“We play 14 teams that went to the postseason and 10 of them are from the Southeastern Conference. Our conference is so strong and brutal. When you look at the WNBA, most of the players in the league are from our conference.”
Senior forward
LaTonya McDole
On this season…
“We have everybody back, so we all have a year under our belts. Even though we lost a lot of games last year, we have gained experience that will help us this season. We know now what it takes to win.”
On being a senior…
“It seems like I have been here for awhile. Truthfully, I don’t really remember my freshman year. It has all gone by so quickly. We have had some ups and downs, but I just want to come out and have a great senior season and see us do well.”
On being the only Cat to play on the 1999 NCAA tournament team…
“We don’t often talk about that tournament. We just come out to practice and are focused on this season. It doesn’t do us any good to look back to that season. Even in two-a-days, we get to the evening practice and are still ready to go. This team wants to win and get back to the NCAA.”
On how good this team can be…
“We are as good as we make ourselves. It would be nice to make the tournament again. If we take care of business, we can definitely do that. And it would be great to do it during my senior year.”
Sophomore center
SeSe Helm
On this season…
“The trip to Europe is going to help us a lot and will be a big help. We learned how to win. In one game we were down 15 at the half but came back to win by 15. That shows the heart this team has. This year is going to be dramatically different than last season. We’re a year older, a year wiser. We know what it takes to win.”
On how far this team can go…
“The sky’s the limit. We all have to come together to get it done because it is going to take more than one player. We’ve been through the worst, so now it is time for the best. We believe we can win.”
On the expectations she will face this year…
“I’m going to face a lot of expectations. But I can only do what I can do, and that is to go out every game and play as hard as I can to help this team win. That is what I am going to do.”
Sophomore guard
Kristin Connolly
On the college game vs. the high school game…
“(The college game) was surprisingly different from high school. I knew it would be hard, but once I got into an actual game situation, it was different. The fast tempo and the size and strength of the players makes it a lot different than high school.”
On the team’s summer trip to Paris…
“We won all five games (during the team trip to Paris) which helped our confidence and we learned how to win. We also bonded as a team really well off the court which helped bring us together and will help us this season.”
On the losing season in 2000-01…
“Last season was not a frustrating experience at all. It was a great learning experience and I know that we will grow from it, so I think it was a pretty positive experience.”
On keeping the team’s confidence high…
“Our confidence stays high by working hard and seeing the results in practice, and knowing that we have a chance of winning the next game through our hard work in practice.”
On her off-season workouts…
“During the off-season I worked hard on my shot and extended my range, hoping to be a three-point threat this year. I didn’t really consider myself a deep threat last year. I hopefully will be someone they rely on this season for the long range shot.”
On the team’s potential this year…
“I think we have unlimited potential just like any other team. If everything comes together and clicks, we have the athletic ability and the talent that if we work hard this team can go very far.”
