Kentucky Head Coach Matthew Mitchell
Opening statement…
“This was a great victory for us and the team has just worked so hard the last three weeks of the season to try to become their best and I’m just really proud of them. It’s about as much fun as you can have coaching when you’ve got a group of people that really want to play for each other and work hard for each other and meet challenges together. I give the players credit, they changed their attitudes around and their effort to finish the regular season on a six game winning streak. We did three really tough road games Vanderbilt, Mississippi State, Texas A&M. Going 3-0 down the stretch on the road is really significant so super proud of our players and excited to go to Jacksonville and see what we can do there.”
On game plan…
“Well specifically we wanted to get more offensive rebounds because we think that really speaks to hustle. A jump shooting team, the way that Texas A&M plays offense, sometimes they’re missing shots and you’re in rebounding position and you can do a good job on the defensive boards. Although I was really happy, I thought we finished possessions, we were particularly good today on the defensive glass but I’m so proud of the offensive glass because you really have to go. The focus was hustle and to try to outhustle Texas A&M.”
On Courtney Walker…
“She’s a great player, has been for four years. It’s been an honor to compete against her, she’s really, really good, I know she’ll be a great pro. She’s a great student and she’ll be a great professional whatever she chooses to do.”
Alexis Jennings, Kentucky Sophomore Forward
On points inside especially rebounding margin…
“I don’t think that I was surprised. You know we’ve been working on that these past six games and I’m just glad that we were fortunate enough to execute.”
On what’s working well for team…
“I think just our team chemistry. We’re with each other all the time and when you’re with each other constantly, all the time, you know each other’s weaknesses and strengths so you just continue to help each other day in and day out including in practice. That’s just one thing that really worked for us and I feel like that’s why we play so well together.”
Makayla Epps, Kentucky Junior Guard
On team dynamic…
“We were down in the conference four and six with our backs against the wall and I’m sure a lot of people probably didn’t think we’d go on a six game winning streak, closing out the regular season. Our coach just told us we became a team. We’re truly a team and not a lot of people can say that about their team right now. We’re truly a team like we love each other, we work hard for each other, we work hard for our coaches. We all have the same goal, we’re all on the same page, we know what we want to do every night when we face an opponent and we just like playing for each other. We like winning as a team and that’s what it’s all about.”
On importance of defense in third quarter surge…
“It’s really important, especially playing a team like Texas A&M when they’ve got high level guards, guards that’ll probably be pros here soon and Courtney Walker and Williams and Jones. It’s just a team effort we know we’ve got a really good game plan defending the perimeter in the post the coaching staff put in a great game plan for us and I thought we executed it well. Of course we made mistakes at times but overall I feel like we were there on every shot to contest and then these two were monsters on the rebound.”
Evelyn Akhator, Kentucky Junior Forward
On what she’s feeling after her career high 18 rebounds in a game…
“Well happy and also like Coach Mitchell, he’s always like we need to get on the guards, four people need to get on the guard so as a post player we run the span of what we do so we just have to go, we don’t have any other choice not to go to the board so we have to do it.”
