Dec. 11, 2005

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Maryland Head Coach Brenda Frese

On the game
"I'm so proud of our team. We are so much fun to watch when we play as unselfishly as we did today. Every time you challenge this team, they definitely respond. I'm excited about the commitment that we have from our current fans, but I want to challenge the fans that haven't seen our team play, because they're missing a great thing."

On the 17-0 run to end the first half
"I thought we just turned our defense up and stopped trading baskets. Our guards were great. I was really proud of Shay Doron. I told her in the locker room that I thought it was the best game she's had since she's been here. That's what it takes to be a championship team. She's normally a scorer but she distributed the ball and got it to the right people. It's very difficult to defend us when we're playing so unselfishly."

On offensive balance
"When you see us shooting 89 percent from the 3-point line in the first half, you know that they're making the extra pass. We didn't have to force anything. When you go with the inside-outside game that we had today, it makes us that much harder to defend."

On points in the paint
"We've really challenged the team to take what teams are going to give us and adjust because we have strengths at every position on the floor. We're starting to understand that different games and even different halves are going to require different types of offensive play. We were clicking on all cylinders today."

On defensive looks from Arizona
"We did a tremendous job in handling the press. We challenged the team because we felt like we needed to do a better job for 40 minutes in this game of breaking their press. Our turnovers just came off mental mistakes, but in terms of handling the press, especially without our true point guard, we really stepped up today."

On this year's team
"The thing I love about this team is how special a group this is. We can challenge this group and they'll respond. They want to get better and dominate. I felt like this was a statement game for us, because we knew we were going to face adversity from their press and our being shorthanded. To dominate like we did was exciting. Every player took ownership of their play and stepped up when we needed them."

Maryland Guard Marissa Coleman

On getting first-career start
"I knew that regardless of when I played, I needed to come in and do what I could to help the team out. But it is nice to get the start."

On her perimeter play
"I just wanted to shoot it when I was open and if I could make an extra pass to get someone an open shot, I'd do that. I just needed to do whatever I could to help us win. For us to shoot 89 percent [from three in the first half] - that's pretty crazy. They were doubling on [Laura] Harper and [Crystal] Langhorne, so we were getting a lot of open shots."

Maryland Forward Laura Harper

On returning from injury
"It's definitely wonderful to be a part of this team right now. I feel like we gain something every game and get better. I just want to play and get better every day."

On inside play
"It's a lot of fun because when we dominate down low, we're opening things up for the guards to get better shots outside. We're a complete team, and the only thing we can do is get better. We definitely took a step forward today."

Maryland Guard Ashleigh Newman

On the point guard play of Shay Doron
"She definitely made things a lot easier out there. Knowing that my teammates are going to make the extra pass makes me feel good about where we are as a team."

On offensive balance
"It's very exciting knowing that we have so many weapons on this team. We know that we can go inside and if they're double or triple-teaming, we can just kick it out to the guards and get good shots."

Arizona Head Coach Joan Bonvicini

On the Wildcats response to Maryland's 17-0 run
"Well I think we were 1 for 14 in attempts [during that span]. Every time we missed they went down and scored."

On Maryland's offense
"Maryland has a lot of different weapons, inside and out, and they are also good defensively. We went to a zone, which I thought was smart. I just don't think we were aggressive enough coming out in the first half. For us, we have a lot of quickness, but obviously what we lack right now is inside game."

On points scored in the paint
"We didn't cut off the baseline and they just have a lot of different weapons. They're good."

On the Maryland team
"The only weakness that I think Maryland has right now is that they are young, but other than that, they shoot well from the three and the free throw line. They are a good team. Maryland is going to be a team that has a chance to go a long way this year."