March 19, 2005

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Pregame Quotes
Rene Portland, Penn State Head Coach

On 21 NCAA Tournament appearances in 25 years: I really just sit back and try to look at the success that Penn State has had, knowing that I've been very fortunate in women's basketball. This time of the year always comes up and you just get fired up and it's a new season the whole time.

On Liberty: You've got to worry about yourself, I think we had the disappointment of losing the Ohio State game which took the title away from us, then we lost in the semifinals of the Big Ten tournament. We'd like to get some wins before the season is over and so that's what we really focused on. We're coming off two losses that meant a lot to us, obviously this tournament means more than anything to us too.

On players stepping up: Jess (Strom) and Tanisha (Wright) really carry a lot of weight of this basketball club offensively and defensively. The whole week I really went after the others, and Jennifer Brenden really stepped up at the Big Ten tournament and answered that call.

Jess Strom, Senior Guard
On Liberty: We know that they are a good rebounding team, and we have to focus on that. We've let down on that area sometimes during the season. I think that's a big focus of this game.

Tanisha Wright, Senior Guard
On Liberty: They play a zone, and they're really big, so I think they're going to have to be smart with our passes and take care of the ball. They can all shoot the ball, so we definitely have to come out and play good defense. I just think that all around we just have to play a smart basketball game.