"We knew this was going to be a really tough game. Michigan is really well coached and they're really disciple, they don't make a lot of mistakes and you can see that they play with 40 minutes of effort. We really challenged ourselves at halftime to do a better job on the boards, and to pick up defensively and rebounding. I thought that Katelynn Flaherty was sensational, she really got into a groove in the third quarter. But I'm really proud of, you know when you talk about the foul trouble, as you know,
Brionna Jones put the team on her back day in and day out. I thought that Kiah Gillepsie and
Kaila Charles did a phenomenal job, we didn't miss a beat. That's what you're supposed to do when you have a deep team and that kind of energy. From Kiah's end, just how she's been practicing, it's great to see it all come together because it makes us a really strong, deep team when we have that energy coming off of the bench like we did tonight. I thought that our fourth quarter came down to defense and rebounding and I thought we did a really solid job to be able to put this game away."
On Katelynn Flaherty's low scoring in the last minutes of the game being attributed to Maryland's defensive coverage or just her getting tired:
"I think both, I think our depth was able to wear her out. I think we were able to throw a lot of different looks at her with Kaila and Shatori and Ieshia. And then with Hallie Thome, between Kiah Gillepsie and
Brionna Jones, they did a phenomenal job getting her in foul trouble and getting her out of the game."
On Kiah Gillepsie's performance tonight:
"It was special to watch, that's what we's been seeing in practice. I've said that I love how hard she's been working and you see her just putting her head down, and staying the course, you see good things are going to come your way. Obviously every player on our roster is extremely talented and can help us in some type of way, and Kiah Gillepsie was ready when her number was called tonight."
On figuring something out with Brionna Jones to have her start with one bucket and finish with 25 points:
"I think it took us a little bit of time, defensively we were out of sync to start the game and that led to some poor offense and trying to figure out how they were defending us. I thought our guard play did a much better job being able to play through her, and when we can play through
Brionna Jones, great things happen for our team.
Brionna Jones
On Kiah's assistance in the game
"She was a spark off the bench tonight. To see all that hard work she puts in practice and all the effort she puts in, seeing that transition into the game it is great."
On her improvement from last year
"I think it is just effort and staying locked in and taking care of everything I can on the court, and taking care of myself off the court. Also, credit to my teammates for finding me when I am open."
Sophomore Forward Kiah Gillespie
On her practice time transitioning into the game:
"It is fun, to just go out there out my head down and work. Just doing the things the team needs: getting rebounds, defending, running plays. It is just a fun thing to see my practice transition to the actual game."
On the three she mad at the buzzer on the third quarter:
"It gave me a lot, I wanted to shoot it from half court, but coach was not having it. It would have been cooler to have made it from half court, but it was a good feeling especially going into the fourth quarter, it was that little buzz we needed."
Freshman Guard Kaila Charles
On coming in as a freshman with supreme defense on Katelynn Flaherty
"It is a great felling to know I have my coaches trust, cause every player wants that. So it just motived me to do the job I was assigned. I just need to make sure that I am focused in the game to go over the screens, and to put pressure on her. It had worked, even with the different switches we were able to hold her scoreless for 15 mins. We knew she was strong offensively on all three levels, and it is a big accomplishment to do that. So having the trust form the coach to do that and execute was a great result."
Michigan Head Coach Kim Barnes Arico
On the game:
“I thought it was a great basketball game. The end score really didn't indicate how close of a game it was. Maryland is an outstanding team. We knew we were going to have a tough contest tonight coming into the game. I was really proud for how our team responded for three quarters. I think Maryland's depth and ability to pressure us and force turnovers really helped them down the stretch in the fourth quarter of the game. We're a team that's going to continue to work and improve and hopefully we'll face them again in the Big Ten Tournament.”
On if the Michigan got worn down by the depth of Maryland:
“Well I think it's a combination. I think we get worn down because of the pressure that they give. They're an incredibly deep team, they're first in our league in steals, and their depth and their pressure wears people down. So they definitely wore us down, I mean they shot the ball in the fourth quarter exceptionally well but I think most of them were layups, a lot of them were layups and there were awful hard turnovers. So, they did a great job of executing down the stretch, they're an experienced team led by two incredible players, and they both played exceptionally well tonight. Bri [Jones] is a hard matchup for anyone, and when Hallie [Thome] got in foul trouble, that really hurt us as well. I think that was a difference maker too for Hallie.
On what makes Brionna Jones better than she was last season:
“I think she's more consistent. I think with experience that probably comes, she's in better shape than she's ever been, she's just tough. She's tough to double, she just finishes, got quick moves, she's just really really consistent. I think she does a much better job and this is what we're trying to get our big girl to do, of staying out of foul trouble. That keeps her in the game a lot more. Last year we played them twice and both times she picked up two fouls early and that helped us because she was out of the game. So I think for big kids, their biggest strength and their development is to figure out the referees and how to stay in the game and how to adjust to the referees. She's done a tremendous job, of probably playing more minutes, which just helps their team overall.”
Junior Guard Katelynn Flaherty
On what was working for her:
“Like I always say, my teammates put me in great positions, and Siera [Thompson] is a great point guard. The rest of the team, we played to our strengths, I was hitting today, so they kept hitting me, I think that really helps. It's an honor to score that much and be on the [all-time points] list, but I would really like to win and I'm really proud of the team we've built and how far we've come.”
On what limited her in the fourth quarter:
“I had a girl kind of on top of me in the fourth quarter and it's just tough as the game goes on, as coach said, we kind of wore down, I think that attributed to it. But I think other people stepped up and took the ball to the basket and we looked for Hallie [Thome] and Siera, I think that played a part as well.”
