Dec. 29, 2011
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2011 Terrapin Classic
#5 Maryland 85, #19 Delaware 76
Maryland Head Coach Brenda Frese
Opening Statement:
"What a great collegiate game, and I thought both teams really laid it all out there on the floor. I'm obviously excited about our defense tonight, Elena [Delle Donne] is a special player and we made her have to work to get 32 points. But, I thought our team worked extremely hard. On the offensive end, I thought our guard play really separated themselves; they were special. Obviously special and fun to be able to watch as our team continues to grow and get better, and just a tremendous team win for us."
On if this was the kind of game she expected to prepare for ACC play:
"We felt like this game absolutely was going to prepare us. Delaware is a great team, and they showed it tonight. These are the kinds of games and battles we want to be in to get prepared for what's up ahead."
On the forwards getting into foul trouble early:
"You know I said this early in our preseason, we're going to go as far as our guards take us. The neat thing though is being able to watch Anjale and her progression coming in here after Kristi Tolliver, and to watch her progression. She was in total command, on the offensive end she knew how to set up Laurin and Alyssa, and just has such a tremendous feel for the game. Laurin shot the ball today, and Alyssa just kills you with the smile the entire time down the floor. Just fun to see how our back court is working together."
On the depth with the team this season:
"I think with our depth and conditioning we feel as the second half unfolds and later in the game we get stronger. To be able to see as we play games with this kind of intensity level I do feel like we can wears down."
Sophomore Forward Alyssa Thomas
On responding to Delaware's run early in the second half:
"I think we got comfortable in the first half and then let up on them. I don't think they should have come back like they did. We knew we had to tighten up, get stops and attack them on offense."
On defending Elena Delle Donne:
"It's really tough. We knew we had to guard her, really lock down on her and practice what we have been taught with our defense. We knew as a team we had to guard her and try to slow her down."
Redshirt Senior Guard Anjale Barrett
On her performance:
"We did what we do best. In the beginning it was transition. That's what we like to do. We like to get stops and run the transition. So as the team is running, I am pushing them to get easy baskets like that, but it's also predicated on our defense."
On being prepared for ACC play:
"I definitely think this game prepared us for the ACC, who we are going to face day in and day out. So, I think that was a snippet of what we are going to get from now on."
Sophomore Guard Laurin Mincy
On her second half play:
"Coach said I had to [step up]. She said I wasn't being as aggressive as I should have been in the first half. So, I just looked for the open shot or open man. When my teammates found me, I took the open shot and went for it."
Delaware Head Coach Tina Martin
On playing Maryland on the road:
"I think that this being our first test on the road, playing such a great team like Maryland, a top five team, I was really proud of my kids' effort. I thought Maryland showed why they're a top five team. They shoot really well, especially from three. As athletic as they are, I thought our team really tried to battle them. Obviously with a team like them you have to really pick what you're going to choose to do against them, so my hats off to them for doing an outstanding job."
On their improvements:
"We've come a long way at Delaware. We will continue to grow and learn from this experience. I thought it was a great college atmosphere. I thought both teams played their hearts out. Being a game in December, we both have a long way to go. But I expect Maryland to do very, very well and I expect our team to build and improve and get ourselves into where we want to go which is into an NCAA tournament."
On their current ranking:
"I don't think there's any doubt in my mind. Honestly, I think we're a top 20 team, if you really want to know how I feel. The crowd was great, it was intense. Our kids showed we're definitely a top 20 team and we deserve our ranking right now. That being said, you have to continue earning that ranking. [Maryland] has been blowing people out of this building and this game was hotly contested from the beginning to the very end so I think we deserve that kind of respect."
On their weaknesses:
"We used too much shot clock to bring the ball up. We got too slow into our offense. Obviously, they're bigger than us at just about every position. they're more athletic than us, so we've got to be able to set some screens and put some bodies on people. I thought it took too long for us to get into our offensive sets. That being said we got some great looks and some great shots, to play them almost even on the board. We took some shots that were very forced but we'll learn from it we'll get better offensively as the season wears on."
Delaware Junior Guard Trumae Lucas
On what she learned for the game:
"We can contend with the top teams in the nation. We have as much fight as any team in the nation. We will be back in this position later in the season."
Delaware Junior Forward Elena Delle Donne
On turning things around in the second half:
"In the first half I wasn't attacking enough. I was settling too much. When halftime came around coach was able to draw up some quick hitting plays since we weren't able to get up the court quickly. Those quick hitters were helpful. I was able to attack the glass a lot more and get points in the paint. That helped me get my jump shot going. My teammates were finding me. My teammates kept me in the game in the first half. That was a bad first half on my part. We were right in the game and they kept patting me on the back and telling me to take the next shot. It got be back into the swing of things and made me believe that I could hit the next shot."
On what she got out of the game:
"I think that we fought extremely hard. That is something that we can look back on and is promising for our future. I am very excited about this team. We have a great focus about us. At some points we lost our focus and weren't able to execute the game plan. The fight that we showed tonight is very promising for us. I think we will build upon this game."
