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Quotes: Duke 110, Ball State 24
12/19/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Duke Head Coach Gail Goestenkors
Opening Comment
“It was just good to get out there and play a game. It has been a long while. I was very pleased with our effort and the fact that we were ready to play from the tip. I was a little anxious to see how we would come out, if we would be ready or a little off our rhythm. I didn't think we were, I thought we were ready to go. Overall I am pleased with the win.
On what you try to work on in a game like this
“We worked on our defense. We worked on a couple of our zone defenses. The entire second half we played zone because we play more man-to-man and are more comfortable in man-to-man so we wanted to work on those things. It takes a little pressure off of our opponent. We worked on our patience on offense. We put in a five-pass rule. They weren't allowed to shoot unless they made at least five passes. There are going to be games where we aren't going to get those transition layups. We are going to need to move the ball and execute.”
On the end result
“I don't look at the final score. That is not what the game is about. It is about us getting better and Ball State getting better. They got better in the second half. Their kids never gave up which I commend them for that.”
On what Duke can take from this game
“I thought we were able to work on a lot of different defenses this game and different combinations of people to see who plays best together.”
On Duke's dominant defense
“I think it's our teamwork. There's always helpside (defense) and rotation down. It's really a team effort on defense. It's never just one-on-one, guard your own player.”
Senior Monique Currie
On what Duke can take from this game
“We were able to work on some of our defenses. We can't always go with our man-to-man defense which we're comfortable with. This game helped us get more comfortable with different situations and helped us learn to be more patient offensively.”
Ball State Head Coach Tracy Roller
“The only thing you can say to your team is just stay positive and keep running our stuff and try to get better against a very good team.”
On what made Duke challenging
“I think they're deep. If you stop one, someone else is going to get hot. You try to stop their outside game, their inside game's going to get hot. They're very deep. We played UConn earlier, about four years ago, and we actually hung with them in the first half because we kind of matched each other, and then they went off in the second half. But these guys, they're just so deep. You've got an All-American coming out and another All-American coming in. It's just very difficult.”
On Duke's height
“When Kelsey, my point guard, goes out, I've got a 5-4 freshman at the point guard spot, and my tallest player is 6-2. That's their three player. We just tried to get some sort of rebounding arc in the zone and hope for the best, but they're just so athletic, they just go right over you. Plus, we got no second shot opportunities tonight. They're just in a different league than we are.”
On Duke's Alison Bales
“Obviously, she's from Ohio, so we know her from being from the Midwest. I've just been very impressed at how much better she has gotten from high school to college. Her game is just so versatile, and when she and Williams are in together, they're just really fun to watch. I think that Mistie's having a great year, and we really told our team that Mistie was sort of like their heart. She brought their energy emotionally, and Alison's like their lion. She's just solid. I was really impressed with her especially tonight.”
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