POSTGAME QUOTES: Lady Vols 80, Auburn 60

Feb. 28, 2016

Head Coach Holly Warlick

(Opening Statement)
It was a great effort. We just had great effort. We stayed focused. We didn’t let up. I’m just really proud of all of these kids and the time they’ve put in. They played really well together, and when we do that, and we have the talent that we have. We’re going to get the result that we got tonight.

(On Diamond DeShields’ performance)
“Well, I think she took it personal and I think she wanted to make sure this team has the opportunity to play the way they should be playing. You look at Diamond and she took shots that are makeable for Diamond. I think that most of the games in the past she was pressing. She was taking shots that were not going to go in. I think her shot selections tonight, and Te’a’s as well, were solid. I don’t think they took a bad shot tonight. I think you see the result. Diamond was 9-18 and Te’a was 10-14. I thought they just took makeable shots. We worked a lot this week, and we have been, but I guess it sunk in that when we drive through the lane that they should just take the contact and not go out of bounds. I think both, especially Te’a, did that today.”

(On Diamond in the starting line-up)
“I thought we just needed change. I wanted to give her that opportunity. So, I just wanted to change it up a little bit. She had a great game against LSU. She’s not the only one that had an awful game against Alabama. We all had an awful game against Alabama. She’s had two solid practices, so I talk a lot about playing people who practice hard, and she practiced hard the last two days. I thought she need that opportunity. I think starting helped her get going early.”

(On senior day being a factor that helped the team’s effort in this particular game)
“I think that was a little bit of a factor, the last home game, seniors here, haven’t played good in that last two games, but I think the last two practices we really broke down our defense and looked at where we had to get better. We broke down our offense to see how we could get better looks and better shots. We hit layups today. At Alabama we were like 0-for-13; they were layups we missed. We hit shots today. When you hit shots, it makes you play a little bit harder too. I just think they were focused; they bought in, but see, now they’ve set a standard. They can’t go backwards. So, this is accountability for them.

(On receiving an NCAA bid)
“I think we’ve done enough to have an NCAA bid. Strength of schedule would be number one. I don’t think anybody has come close to playing the schedule we played. We’ll see, but I coach a team that I know we still have a lot left in us. So, our focus is going to be the SEC tournament and it’ll be whoever we play on Thursday. So, this team has been really good about not overlooking. We just have to stay in the moment and prepare for who we’re going to play that Thursday.

(On Georgia playing a sagging man defense)
"Yeah they did. You know, I was surprised by that. I think we played great defense today and I think that set the tone for us offensively. We pressed for forty minutes and we haven't done that all year. Press for forty minutes and I thought that helped us get going -- it gave us opportunities to get easy shots. We pushed the ball on transition, so we scored off their turnovers, we had seventeen points off turnovers, so when you do that and you get going and you see the results of what your defense can do. I just think our defense was just solid, it was just solid. I haven't been able to say that, especially for the last couple of games."

(On the importance of Bashaara Graves setting the tone)
"I can't say enough about Bashaara's career here. You're talking about an undersized post player who has a big heart and she's just an example of what a Lady Vol should be. She just works hard, goes about her business, plays solid defense, is a great rebounder, and I just can't say enough about her and how far her game has come throughout her four years here at Tennessee. Dean [Lockwood] has done a great job with her as far as developing her game facing up, she now faces up. She shoots the three. If you would've asked me her freshman year would I let her handle the ball, I would cringe if I saw the ball in her hands, but I think now she's developed that part of her game and she didn't get down on herself, I thought the last two games she got down on herself. She was the Bashaara that we know how she can play, and we need that from her here on out."

(On if Holly clearly instructed Jasmine Jones to not dive on balls)
"Yeah, I'm probably going to get in big trouble. The doctors don't want me to play her and I just wanted her to get a chance to be on that floor one last time. I told her don't get near anybody, kinda like what we did with Izzy [Harrison] last year. Jazz has been a great part of this program, she's helped us win some basketball games, she's set the tone for us defensively. I hate that her career is ending, but I know how much this program means to her and I know how much she's meant to this program and I just wanted her to have that opportunity for people to clap for her and wear that uniform one last time."

(On Jasmine hurrying to put her uniform and shoes on)
"It was [a scramble]. She didn't have her uniform on. She went and got it with a minute-forty left. I normally wouldn't have called a time out as I did, I just wanted the option to get her in and then Nia [Moore] out. And Nia, what she's done for our program as well. I wish I had Nia for another year, she's developed to a really good basketball player too. Probably doesn't get as much attention and praise as the other ones, but she's solid for us.”

Senior Forward Bashaara Graves

(On taking this momentum into the SEC Tournament and beyond)
“I feel great. If we take the energy that we played with and bring that into the tournament, I think we can make things happen.”

(On coming out strong in the first quarter)
“We were just out there attacking, playing defense. When we were pressing, we were just getting after it, getting steals, getting easy buckets. We were just out there having fun, and you could tell that we were getting energy from the fans. It was awesome.”

(On how much the team needed this win)
“It was very important. We definitely wanted to end our regular season with a win, especially for the seniors. Just to get that win and bring that into the SEC Tournament, that’s going to help us out a lot.”

(On being 11 rebounds shy of 1,000 for her career)
“That would be nice. I really didn’t know I was 11 away. That surprised me. Getting 1,000 rebounds, that would be great. There’s few names [on that list], and for my name to be up there with them, that would be a great accomplishment.”

(On what it meant for Jasmine Jones to make an appearance in the final minutes)
“I was definitely happy. I didn’t think they were going to get to do it, just because of the caution with her concussion. It was nice to just get her on the court for one more time in front of all these fans.”

Freshman Guard Te'a Cooper

(On what the difference was in today’s game)
“I think we all just needed to wake up and get back to playing basketball, just having fun, just playing hard and enjoying the game. We knew this was senior night, and [Bashaara Graves, Nia Moore, and Jasmine Jones] mean a lot to us. We went out there, and we just played for them.”

(On how the team can sustain this success in the postseason)
“Just stay focused and keep getting better. Work on the things that we’re good at. Capitalize on those, and try to fix the stuff that we need to work on.”

(On Diamond DeShields’ performance)
“She was just relaxed. She was Diamond. She was just focused. She was in-tune with the game. She did what she can do. She took her shots. She got stops. She got blocks. She was in-tune with the game.”

(On if there’s more work to do for the team’s NCAA tournament bid)
“We always feel like we have more to do. I don’t think we’re ever going to get complacent. Going into the tournament, we just need to stay focused and keep working on ourselves.”

Georgia Head Coach Joni Taylor

(On getting ready for Jacksonville)
“Tennessee is so talented, and we can’t come out in the first quarter and play like we did. We gave up 22 points, we credit them with continuing to play. We can’t give a team as talented as Tennessee that many opportunities. That’s something we can learn from, and that is something about this team: whenever we hit a wall we have faced it head-on and made corrections.”

(On getting ready for Tennessee)
“We were fully prepared for the way they looked today, because Tennessee is extremely talented. Look at the Kentucky game, that’s not a shock. Our team knew that they could come out and put up those types of numbers, and that was the team we prepared for. Tennessee is an extremely talented team.”

(On the struggling Georgia defense)
“Our defense let us down today, we lead the SEC in that category. In the first quarter, we weren’t locked in. Tennessee didn’t do anything we hadn’t prepared for, we just did not handle it the way we had practiced.”

(On the impact of the four quarter system)
"I like it. I think for us, it gives us a chance to lock in and break things down and focus. I feel like sometimes in the past our players would look at twenty minutes and it would be hard to break down and stay focused for that long period of time. I think we've adjusted well as a team. We spent the summer, and once practiced started we were playing with that system and I think our players have responded to it well."

(On Marjorie Butler being the epitome of a student athlete)
"She is. A lot of people don't realize that Marjorie, in the middle of practice this year, and in the middle of games; she's missing practice to interview at Emory, Vanderbilt, Virginia Tech, and Florida and comes back after two days and hasn't missed a beat. There are times where she would text me and ask me to email her the scouting report. I would say, "no, you can have it when you get back. Focus on what you are doing and enjoy this process." Everybody doesn't have the opportunities that she's had. For her to perform the way she has on the floor, and to not only be able to excel in the classroom, but have her pick of medical schools. We are all very proud of her, and she's someone that we continue to talk about. You can do whatever you want if you set your goal and you're focused. Marjorie came to Georgia with a plan, and she stuck to her plan and now she's going to have great success because of that."

Georgia Senior Guard Tiaria Griffin

(On her slow start)
“We let them come out and punch us first, we didn’t do anything to stop it.” “Just try to stay focused and stay in the game, that’s what we needed to do.”

(On not being able to get a shot off)
"I think we just tried to get it to the open man and just tried to get whatever opportunities they presented us we tried to take and do whatever we could do."

Georgia Senior Guard Marjorie Butler

(On playing in Knoxville in front of family)
"It was definitely great to be here in front of family and friends, but ideally the goal in coming to Knoxville wasn't to celebrate with my family, it was to celebrate with my team a win. I wish we could have had a different outcome today, but I know we'll come back to Jacksonville prepared."