March 29, 2003

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Villanova University Wildcats

Head Coach Harry Perretta
(opening remarks) "I thought it was an exciting game. It was the kind of a game that we try to play. We give up twos to make threes. We won another game and I don't know how we do it. They took more field goals and free throws. We won basically because we made eight threes and they made one. That was our philosophy. We were down in the second half and they got two open threes in the second half. I tried to stay with our game plan. If we are going to lose, we are going to lose playing the same way. These kids have overachieved. It is extraordinary. We are not big, strong or quick. We don't force you into a lot of turnovers. It is one of the most extraordinary things I have seen. I have never seen a team win with lack of certain skills and athleticism. They can generate a lot of open threes. Have you ever played in a pick up game when you are out classed and still win? It is a credit to how hard these kids play. It's a credit to them being unselfish."

(on Jana Rediger) "Jana did a great job handling herself. We didn't start Jana in the second half because she isn't a great offensive player. She played well today.""

(on making 11 threes) "We were able to make seven threes in the second half. You don't need as many possessions to come back when you do that."

(on front court pressure by Tennessee or Penn State) "We'll take longer to get it up, we won't know until Monday night. If they double us, we will pass the ball. If they don't, three dribbles and spin. That's what we do."

(on dribble penetration) "When you dribble penetrate, you are going to get kick outs for three, or you are going to get easy shots. We try to force the defense to make that choice."

(on defense against Colorado) "Sometimes, when you win you need a little bit of luck and some hard work. They missed some shots they usually make. They had the pressure on them with the lead. As long as they weren't making threes, we were not going to double-down. Trish was actually helping on a couple of the plays."

(on UConn win) "I don't remember how we did it. We beat them the same way we did today. We slowed the pace of the game down and we kept them in front of us and they missed shots."

(on wearing tie provided by Pat Summitt) "Pat bought me the tie. She brought it over to me and asked me to wear it again today. I haven't lost in a Pat tie yet. She was bent on trying to make me look better on the sideline. I had to buy a tie worth more than $5."

(on Courtney Mix's penetration) "Colorado is an excellent defensive team. We had to make individual plays. Trish and Courtney are the two kids on our team that makes individual plays."

(on game pace) "It was funny. That's what we do. When we slow the game down, we score more. We score more points by not running; you try to figure that out. We score more when we set up and run our plays. When we get a certain shot, it is right in their rhythm when they take the shot."

(on possibly playing Tennessee) "I am worried about just showing up for that one. Right now, we can only do what we can do. If the pace of the game gets fast, we could lose by 20 points. Both teams are going to try to keep the pace up. The crowd doesn't bother us as much as the pace of the game."

(on Tennessee/Villanova connection) "You ever play sports when you were young? Did you ever play against your best friend? How hard did you play? That is the way sports should be. When we play, we compete real hard. When we are done, we should hang out. If we play them on Monday night, they are going to rip our faces off to get the ball, but afterwards we are going to shake hands. I don't understand why anyone thinks that is shady. That is how sports are supposed to be."

Katie Davis
(on scoring a low amount of points) "We don't have a preference. We are used to scoring this many points. 53 points is normal for us. We aren't worried about that at all and that is part of our strategy."

(on possible being considered a Cinderella team) "We are the underdog in every game. I feel that we are a Cinderella team, I guess. It's a good way to state it"

(on emotions after winning the game) "We made it to the Elite 8. We couldn't have asked for anything more. It is very exciting."

Trish Juhline
(on offensive struggles) "I definitely missed the most shots. We have been like that all year. We have been in those situations all year. If you panic, you give yourself no chance of winning. We try to stay calm and get the points back. You stop them and go down and try to score."

(on making clutch foul shots at end of the game) "I just told myself to stay calm and think that it was practiced. I thought what I did in practice."

Courtney Mix
(on driving to the basket) "Harry told me that we needed people to drive. In the second half, some of the shots fell."

University of Colorado Buffaloes

Head Coach Ceal Barry
(opening remarks) "It was a tale of two halves. We controlled the tempo in the first half and they controlled in the second half. We had some chances at the end and missed a couple of shots. We didn't regain momentum in the second half."

(on funneling offense to Tera Bjorklund) "Having played Villanova before, they wanted to play our perimeters hard and give us the pass into Tera. That is the only pass they were giving us. At times, we looked pretty one-dimensional."

(on comparison to previous Colorado Sweet 16 squads) "It is tough because of Linda Lappe and Sabrina Scott. They've helped put our program back into the national spotlight. I have a lot of respect for Villanova. They have discipline on their team. They are really a team that I respect. It is disappointing in the sense that you wish you could have gotten your seniors one more game."

(on Tera Bjorklund scoring over half of Colorado's points) "We didn't win, so obviously it hurt. We didn't have a Sabrina Scott or Kate Fagan score for us. Our offense is dictated by how the defense plays. We lost a game by two points in the Sweet 16. We didn't lose because of a lousy offense."

(on holding Trish Juhline to a single made field goal) "We had two players that we chose to guard Juhline with. Maria Billingsley and Veronica Johns-Richardson did well. They were focused and we knew she was a tough shooter. The night they beat Connecticut, she was on fire. Katie Davis came up big for them. We don't have the speed to contend with their offense."

(on Courtney Mix) "She hurt us with her size and rebounding. She is a point forward. She can come right down the middle. She was the difference in the second half."

Kate Fagan
(on game pace) "I think their style is hard on you defensively because they milk the shot clock. It is tough when you are on the defensive end because they are patient and disciplined."

(on why Colorado lost) "We controlled the tempo and limited their three-point shots in the first half. In the second half, they started controlling and getting the looks they wanted to get."

(on Tera Bjorklund scoring over half of Colorado's points) "I know for me, I was getting the same looks I just wasn't making the shots."

Tera Bjorklund
(on Villanova's defense) "They were pretty consistent the whole time. At the end, they were just more aggressive."

Linda Lappe
(on game pace) "Every offensive possession is that much more important. When you don't get as many, you want to make the most of them."

(on losing to Villanova) "They are a good team and the bottom line is that they execute what they do. They are in the Elite Eight and are a pretty dang good team. They do what their coach tells them to and they work hard."