University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Southern Miss Women's Basketball Media Day Quotes
11/1/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 1, 2006
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Head Coach Joye Lee-McNelis Opening Comments "We are excited about our women's basketball team. We are starting our third season and we feel very good about it. We've already had some challenges, and we have not even tipped it off. We believe in what we are doing. We believe in this team and can overcome any challenges that we face. I am a believer that God doesn't put anything on you you can't handle. This team has continued to work hard and been committed to excellence. They set their own team goals and they have worked every day to be able to make that happen. I believe that one thing that helped last year with this team is that late in the year, they began to understand the difference in being a college athlete and making a difference as a college athlete. We won 10 of our final 15 games last season, going 7-1 at home in conference play, and getting a first-round bye since the 1999-2000 season and advancing to the semifinal game. It was this group that stepped in and made a difference."
"I'm very proud of this group. Again, we faced some obstacles, but their attitudes have remained positive and their work ethic has been very good. I believe if we can maintain that, then no matter what we face, we know that we will be able to give it our all no matter what the outcome may be."
"They have made a lot of strides, and they've gotten a lot better. Our young players, in particular Anna Patterson and Lauren Pittman, have made tremendous strides as freshmen playing against our practice guys."
How do you feel about being picked No. 5? "They knew what we lost from last year, and we told the players that it is a tribute to them and the reputation that they established last year that lead coaches to pick us to finish fifth. I give our team a tremendous amount of credit for that."
So what do you say to the players this season? I know last season you used the underdog for motivation last year? "I have also talked to our team a lot about false hope. Hey look, we are picked Number five. I tell them to look in the mirror and examine themselves and examine this team. We are not going to get anything handed to us, and everybody is going to be gunning for us. I tell them to focus, get their mind set and concentrate, so there are no distractions. I still think as young of team as we are, there are still a lot of things that can happen that can distract us. We are not that mature as a team that we can just blow by stuff and I think that that is a key factor for us."
Now you do not have to worry about people sneaking up on you? "Oh no, we will be the hunted where people are coming after us. I think that changes the whole psychology scope of things, being the underdog and sneaking up on teams. It is just a whole different mind set."
During the regular season, who is going to back up Chaney? "Amber Eugene will play back up. Anna Patterson could play at point if people zone us. Our point guard position will be run by committee. Chaney will be the chief and then Amber, along with Anna."
Do you think it is important that the team gets off to a good start? "I think it is really important that we get off to a great start. I think it will be a great momentum builder for this team. Obviously, we open up on the road and that will be a big challenge for us and for Kristin Chaney. She is playing against a guy that gave her the opportunity to play college ball, former junior college coach Brad Hodge. Our team goal is to go undefeated at home. Stephen F. Austin is not going to be an easy task. They are very, very good. One of their players, the starting center, played for me at Memphis. She left the year I left and sat out a year, so she will be playing for them."
With more size in the post, how does that change what you guys do as a team? "We have instituted into our offense to try and take advantage of a lot of high-low opportunities. Our post players have continued to get better, but the bottom line is that they have got to score. I think last year we were so guard-dominated that we have had to work hard to change their mind set and get them out of role players and into scoring the ball. Rachel Manual has worked so hard. She has put a lot of time into the gym and worked really hard. But she has got to be able to score the ball."
Senior Guard Kristin Chaney On one hand you lost some key team members and then you have some newcomers returning? "I don't like talking about what we have lost because that means we are looking at last year and not at this season. It is not giving us that have returned a lot of credit. We are focused on one goal and we do not want to be set back."
Obviously you have high expectations? "Yes, we do. We got people talking and that is good. We are not hunting anymore; now, we are the ones with the target on our back."
Do you think that you are more interior oriented than last year, our does it matter? "I think at times it will be and then at times it won't. Before I got in juried, I was shooting the ball like I was in JUCO. I think at times it will be both; we just need a balanced attack."
Since you guys are going to be more balanced, do you still want to run as much? "Coach likes to run and gun and I think a lot of our points are going to come off of our defense."
Junior Center Liz Biland
How sound is it going to be with depth in the post position? "Last season, we only had Rachael and I playing the post. This year, it really helps with Nora. I think it's going to help our team in the long run; instead of having one post player to rotate, we now have three players to rotate. Now, we can have two in at one time. That's going to help our offense out and balance it out. It's going to help us match up better with some opponents who are bigger inside."
"Last season our offense was focused around the perimeter players. Our post game was usually the second option. We would look for an outside shot, but with the addition of Nora to our post game, we are going to focus on pushing the ball inside more."
What about the losses from last year? "It's like what coach said, when one door closes another door opens. We have to look at our situation like that. With Emer coming back this season, she will be one of the focal points on our team. She can play the three, four or five. She is very strong and fundamentally sound. I believe she will be tough to stop. I believe Emer kind of balances out the losses we had last season."
How does it change things with you not being the underdog but not so much this year? "I guess people admire us for stepping it up last year. No one was expecting us to finish in the bottom. That just shows a lot about our heart and dedication to this team. We were picked to finish fifth in spite of the losses we had and that we are low in numbers. It just shows that the coaches in the league respect us. We now have a great opportunity to prove them right."
