Additional Quotes >> USA 93, Senegal 51

Sept. 18, 2010 • Salamanca, Spain

Auriemma

Geno Auriemma, University of Connecticut
On today’s game:
I thought that defensively we were much better than we were last night. Obviously the level of competition was much different. We are much more talented than Senegal. I don’t want us to be dependent on that. Hopefully what we brought to the defensive end today is going to be more indicative of how we’re going to play. It’s evident that unless we’re committed, especially on the defensive end, it’s going to be very difficult to reach our goal of winning the World Championship.

On the different lineups he was putting in against Senegal:
We had to do that. I thought there is still a process that we have to go through to try to identify who the team is. I think that going in today, some things were made a little bit clearer, but not enough to know who the 12 are. When you factor in that there’s three players missing who are still on their way, we’re closer. We’re not all the way there, but we’re closer. Today’s Saturday and we play on Thursday. So, by Tuesday night we’ll have to make that decision. Tonight went a little ways towards that. The committee and everyone else are going to have some tough decisions to make, but it’s time now. It’s time to make them.

Augustus

Seimone Augustus (Minnesota Lynx)
What was the biggest difference between your game last night and tonight?
I guess the disappointment from last night motivated us today. We just had the energy coming out on the defensive side, being aggressive and trying to dictate the pace early on instead of not being aggressive and letting other people dictate it.

On the importance of coming off the bench with a lot of energy:
That’s the most important thing. When you have vets like Diana (Taurasi) and (Tamika) Catchings and all those players who come out with a spark, you have to keep it going. There can’t be a lapse when the bench players come in. You want to try to keep it going until they get back in and wear out the opposing team for when (the starters) get back into the game.

What do you feel you still need to work on before the World Championship starts on Thursday?
We just have to be patient. There’s a lot of things on the offensive end where it feels like we’re just rushing through everything. It’s not in sequence, it’s not in motion on that side of things. On the defensive side, just continue to have each other’s back. Be in the right position at the right time, take care of the ball, guard the ball, keep people out of the paint and rebound.

On playing with the different lineups over the past two games, including playing small with four to five guards on the floor at once:
It’s different, but it feels good because we’re able to get up and down the court. On the defensive side of things, we’re at a disadvantage with height or whatever, but speed and quickness have always been our thing since day one. We have post players who can get up and down the court, so it’s not really that much of a difference.

Lawson

Kara Lawson (Connecticut Sun)
On the difference in the way the USA played against Australia last night and the energy brought against Senegal tonight:
Our energy level tonight, particularly on the defensive end, we made more of a commitment to limit them to only one shot. Australia really killed us on the offensive glass last night. That translated into some 3-pointers and also them getting to the free throw line. That was a major difference in the six-point game. We just wanted to get back to defensive fundamentals and really try and work on getting our offensive flowing.

After you opened up the lead, were there things you were working on as a team or was it just a matter of trying to play with the different lineups?
You’re playing with different people constantly. Obviously that’s the nature of what we’re doing right now. We know it’s getting closer to the end and you want to put your best foot forward as a player. I thought we did well handling the different lineups that coach put in there. We seemed to have consistent energy throughout, which is a big thing that he really preached before the game.

Your ball movement was better tonight:
They’re certainly not Australia’s caliber. Australia’s one of the top teams in the world. Our spacing was better. Our energy was better. I thought that we took our time, Australia was being really physical with us, really distorting our cuts, so we didn’t space last night. We kind of got all jumbled together and were just running around in circles. Tonight we were spaced more. Our cuts were more purposeful and we kind of read stuff better.

Moore

Maya Moore (University of Connecticut)
How was it for you playing tonight against Senegal?
It was great. I knew when I stepped out there on the court that I was going to bring a lot of energy, just by virtue of not getting to play yesterday. Knowing that that’s what our team needs, energy. That’s what really hurt us yesterday. I know one of my jobs is to bring that energy.

Was it frustrating not being able to contribute last night?
Definitely. You never want to sit on the bench and see your team struggle. Hopefully that won’t happen again. That was something that was out of my control. I’m not going to dwell on it. I’m going to use it as motivation the next time I’m out on the court.

On Senegal:
They play hard. They’ve got some talent on the team. They never stop fighting. I respect them for that.

What do you still need to work on, where would you rate the team right now?
I think we have pretty good team chemistry, it’s just a matter of tightening up of the little things. Just continuing to come with that focus and continue to figure out individually where each person fits into coach’s system. Once we understand that individually, we can come together and work a lot better together. We did a lot of good things tonight. I think tonight was good with all the back cuts that we had, sharing the ball pretty well. That’s something we don’t worry about, selfishness, because people here really want to share the ball. We’re moving forward.

Taurasi

Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury)
On the USA team’s energy against Senegal:
We went back and looked at film and we didn’t do the things that we needed to do to win. It was definitely a reminder. Today we just wanted to focus on getting back to the things that win basketball games. I think we did a pretty good job of that.

How difficult is it to not play down a level when you’re the better team?
We did a good job focusing on ourselves. After yesterday’s performance I think everyone was really down. We wanted to get back on the court and do well and that’s what we did.

On the different lineups over the last two games:
Some of the lineups we had in there, you’ll never see on the basketball court ever again. Coach was giving people a good look out there and we got the best out of it.

The FIBA World Championship starts on Thursday, what do you still need to work on before that opening game?
It’s always going to be a work in progress, but as long as every single day we feel we’ve worked on something, and got better at it, hopefully by the end we’ve given ourselves an opportunity to win a gold medal. That’s all we can hope for.

Did anyone standout tonight?
I think Lindsay played a really good game. Whalen came into the game, started the game and set the pace early. We had been looking for someone to do that and I think she did a really great job.