Additional Quotes >> USA 89, Australia 68

Jill Rankin Schneider (USA head coach, Monterey H.S., Texas)
On the game:
I felt like Australia came out and played really well. They were able to shoot the ball well, and they built an early lead. They gave us their best shot, and we've got to expect that. We also have to respond, and we've got to make sure we bring our best game as well, especially now in the semifinals. Bottom line is we were able to do what we needed to do to get the win. You've got to credit Australia, and at the same time, you have to credit our kids for responding.

We didn't shoot the ball very well, so hopefully we got that out of their system. I also thought we had some players who were here for their first time, and they came out a little timid. Pool play is different than bracket play. This is a different kind of pressure.

On the USA's defense:
I felt like defensively we did well at times. A few times in the fourth quarter we gave up some drives, but for the most part, I thought we had a great defensive effort. And our rebounding certainly made a huge difference for us, in the third quarter particularly.

On the second half:
I think it was totally rebounding that helped us pull away -- getting some offensive boards and getting to the free throw line. And we gave them some cushion on defense. Almost their entire offense in the first half was off of penetration. We backed off a little bit and tried to contain.

On Australia's foul trouble:
Attacking the basket has been our goal from the beginning because we have the athletes to do that. But I felt like Australia came out and executed our game plan. They just took it to us and forced us to defend. In the second half, we did a lot better job getting the ball inside and establishing ourselves in the paint, which helped create some opportunities from the outside as well.

Kaela Davis (Buford H.S./Suwanee, Ga.)
On the game:
I think we once again started off slow. I don't know what that is or how we can fix it. We are going to get everyone's best game, and I think we just have to come out with a ton of energy and expect teams to do the same.

On the USA's defense:
I think our defense helped make up for some of the shots that weren't falling in the first half.

On the physicality of the game:
I think we were ready for a physical game. We knew they weren't just going to lay down for us. We matched that though, so I thought we did a good job.

On the team's rebounding:
I think when you find ways to get easy buckets, that helps you expand your range. So, the fact that we were crashing the offensive boards definitely helped.

Diamond DeShields (Norcross H.S./Norcross, Ga.)
On the game:
It was nothing short of what I expected. Australia always has a strong team, and I think in our first match we outperformed them, but we weren't expecting the same ball game. Australia came out with intensity, and we had to come together to find our intensity. We came here to get a gold medal. We were in the locker room at halftime like, 'let's go.' We were not about to lose this game.

On the team's rebounding:
Rebounding is always huge, because when you have the ball you can't score. So, when you control the glass, you control the game. I definitely think offensive rebounding helped us. Mercedes was huge on the boards for us in the second half. She really showed up for us tonight.

Linnae Harper (Whitney Young H.S./Chicago, Ill.)
On the game:
We played them a few weeks ago, and we blew them out. I didn't think the game would be as challenging as it was, but we do know that from now on, every team is going to give us their best. We need to stay focused throughout the whole game-- every possession counts. We just can't do the things we have done in the past, because now its win or you don't get a gold medal. We need to stay focused and do what we have to do.

On her rebounding:
I was just trying to help my team, to do what ever we had to do to win. I did whatever I could.

Mercedes Russell (Springfield H.S./Springfield, Ore.)
On the game:
They are really tall, and they are all really big, so we knew that we had to block out them out, go strong and rebound the ball. We knew in the first half we weren't hitting shots, and we wanted to get more opportunities, so we crashed the boards. That also led to us getting fouled and getting to the free throw line.

On the first-half fight:
I think we had a slow start, but then we came together in the second quarter and picked it up, and then we played with a higher intensity.