Head Coach Brenda Frese
Opening statement:
"Tremendous game by both teams. I'm really proud of how we handled the game. This game was a game of runs which made it really fun to watch. It was like a track meet because both teams were really up tempo and aggressive. I really liked our attention to detail in terms of our game plan and our unselfishness in terms of having five players in double figures.
"We just beat a really good team. Ohio State is a really good team, so it's a good way for us to start the intense battles that lie ahead for in us in conference play."
On playing the first Big Ten conference game:
"I actually hadn't put much thought into that, having coached and grown up in the Big Ten. I think it's more of just getting into conference play you're excited about the level of competition and knowing that you have to put together a really good game to win, that's the exciting part."
On team depth:
"I think we were able to get key rest for our players around timeouts, especially when you look at the minutes that they have to play. I feel that with our depth this season, it depends on who is practicing well, who is playing well, and the match ups for the game."
On rebounding presence:
"Obviously it started off with Brionna Jones, she made the statement that nobody was going to be better than her inside early. All of our guards and post players rebounded really well tonight, collectively as a unit we were dominant on the glass; it was key for our success."
Sophomore Center Brionna Jones
On gaining confidence:
“My teammates finding me is what gave me confidence. And just keeping up that confidence throughout the game was important. My teammates had my back the whole time.”
On getting offensive rebounds:
“I was just trying to be more physical than Ohio State and out rebound them and try to work as hard as I could to keep the ball in our hands.”
Sophomore Guard Lexie Brown
On Ohio States defense:
“They were trying to get us to throw the ball around and they were chasing the ball. After we beat the trap, the middle was wide open – they were just leaving Brionna wide open so it was our job to find her.”
On having a short memory:
“As a shooter, you have to have a short memory. Throughout the whole game I didn’t really shot a high percentage so I just have to get back in the gym, get more shots up and be better next game.”
Redshirt Senior Guard Laurin Mincy
On opening Big Ten conference play
“I always get more excited when conference play comes around. The level of competition increases. I was really excited and I’m glad that we were able to get a win.”
Sophomore Guard Shatori Walker-Kimbrough
On her high shooting percentage:
“It’s just being able to knock the open shots down and being able to take what the defense gives me. My teammates give me confidence in my shot and they’re finding me, so I just tried to knock them down.”
Ohio State Head Coach Kevin McGuff
On Maryland’s size:
“They’re big and they’re physical around the basket. They certainly had a lot of success when they got the ball there. Give Maryland credit, I thought they played hard and I thought they played well. The disappointing thing for us is that they beat us on a lot of 50-50 balls and a lot of loose balls that we were going to have to get to win this game, and we didn’t get them.”
On how Maryland played:
“They played how they play. They have a style and a system that, they make some adjustments, but they stick to. I thought they played a good game. I thought they got excellent shots in the second half, partly because they were executing well and partly because our defense was terrible. That was not the thing we were going to need the second half if we were going to win.”
On Maryland being in the Big Ten:
“They have an excellent team and they’re in the midst of a terrific season, I think that will continue. I think they’ll have great success in the Big Ten this year and years to come. They recruit really well, they have a great roster, they can play a lot of kids that are really talented and they can wear on people. They’ve got a great program growing right now. We came in here with an astounding opportunity to play against a great team on the road and we just didn’t get it done.”
On Maryland’s defense on Kelsey Mitchell:
“She didn’t have her best night but they were good. They worked hard to keep her up front and force some tough shots. That hurt us, she’s obviously a special player and she didn’t have her best game. She’s been playing really well but Maryland did a great job.”
On Maryland’s depth:
“I think their depth really allowed them to kind of wear on us and they were really physical around the basket and they can do that with the depth that they have. That was a factor, they are very deep and they have a lot of kids they can play and that’s obviously a really strong attributer for their program right now.”
Ohio State Junior Guard Ameryst Alston
On Maryland:
“I would say [Maryland is] disciplined defensively. They got a lot of second-chance points and that was something that we didn’t do. We didn’t box out like we should have.”
On Maryland outrebounding 59-37:
“They’re tall, but we’ve played physical teams that jump high. It just comes back to being disciplined and boxing out.”
On how Maryland played defensively:
“For some stretches of the game we kind of settled. As far as our shot selection goes, we should have attacked more.”
