Dec. 28, 2009
Vanderbilt Head Coach Melanie Balcomb
On Tiffany Clarke:
“She’s been practicing well, just dominating and building confidence. I told her this morning that she can be as good as she wants to be. That confidence has finally carried over to the game. It’s hard as a post to be a freshman, so your opportunities are low, but she responded well today. Tiffany brings us a much-needed element of power. She reminds me of Carla Thomas and Ashley Earley, especially in rebounding. She’s powerful inside.”
On Lauren Lueders:
“Her 3-point shooting was huge and we weren’t getting it done defensively. We were tight and we weren’t getting stops. It was nice to have Lauren get off early and get relaxed and comfortable in the perimeter. It helped us get in the game.”
On rebounding:
“We talked at halftime about our gameplan. We weren’t executing and we had to get back to rebounding, transition defense, and knowing where our shooters were. Their three scorers still went off, but we were able to outscore them.”
On second-half intensity
“It was much better than the first half. We only had two practices after a long break, so we made time in the first half to get the kinks out and used the second half to make our adjustments and make some changes.
On Notre Dame:
“They’re one of the best teams in the country. They beat us here last year and if our girls aren’t excited to play them, then they shouldn’t get on the bus. It’s a big transition and we’ve been fending off people. We can kind of go for it against Notre Dame and be the underdogs. No hesitation, no holding back, and just play free.”
Vanderbilt forward Tiffany Clarke
On productivity:
“Coach said to focus on rebounding and be strong. That’s pretty much what I focused on the most. I’ve been working on my free throws. I’ve been getting pointers from my teammates and it’s been working.”
On team unity:
“We’re very together. We know what to expect of each other and we’re confident in each other.”
On fouling out:
“I was upset I fouled out. I need to learn to play smarter and less aggressive.”
Vanderbilt guard Lauren Lueders
On beginning of first half:
“We just needed to focus on our gameplan. We were just kind of having, for lack of a better word, a brain fart. We weren’t worried; we just needed to follow our plan.”
On scoring career-high:
“I was open a lot and I took advantage. I got more shots than I thought I would.”
On team unity:
“I feel like we are all on the same page. We are a cohesive unit right now. We were moving in spurts during practice and it’s been getting better each day.”
