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MOUNTAIN WEST WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPMarch 2, 2020Ben FinkbeinerHailey BassettEmmie HarrisLas Vegas, Nevada Wyoming - 64, Utah State 59 THE MODERATOR: We're joined by Utah State. COACH FINKBEINER: I think you guys can see that we fought hard and that we finished strong. We played our best basketball the last three games of the season. And couldn't be more proud of our group for that. Obviously the seed wasn't what we wanted at the start of the year, but we made the most of the draw we got. And credit to our players. Two or three weeks ago we kind of had a turning point and we just talked about how we needed to finish strong and finish on a sprint. And many teams in that situation kind of fold it and go home and don't respond in a positive way, and they're kind of ready for the season to get over. That was not this group of girls and that speaks to their character. We made a big push at the end. And we're disappointed to lose this one because we came to win a championship and so the disappointment is there. We feel it deep. It's a hard loss for us because we played so well. But at the same time there's a certain amount of pride that goes with it, too, because of what we did yesterday and throughout the entire season. I thought Wyoming played really, really well. They're a good team. We knew that going in. We got off to a good start. And that's obviously what we were here to do. And then they responded. And we knew they would, but they've got a lot of firepower and they made good plays and they're well-coached. And I thought they played great obviously in the second half. They just went on a barrage on us and they're capable of doing that, and they did. And so good job on them. Q. At halftime, with that big of a lead, what was the talk in the locker room to plan what we were going to see in the third quarter? COACH FINKBEINER: The talk was basically we came here on a business trip and we came here to win this game. And we didn't want to be in a position where we felt like we were going to give it to Wyoming. We wanted to make sure that we took it, and that we went out there and did everything that we needed to do and everything that we could control, not just to hold the lead but extend the lead. I thought leaving the locker room, I thought we were in a really good place. And I thought the whole second half we were in a really, really good place. But obviously the shots we hit in the first half we didn't make in the second half. The shots that Wyoming hit in the first half, they made in the second half. And that's sometimes how basketball goes. We didn't do anything particularly different. We didn't have any lower intensity or anything like that. Just the shots kind of went differently, which happens. Q. I think in that fourth quarter they scored the first 10 points there. Especially in the second half Vitulova had 16 of her 19 or whatever. What was it specifically that kind of caused that barrage to start the fourth? And what was Vitulova able to do that she wasn't able to do in the first half? COACH FINKBEINER: If I remember right they went to her the first play in the second half of the block and that really got her going. And then she had the ball on the perimeter. We didn't close out the way we wanted to close out because of her 3-point percentage. We obviously know she can shoot the ball. We closed out a little bit short and a little bit late, and that one dropped. And a player like that, if you give her a low block position and she scores it, and then if you give her an open 3 and she scores it, then things start to kind of roll. But what makes them so tough to guard is who are you going to help off of. You go up and down their stat page and there's nobody that you can really show help for. So you need to play team defense, but ultimately you have to leave something open. And in those situations, we left her open, which wasn't a decision of ours, it just happened that way. And obviously she took that opportunity and went with it. And obviously there was a reason why she's their leading scorer and leading rebounder and all the stuff that she's done this year. She's incredible. Q. How do you prepare for a game like this with such a short turnaround? And I know you touched on it already but what was working for you guys in the first half? COACH FINKBEINER: The preparation obviously is short. It's late night for coaches. The preparation we've got to do as coaches is stay up all night long. And we wrestle with scouting reports and watch film and we're short on rest and we get tired. And the opposite is true for players. We rest the players. They go to sleep and they rest in the morning and early afternoon and they turn around and go. At this point in the year anybody in the conference would say that we have scouting reports on everybody already, seeing everybody twice. And so it was a fairly simple straightforward scouting report for us just because we played them three weeks ago or two weeks, whatever it was. We didn't execute when we were at Wyoming the way we wanted to. We said if we do what we were supposed to do at Wyoming, if we actually do it the way we've been coached to do it then we should get a different result. And I think we saw that. We just played better here than the last time we saw them. The preparation is all about rest for our players and being mentally ready. And the conversation we had at the start, when we were talking about preparation was we've already played a game at Thomas & Mack and what we've got to do is we have to start where we finished. Hailey hit a game-winning shot. We have to start where we finished. It's not a new game; we keep this thing going. And we did that. And Wyoming came out a little hesitant, which we expected, and of course they came back in a hurry because they're so good, obviously. Q. With the past couple of games and you mentioned that you've been at the season with a lot of tenacity, how do you reflect on the season? HAILEY BASSETT: Reflecting on the season, obviously it hasn't gone the way we wanted it to go. But we went into the tournament wanting to finish strong and I feel like our chemistry as a team has gotten stronger and stronger. And I think that's what made us come out this tournament. And didn't end like we wanted it but I'm still proud of our team. EMMIE HARRIS: I think these past two games have really reflected on what we really can do as a team and how we're capable of playing and the fight that we have. And to be the first 11 seed team to win a first-round was amazing. And we came out in the first half and showed we can play with anybody in this conference. And I know we did it for our seniors and especially for Marlene since she was out, and especially since she was out the last two games and for us to play like that. I know it hurts to have her out but it shows how capable we are and how our past games haven't really reflected how we can play. So I'm really proud of us and the accomplishments we've made this season. COACH FINKBEINER: For me, I'll remember this team. It's my first year as head coaching. So it will always be something that I hold close to my heart because of what these young ladies did for me. We had some unique situations with the associate head coach and then into an interim sort of role and then losing the games early on and then an ACL at the end. It's been an interesting year. So you remember all those little things. But most young ladies going through a season like that don't respond the way that we responded in the end. And it speaks to the character of the young ladies that we recruit at Utah State. It speaks to our coaching staff. My dad, Coach Fink, on in to all the assistant coaches through the years that I've been with, it speaks to the recruiting job and it speaks to these young ladies and the character they have to compete like this to the end given the unique situations. So of course I'll always remember that because each one of them obviously means so much to me. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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