KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee head coach Kellie Harper met with members of the media on Monday ahead of UT’s home match-up with Stetson.
No. 23/RV Tennessee is set to host the Hatters at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in Thompson-Boling Arena. The game will be streamed online via SECN+ and broadcast on Lady Vol Network radio stations.
The Lady Vols enter the contest undefeated at 4-0, while Stetson comes in at 2-2. UT’s most recent win was a 73-43 triumph over Tennessee State at home last Thursday. Stetson played two games over the weekend, defeating Morehead State on Friday, 58-55, before falling to Saint Francis on Saturday, 78-73.
Head Coach Kellie Harper
On her thoughts on being ranked No. 23 in AP poll:
“Well, you do what you’re supposed to do, and (you) get some wins early in the season, and they reward you by putting you in a poll. Obviously, it is early, and there is a lot to do, but I am glad we are undefeated at this point.”
On why the team is rebounding so well:
“It’s funny, when I watch film I don’t think we are rebounding well enough. We are getting a lot of boards right now because of our size. We are being aggressive, but I think there is room for improvement there. I think that later on when we match up with folks that size-wise look like us, it will be much more difficult. I want to be disciplined now and be more consistent now so that it will pay off later.”
On if she is content with the minutes from her players throughout the first four games:
“Right now, I think the minutes have been good. We have to try and monitor that. One of my big concerns with that is the five-guard rotation with really six slots. So we may be looking at Lou Brown moving over and playing some perimeter position for us. She can do that. That is one area I am keeping an eye on, but right now, I think our minutes are pretty well dispersed.”
On what it means to this team to have three (four before Zaay Green was injured) different leading scorers:
“I think we have players that can make plays. I think it is good to have multiple options. So if we are in a situation that we have to have different folks step up, hopefully they are capable and feel confident to do that now after the first four games.”
On if the rest of the team is healthy other than Zaay Green being out:
“We are still the same group we have had. We are working with Jaiden McCoy and hope to get her back soon, but right now, everybody is a go.”
On the status of when Jaiden McCoy could return:
“Jaiden could actually play right now. We are just trying to be a little bit cautious with her finger and make sure we don’t get it re-injured in this transition period.”
On if she plans on using the ranking as motivation for players:
“I haven’t even thought about it. I just found out a few minutes ago, so I haven’t processed that. It has not ever been anything that is my goal for this team. Obviously, if you are where you are supposed to be, you are going to be ranked here at Tennessee. I think that it is just byproduct of what you’re supposed to be doing here.”
On if the team has progressed like she expected:
“We are probably where I thought we would be. The Notre Dame game was a little bit of a question mark for me, just because I didn’t know with that atmosphere, that environment, that quality of team, how we were going to respond. That was a really good positive for us. I didn’t think we came out of it great. I thought we weren’t as sharp in our next game, so hopefully we can use that as a learning experience and we can do better. But in terms of where we are, I think we are where I expected this team to be at this point.”
On if beating Notre Dame at South Bend built the team’s confidence:
“I thought that win was huge for our confidence in what we are doing, confidence in each other, and really sparking this team to dream bigger and push for more.”
On the players that signed for the Lady Vols last week and what they can contribute in the coming years for the program:
“Both players that we signed are really good people and high-character individuals. They are very competitive. They love the University of Tennessee. They are so excited to put on that jersey, and I think all of those things are imperative right now. Skills-wise, Tess Darby is a really good shooter. She has good length. She understands the game, and she is a hard worker. Destiny Salary also has a really good understanding of the game. She brings more athleticism on the perimeter. She is also a really hard worker. She is a little slippery offensively and a pretty good on-ball defender.”
On what challenges to expect from Stetson:
“I think the first thing that stands out to me is, when I remember this game from last year, I remember watching and keeping an eye on that game last year. I think Tennessee was down and had to make a comeback to get the win. I’m hoping that this is not a team that we will take lightly. I think our players’ attention has been grabbed from the previous season. They (Stetson) are young, but they are athletic, and they have players that can make plays. They have a really good shooter on the perimeter. When you have players that can score, I don’t care who you are, what you run, or what defense you play; you are dangerous if you can score. On any given night, all of those shots can be going in.”
On getting after her team after a win because it wasn’t up to Lady Vol standards:
“Absolutely. We had that discussion after our Tennessee State win. I didn’t think we played well. We won easily, but I don’t think that we played well. We talked about the standard that we needed to have and the discipline that we need to have and the carry over. I didn’t think that our practices leading up to that game were very good. I think our players really rebounded from that game well. We had a really good practice yesterday. We challenged them there. We hope to have another good one and be very prepared going into the Stetson game. Sometimes, you have to not play well to learn a lesson. I’m glad that we can not play well, learn a lesson and still get a win. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it was enough.”
On embracing the ups and downs that come with a young team:
“I think the biggest thing is that you’ve got to continue to push your team. We want to be good because we out-executed our opponent. We want to be good because we were better than them, not because we’re bigger, faster, stronger. We want to do things the right way. That’s where we can build more consistency as a team. I think it’s important that our players are always pushing and always looking for ways to improve. We’re going to do that as a staff, and we talk openly about it. We talk openly about who we’re playing and what we can do well against them and how that carries over from practice to games and then game to game.”
On if freshman guard Jordan Horston has exceeded expectations:
“Obviously, she’s shooting the ball really well. There’s no doubt about that. That’s been exciting to see. Her play… she’s so competitive, so when she gets out on the court, we expect her to make plays. We’ve expected that from the moment she got on this campus. I think when she gets out on the court, she’s taken it to another level in games, and we’re trying to be patient with her. She’s going to make plays. She’s going to make some turnovers. We’re working through those right now, and I think as her game matures, you’re going to see her even improving on her great start.”
On if Horston has been different in practice, compared to games:
“I think she’s been a little bit different. I think she’s one that loves the competition and loves the game. I think, again, as she understands what being a college athlete’s like, you’re going to see her get better.”
On how she found out that the Lady Vols are ranked No. 23 in the latest AP poll:
“I think somebody in the office mentioned it to me. I was working on planning a practice and somebody said, ‘I think we’re ranked.’ They looked it up and said, ‘Yeah, it looks like we’re ranked.’ So, it was very anti-climactic, actually.”
On what her thought was when discovering the team was ranked:
“I remember thinking we would probably be ranked, but I had completely forgotten about the rankings coming out, so it was, ‘Oh yeah, we probably should be ranked at this point.’”
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