WBB Postgame Quotes, Baylor vs. OU

Feb. 11, 2015

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3/3 BAYLOR 89 (23-1/12-0), RV/RV OKLAHOMA 66 (15-8/9-3)
Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2015
The Ferrell Center (Waco, Texas)
Attendance ... 7,683

BAYLOR POSTGAME QUOTES

BAYLOR HEAD COACH Kim Mulkey
On Niya's 17 assists and zero turnovers... "I had no idea. They handed me that stat sheet in the locker room and I just said, `Wow.' It's not just the 17 assists, it's zero turnovers in thirty minutes of play against a team that was trapping you and playing really aggressive in causing deflections and turnovers. That's so impressive."

On keeping the lead in the second half...
"When we started the second half, I told them the score is 0-0. We were up 22 at the half last year and went up thirty or something I think and they cut it and we only ended up winning by seven. I just thought the way we started the game and transitioned, we just got a rebound and took off at all positions. We just kept attacking them and I thought a key to the game was keeping them off the foul line. It's obvious you knew in the second half they were going to start shooting threes and making threes and to their credit they did. We matched them pretty much. Not necessarily with threes, but every time they would go on a run, we would come back and we'd go match them. We never let it get out of hand. I thought the twenty points we held them to in the first half spoke volumes about our defense. When you can hold a team to twenty points, that's playing pretty good defense."

On defending without fouling...
"To answer your question, it's just to figure out. If the game's being called tight, figure it out. Our defense isn't going to change. We're going to always be aggressive. Figure it out. I just thought--if you're referring to Texas--we controlled that entire game and the last 3:55 everything that you teach them that can go wrong, we allowed it to take place and it did go wrong and we talked about that. I thought tonight defensively we were concerned about backdoor cuts, we were concerned about those guys getting to the foul line and we were concerned about the three ball. I thought we defended all pretty good. The second half, they hit a lot, but I thought for the most part you didn't see them get a lot of backdoor cuts that they like to get. I though that you knew Peyton and Ortiz were going to shoot the majority of their shots, but you didn't let Carter who's they're leading scorer go off. We didn't let the third player kill us."

BAYLOR GUARD Niya Johnson
On her progression as a passer...
"Honestly, I don't know how I do it. I guess I just get it there at the right time. I couldn't have this many assists without my teammates making the shots so I'm just thankful for them making the shots and making our team look good."

On her 17 assists and zero turnovers...
"I was shocked when I heard I had 17 assists and zero turnovers. My whole team congratulated me. They just made me feel good and tried to encourage me, and also they know I can pass the ball well so I'm just glad they're finishing the shots."

BAYLOR FORWARD Nina Davis
On answering when OU went on runs...
"It was very important. It just shows our growth. We're a young team and still have a lot to learn. We make a lot of mistakes throughout the game, but just to continue to build on the lead just shows we're growing as a team. I think the Texas game was a game where it just humbled us to show us we can lose at any given moment and we just can't give up. I think that game was a wake up call for us and we came out ready to play tonight."

On playing on a team where everyone shares the ball... "It's great. I would definitely say Niya is one of the best point guards in the country. We just have a team where nobody is selfish. If you have the open shot you take it. You have teammates who go rebound for you and get the ball right back to you if you're on. We're like a family and it's great to be a part of it."

OKLAHOMA HEAD COACH SHERRI COALE
Opening Statement ...
"I thought Baylor played terrific. I thought we made them look really good too. They were hitting on all cylinders obviously, but our help defense was very poor. We weren't connected defensively at all. Early we didn't make a lot of shots and we let it snowball, we let not making a shot on offense carry into the defensive end. They're the type of team that if they smell you being weak or they smell you being frustrated then they come at you even harder. We were the recipients of that tonight."

On Niya Johnson and other great Point Guards she's seen ...
"She's quiet but deadly. You have some point guards who are all flash and dash, but she just gets the job done. I think I said to my local radio guys before the game that she is probably one of the most underrated point guards in the country. People don't know her name, but her numbers are unbelievable. The way she feels the game is exceptional. She really has a great nose for it and plays within herself and knows how to get the players around her in the right place at the right time with the ball in a place where they can do something with it. I mean it's hard to have 17 assists and no turnovers if someone is guarding you the whole game. And I think Gabbi was guarding her tonight. So hats off to her tonight, it was a great performance."

On Baylor's ball movement ...
"I think they're a very selfless team. They want to play together. You've got to pay such attention to Nina that - it seems like that's always the case [with Baylor] that you've really got to pay special attention to - I think you can get so locked up in guarding her that it makes you hesitant in that help and its halfway. It's a recipe for disaster if you halfway anything.

On Nina Davis ...
"She has an uncanny knack for the basketball and I think that's her greatest gift, she's just always around it. She gets a ton of her points off offensive rebound putbacks. And she has a knack for getting fouled. She just becomes a handful even though you know she's probably gonna put it on the floor, it's a hard thing to stop. She's a good player."

FRESHMAN GUARD GABBI ORTIZ
On the difference between the first and second halves ...
"I mean, like coach said, we dug ourselves into a hole. We were down and we couldn't score, we weren't hitting shots we usually hit. I knew that I needed to step up and start shooting more and I know some of us had a more aggressive mentality. I know some of us had a more aggressive mentality. So we were just really looking to score. At that point, we had nothing to lose. We just wanted to come back and hit some shots and we did, but we let them come down and score right after it."

On Baylor's ball movement ...
"They shared the ball great. We didn't play defense as well as I know we can, we weren't really connected or firing on all cylinders so that hurt us tremendously because of the way they move the ball and it showed. Thirty-two assists or whatever they had, so we've gotta step it up on defense. It was hard to stop."