The Lady Vols are headed back to the Sweet 16.
Before Tennessee's trip to Birmingham, Kim Caldwell met with the media.
Here's what she said.
TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM
On posting rebounding signs on the practice court
I think it's really important in March that you have to rebound. You have to rebound and you have to hit foul shots. That's just something we've been talking about. It was a major key in our last game against Texas.
On the difference of emphasizing rebounds now compared to the regular season
I just hope our team players take it a little more serious.
On if her team is visual learners, why she posted the signs
We're just trying to make things a little different for postseason. I think it's a new season and sometimes it can get monotonous, it can get kind of routine. You're still in the same building, you're still wearing the same practice gear, so just trying to make it a little bit different for them just because it's such a long year.
On if he likes the carry over of energy at practice
We only had one day. We were okay yesterday. We were a little tired, a little sluggish. We actually just kind of chopped practice down after seeing what they looked like. Hopefully today is better.
On the energy of campus given the success of the athletic department
It's amazing and I'm happy to be a part of it. You don't want to be the coach that didn't reach the standard of the other coaches on a day-to-day basis.
On if it feels full circle to coach against the one team she missed this year
I think it will. It'll be nice to get back on the floor and get that opportunity back.
On carrying over rebounding from the last game
The work's never done. I do think we rebounded well last week. It's a new week. It's a bigger opponent, it's a more physical opponent and we just have to continue to do that. Focus, effort. And there have been some games this year where I have questioned, are we capable? Are we capable of rebounding with this team? And watching the Texas game was one of them. So just making sure that we have a focused effort with a sense of urgency on the boards.
On if Texas looks any different than the first meeting
They're playing much better. I think we are, too. So, I do think it'll be a different game, but their half court defense has improved significantly. At least it looks like that on film. Their full court pressure has improved significantly since their last loss.
On if it's an advantage or disadvantage to play a team you've already played
Kind of neutral. It's a little bit of motivation for us because we didn't win the first time. But sometimes it's nice to play someone new.
On how she wants to motivate the team
It doesn't really matter now. Now, we're 100% the underdog. That's what we're going with.
On if they took their foot off the gas vs. Ohio State
You guys say that. You guys think we took our foot off the gas. I don't think we did. I don't think we did. I just think that that was a really good opponent and that was bound to happen. There have been games where we have taken our foot off the gas, but I think that was the game where they just hit us, and we didn't blink, or we didn't seem fazed whatsoever. Nobody in our program knew it was 16-0 run. I'll tell you that. That's how locked in and focused we were. We just played right through it and they were bound to go on a run because they played similar to how we do and I think I was incredibly proud of our response.
On why they were able to stay focused
I think they're locked in, they're playing together as a team. Our huddles were tight. We had a lot of high fives. We had a lot of great energy and to see that when we were getting hit was a big step for this program. It's a step that we needed.
On if she thought this team could reach the Sweet 16 early in the year
From the very beginning of meeting this team, their mindset was a hungry mindset, and maybe we lost that somewhere along the way, but I think we have it back. And you know, as a coach, you can't sit here and think, 'Okay, we got it. Let's check that box. Let's pat ourselves on the back.' We have to continue to motivate. We have to continue to stay locked in. We have to continue to play the underdog card and play as hard as we can.
On if how she motivates the team has changed
I don't necessarily know that it has. I think that towards the back half of our regular season play, maybe we lost our motivation a little bit, and something that I'll have to dig in and do a deep dive when I evaluate the season once it's over, about kind of where we went wrong there. But I think the energy and effort level of practice is substantially different than it was three weeks ago.
On if it helps to have players with tournament experience
I think so. I think when you're at a mid-major, your ceiling is your ceiling, and it's usually you're going to get waxed in the first round. And so it's really nice to be a part of a program that your ceiling is a lot higher than that.
On what it says about the team that they got their competitive edge back
I think it's really rare. I think it's really rare in this day and age that you have a team that doesn't just check out and say, 'Well, I'm moving on to the next thing.' Or if you don't have a coaching staff that moves on and says, I'm moving off onto the next class of kids, let's just go ahead and start recruiting. I think it says a lot about the resiliency of this program coaching, from our assistant coaches to our players that they cared enough about each other to just check back in and fix it, as opposed to say, 'Oh, well, we failed.' And they just they figured it out, and I thought we looked really good our last two games. I'm happy we're going to the Sweet 16. I'm proud of that, but I'm more proud of the way we looked on the floor. I'm incredibly proud of the way we looked on the floor our last two games. And despite what happens in our next game, I hope that those last two games can be something that we remember as a group of how hard we played and how we played together.
On if that's what she envisioned
That's the way they have to be in March if we want a long march. That's where they got to be.
On if it was a flip of a switch or long process
It was a prolonged during our 13 days of practice that we had, and we worked on it, we got it back, and when they hit the road, they were incredibly focused. And our shoot arounds were phenomenal. Our energy and practice was great. And so it just was a build up and we were ready to play. And when you sit on 13 days of practice in this program, the way we practice, how hard we practice, how long we practice there, they were chomping at the bit to play someone else.
On what she took from the Division II level to this run
I think the biggest thing is excitement and energy. That's really all that can carry you through the teams that are excited and the teams that have juice and the teams that are having fun, the teams that still maintain having fun at this point in time of the year. It's something I've always tried to do with our teams, and I think we're doing a pretty good job at it. But again, let's see how we go on and practice today. We have a couple days before we play. These practices are not always the greatest when there's not a game within the next couple days.
On the team wearing whatever shoes they want in the Sweet 16
I don't even remember telling them that. They could have made it up for all I know, but at some point in time, I guess they asked me that question, and I said, Sure, then here we are.
On if they'll take advantage of the chance to wear new shoes
I'm sure they will. I don't think all of them will, but I'm sure that we'll have a handful of them that will.
On Zee Spearman
I think it's big. And again, I think her shot selection has gotten much improved, so her efficiency is better. And I think when she's efficient, she's playing well. But I think that what I've been most proud of her the last two games was what such a good teammate she was. She was a great teammate. You saw on film. We clipped it up. We showed on film. She went out of her way to give people high fives. She got frustrated for a second and then went out of her way to give people high fives. She's running to pick people up off the floor. And when you're in a tough environment on the road, which all of ours will be from here on out, you need to be a good teammate.
On huddling up on the floor
I mean, again, just our last two games, and it's such a small body of work, but it's our postseason body of work, so it's what matters. Now, they've been great and we clipped those up, we showed those they talked about and they laughed about them and hopefully it's something that they can see themselves doing on film, where we are in a tight huddle, and maybe our opponent isn't in a huddle and we freeze frame that, and we show that. And that matters. Those add up to points.
On showing those clips in practice
We'll do it early on, like early on, before we even play a game. We'll clip up body language, sportsmanship, how to be a good teammate. We'll clip it up in practice.
On how she grades that
We just talk about it. We show it. I mean, the film sometimes does lie on that. You know, sometimes players figure out how to fake body language and they're saying something bad that the camera doesn't pick up. You do have some of that, but you can usually tell when the energy is good on film.
On why she emphasizes that
I don't know if it translates to the men's game at all, but when you're coaching females, you need your sister. You need somebody right there next to you when you make a mistake, and if you make a mistake, I mean, I've been there as a player. I was never the best player on the floor, so when I made a mistake and my best player, or somebody else I was on the floor with, looked at me and said, 'I believe in you. Keep doing it.' Then it's washed away. It's the next fight and somebody else believes in me more than I do. And so I think that that's important. I always say, like, you don't play tennis, you're playing a team sport. Be a good teammate.
On if that's difficult to instill
With some players more than others.
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