Post-Game Quotes: Western Michigan
11/13/2022 6:26:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Michigan State Head Coach Suzy Merchant
On what it was like to coach against a friend and former colleague in WMU Head Coach Shane Clipfell…
"Yeah, it's hard. I mean, we don't like playing against each other, that's for sure. We've known each other a long time. But you know, now some of the things we're charged with are guarantee-based. In their program, sometimes they have to play on the road and collect some money too. So, it was an opportunity, I think, for them to come here as a guarantee. And I think they're going to Michigan next, so it's not really far for them, and they have the opportunity to make some money off of the game. We want to do that for him too. You know, he's a good guy. In-state programs too, we typically do that a lot with them, as does Michigan. So you know, it's just hard. I mean Shane; I've known him a long time. We spent 14 years working together. He does such a good job. I think our press really bothered him, our depth really bothered him today. But, he's got a good squad, as they kind of get going a little bit I think you'll see them really do some things this year."
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On DeeDee Hageman's ability to knock down outside shots and her growth within that area…
"I mean I think both her and Tilly (Matilda Ekh) are hitting shots. I mean, I think that helps us, right? It helps us set our defense. I think early on in our first couple of games we were kind of; everyone was struggling to put the ball in the basket pretty consistently, so it was really nice to see her do that. We have depth, and we will need it since we have four games this week. So, being able to do it in short minutes, you know both of them; well she played the most, DeeDee played the most. But, everyone was pretty much around the 20-minute mark. It's really hard to play as hard as we do for extended minutes. So, it was nice to get depth in there, but it's really good to see her hit shots, there's no question about that."
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On the play of Kamaria McDaniel and Gabby Elliott…
"I thought they were both really good. Gabby got into some foul trouble early, as did K-Mac, and with our depth there is no reason to get them out there. I thought other people were stepping up and playing well. Gabby barely got to 12 minutes and had 11 points and six boards. She is a big factor for us in our pressure. She does a really good job being active; she can cover some ground. And then K-Mac too, she can really play north and south and get herself to the free throw line. I thought she did a good job of sharing the ball as well. To finish at the rim or get yourself to the line is certainly something that our guards and perimeter people have been working on, and she did a really good job in the second half of doing that."
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On the team's dominant second quarter run…
"Sometimes when you are a pressing team, we learned this when we scrimmaged Louisville and they turned us up and turned us over a little bit. You may be able to sustain it for a while, but then over time that's a lot to handle. We have multiple different presses, as do they, so I think you are kind of happy when you might get shots off. So, you are getting quick shots. But if you don't make them, then it becomes a problem the other way. We felt a little of that when we played Louisville at times, but we were able to kind of settle in a little bit. The other thing I thought it did for us in the second quarter was get them tired, which made it hard for them to find their best two players. The press was beating them up and people were open, and I thought our kids did a pretty good job at trying to cover on the backside. We adjusted our press late in that first quarter and all through the second quarter into our different man-to-man pressure a little bit more."
On what it was like to coach against a friend and former colleague in WMU Head Coach Shane Clipfell…
"Yeah, it's hard. I mean, we don't like playing against each other, that's for sure. We've known each other a long time. But you know, now some of the things we're charged with are guarantee-based. In their program, sometimes they have to play on the road and collect some money too. So, it was an opportunity, I think, for them to come here as a guarantee. And I think they're going to Michigan next, so it's not really far for them, and they have the opportunity to make some money off of the game. We want to do that for him too. You know, he's a good guy. In-state programs too, we typically do that a lot with them, as does Michigan. So you know, it's just hard. I mean Shane; I've known him a long time. We spent 14 years working together. He does such a good job. I think our press really bothered him, our depth really bothered him today. But, he's got a good squad, as they kind of get going a little bit I think you'll see them really do some things this year."
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On DeeDee Hageman's ability to knock down outside shots and her growth within that area…
"I mean I think both her and Tilly (Matilda Ekh) are hitting shots. I mean, I think that helps us, right? It helps us set our defense. I think early on in our first couple of games we were kind of; everyone was struggling to put the ball in the basket pretty consistently, so it was really nice to see her do that. We have depth, and we will need it since we have four games this week. So, being able to do it in short minutes, you know both of them; well she played the most, DeeDee played the most. But, everyone was pretty much around the 20-minute mark. It's really hard to play as hard as we do for extended minutes. So, it was nice to get depth in there, but it's really good to see her hit shots, there's no question about that."
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On the play of Kamaria McDaniel and Gabby Elliott…
"I thought they were both really good. Gabby got into some foul trouble early, as did K-Mac, and with our depth there is no reason to get them out there. I thought other people were stepping up and playing well. Gabby barely got to 12 minutes and had 11 points and six boards. She is a big factor for us in our pressure. She does a really good job being active; she can cover some ground. And then K-Mac too, she can really play north and south and get herself to the free throw line. I thought she did a good job of sharing the ball as well. To finish at the rim or get yourself to the line is certainly something that our guards and perimeter people have been working on, and she did a really good job in the second half of doing that."
Â
On the team's dominant second quarter run…
"Sometimes when you are a pressing team, we learned this when we scrimmaged Louisville and they turned us up and turned us over a little bit. You may be able to sustain it for a while, but then over time that's a lot to handle. We have multiple different presses, as do they, so I think you are kind of happy when you might get shots off. So, you are getting quick shots. But if you don't make them, then it becomes a problem the other way. We felt a little of that when we played Louisville at times, but we were able to kind of settle in a little bit. The other thing I thought it did for us in the second quarter was get them tired, which made it hard for them to find their best two players. The press was beating them up and people were open, and I thought our kids did a pretty good job at trying to cover on the backside. We adjusted our press late in that first quarter and all through the second quarter into our different man-to-man pressure a little bit more."
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