Women's Basketball Media Day Transcript
10/17/2017 | 6:07:00 | Women's Basketball
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Entering her fifth season at the helm of the Southern Illinois women's basketball team, Cindy Stein met with members of the media on Tuesday for SIU's annual media day inside the Cook Club of SIU Arena.
PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
Opening Statement
I feel very excited about this upcoming season, I have a guarded optimistic view about this upcoming season. I think we have some really good talent. I tell our team that all the time. But we have to put it all together. We've got 14 young ladies- 10 of those young ladies are freshmen and sophomores. So that's where the guarded part comes in because we have to get a lot better at taking care of the ball and doing the little things. We have to avoid the up and down roller coaster sometimes that comes with youth. I really feel good about Kylie Giebelhausen returning. She's our all-everything player. She's someone that will probably leave Southern Illinois as one of the best three-point shooters and shot blockers in SIU history. I think were really looking forward to her senior year and where she can help lead us. Now after that, we've got a group of kids that have had some injuries already and some sicknesses that were still playing through. But to tell you where we are right now, its a battle every day. That's also one of the positive things- it is a battle every day. If we were to start and have a game tomorrow, two of our freshmen would probably be in that starting lineup. That's the battle that we have and its good because I don't think anyone is going to lay down and die as that happens. But the biggest questions for us are, who is going to replace Rishonda Napier at point guard, who was a three-time all-conference player, and also we've had really good inside game the past two seasons with Dyana Pierre and Kim Nebo, so who will step up there and we also lost a great leader in Carlie Corrigan, who graduated last year. So the questions are point guard, who is going to be a dominant post that puts up points and grabs rebounds and who is going to help Kylie lead. Because with any kind of team, you have to have a lot of leaders and good chemistry. We're answering those questions right now. I think what you're going to see is at the point guard position, Brittney Patrick and Kristen Nelson are battling away. I think Olivia (Bowling) will get there, but she has had some health issues and she's going to get stronger but she's just getting back to practice. Patrick and Nelson are battling. It also gives us different dynamics at point guard. You have someone who attacks the basket probably better and you've got someone else that is probably a better outside shooter. But I think that makes us stronger. If we have to play point guard by committee we will but I prefer it be more set. I do think we will probably play more kids this year than in the past. I think we will have really good rotations. I think we will have the ability to play the defense that we've always wanted to play since we got here. Probably a little more up and down the court, full-court, some trapping, some different gimmick defenses. I think we will be much better at that. But again, we're fairly young. We want to be sure we are really good at what we are doing, and not putting in too much, too soon. We could put a lot of stuff in, but you want to make sure you're good at it. We can score at all five spots. We got good news with Celina VanHyfte being healthy this year. I said, probably two years ago, that Celina could have a huge impact on this team and I think you're going to see that she can have that kind of impact this year. Our other main returner is Nicole Martin. Martin had a great season last year and I think she's a lot better this season. Nicole Martin has been the one kid I've seen the most in the gym, doing and working on things she needed to do. I think she has a bunch of moves this year. Last year, I thought her turn around jumper was A-plus, but that was all she really had. So I think she's got a lot more juice in her as well. I think were looking at a really good season and our goal every season is to win it. I don't care who gets picked to finish first, our goal is to win this conference, go to postseason, and keep moving forward. That's our expectation, anything less than that, to me, is a disappointment. If you ask me if last year was a disappointment, yes it was. I want to win this thing. We have a 2007 banner that hangs in our locker room and I want that thing torn down. But its a reminder, everyday, of how long it has been and I want our kids focused on that. It's a great group of kids, I love them to death, and I am really looking forward to the year.
Q: Are you going to redshirt any freshmen?
Yes. Criste'on Waters will redshirt this year.
Q: So who are the two freshmen who are going to start?
Well it could be a mix. There's three left. Abby Brockmeyer. 6-2, young lady out of Raymond, Illinois, that does a great job for us. What I love about Abby right now is she isn't turning the ball over. She can shoot the three, she can post up and she's rebounding well. Just the fact that she doesn't turn the ball over in that spot is huge. Rachel Pudlowski is a young lady that comes in with a lot of toughness. A really gritty kid. She's a scrapper. She's going to get in there and get in the mix. She rebounds really well and is high energy. She's got a chance to start. Makenzie Silvey has a chance too. She's got a really good ball savvy. A good scorer who is doing a lot of good things. A good passer. Right now, as many of you know, we do efficiency ratings and everything that we do is stated. Right now, Brockmeyer and Silvey are two of the top-five in those categories.
Q: Would the freshmen be starting out of necessity?
I think they're playing really well. The thing you have to watch for in freshmen is, are they taking care of the ball and are they taking good shots? They also need to know what you want in your system. Silvey is a coach's kid and Brockmeyer has been extremely well-coached as well. Our freshmen are all catching on really quick and are a tough group. We talk everyday about being gritty and tough and we feel like they bring that. Once they get a little bit more comfortable in our system, I think you'll see them really flourish.
Q: What will you miss most about Rishonda Napier- her presence on the floor or her physical ability?
With Rishonda, she was either going to find the person who was going to make the bucket and get the job done, or she was going to do it. She had a really good feel for making sure that the kids who needed the ball, got the ball. And if we weren't hitting, she would take over the game. Her knowledge of that is obviously hard to replace. Her leadership, getting the group together, getting the huddles clean, we don't really have that right now.
Q: Who's going to fill Rishonda's spot?
We still have a couple of weeks before our first exhibition. I never get too set on anybody until we start playing and we see who can perform under pressure. Chemistry is huge. You have to get the kids who play well together. Honestly, the point guard is going to be the communicator who best sees things the way I see them. Because the point guard has to be my extension on the floor. I have to have someone who sees things the way I do, has good communication skills and takes over.
Q: How will you measure toughness with this group?
I think you see toughness in different stats; steals, getting on the floor for loose balls, creating loose balls, deflections, defense, who's attacking the basket on rebounds. Those are the things you look for in toughness. We've got some kids who do it. We have to get them to do it more consistently, but it's there.
Q: Will you be a different looking team, style-wise, this year?
I believe so. I remember my first year here when we tried to put in a full-court press, and as good as athletes as I think we had, there's not one of those kids that wanted to play defense, full-court. They looked at me like 'you're crazy.' It's nice to have kids that can get up there and deny the ball. We're long and lengthy. We can cause a lot of problems with people when we are in the right spots. We are getting our kids to play more aggressive with that. I think that not only in the full-court, but just making things happen in the half-court. I think we will be better about taking things away from the opponent and getting them out of their offensive sets a little more. Last year, Kylie Giebelhausen had to defend the best player on the other team, weather they were a guard, post or point guard and I hope that's not the case this year. We have a mixture of kids this year that can come in and be defensive stoppers.
Q: Are you expecting more steals?
Absolutely. I think are hands are going to be on the ball a lot more. I think that we have the ability to get the rebound in all five spots and get the ball and go. I don't think we will be reliant on the point guard bringing the ball up the court. This year we are going to be able to do it with a lot of different people. I think we can run the lanes much better. I think were up and down the floor much faster than in years past and those are things that are definitely our style that we want to play.
Q: How much does the amount of experience coming back play into your optimism about the upcoming season?
I think that's huge. All are sophomores got significant playing time, and three of them got quite a few starts. And then bringing in a kid like Celina VanHyfte who's been out a year, but is a very talented player, is huge. I think if we can get Tiajaney Hawkins healthy again too that will be huge. But once we get different pieces like that, we are going to look better. I'll use Ashley Hummel as an example. She didn't get a ton of playing time the last two years, but she's such a great leader on the floor. She's smart and makes some good plays. Those are things that we look for. We have kids who are using their experience to their advantage, and are helping out the younger kids who might not know.
Q: Will you be a more post-centric team this year?
I think we will be a team that will always pound the ball inside but we will always have the ability to pop from outside as well. All of our kids can shoot threes but we will always look for opportunities to post someone up. In fact, we've but in some options within our offense so that anybody on the floor can take an opportunity to do that. I think that's something we will always look to do and that its to our advantage.
Q: Has the San Juan Tournament been cancelled?
We do not know yet. We will know a little more in a couple of weeks. I do know that they have a contingency plan if we are unable to go, but at the same time, were still awaiting word. We will still play regardless, but might move the games from San Juan to Miami. We are going to play Albany and Kennesaw State, its just a matter of where.
Q: How do you see the Valley race playing out?
Drake brings back a lot of experience, so they have a solid group, but you have to also look at Missouri State too. Missouri State is really talented and Northern Iowa is always good. Bradley returns a lot of players too. I have a lot of respect for Andrea Gorski and I know she's going to have a really competitive group. There really isn't anybody that I think is just going to run away with it. I think the league is going to be really competitive but I do think Drake and Missouri State have their notch a little higher heading into the season.
PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
Opening Statement
I feel very excited about this upcoming season, I have a guarded optimistic view about this upcoming season. I think we have some really good talent. I tell our team that all the time. But we have to put it all together. We've got 14 young ladies- 10 of those young ladies are freshmen and sophomores. So that's where the guarded part comes in because we have to get a lot better at taking care of the ball and doing the little things. We have to avoid the up and down roller coaster sometimes that comes with youth. I really feel good about Kylie Giebelhausen returning. She's our all-everything player. She's someone that will probably leave Southern Illinois as one of the best three-point shooters and shot blockers in SIU history. I think were really looking forward to her senior year and where she can help lead us. Now after that, we've got a group of kids that have had some injuries already and some sicknesses that were still playing through. But to tell you where we are right now, its a battle every day. That's also one of the positive things- it is a battle every day. If we were to start and have a game tomorrow, two of our freshmen would probably be in that starting lineup. That's the battle that we have and its good because I don't think anyone is going to lay down and die as that happens. But the biggest questions for us are, who is going to replace Rishonda Napier at point guard, who was a three-time all-conference player, and also we've had really good inside game the past two seasons with Dyana Pierre and Kim Nebo, so who will step up there and we also lost a great leader in Carlie Corrigan, who graduated last year. So the questions are point guard, who is going to be a dominant post that puts up points and grabs rebounds and who is going to help Kylie lead. Because with any kind of team, you have to have a lot of leaders and good chemistry. We're answering those questions right now. I think what you're going to see is at the point guard position, Brittney Patrick and Kristen Nelson are battling away. I think Olivia (Bowling) will get there, but she has had some health issues and she's going to get stronger but she's just getting back to practice. Patrick and Nelson are battling. It also gives us different dynamics at point guard. You have someone who attacks the basket probably better and you've got someone else that is probably a better outside shooter. But I think that makes us stronger. If we have to play point guard by committee we will but I prefer it be more set. I do think we will probably play more kids this year than in the past. I think we will have really good rotations. I think we will have the ability to play the defense that we've always wanted to play since we got here. Probably a little more up and down the court, full-court, some trapping, some different gimmick defenses. I think we will be much better at that. But again, we're fairly young. We want to be sure we are really good at what we are doing, and not putting in too much, too soon. We could put a lot of stuff in, but you want to make sure you're good at it. We can score at all five spots. We got good news with Celina VanHyfte being healthy this year. I said, probably two years ago, that Celina could have a huge impact on this team and I think you're going to see that she can have that kind of impact this year. Our other main returner is Nicole Martin. Martin had a great season last year and I think she's a lot better this season. Nicole Martin has been the one kid I've seen the most in the gym, doing and working on things she needed to do. I think she has a bunch of moves this year. Last year, I thought her turn around jumper was A-plus, but that was all she really had. So I think she's got a lot more juice in her as well. I think were looking at a really good season and our goal every season is to win it. I don't care who gets picked to finish first, our goal is to win this conference, go to postseason, and keep moving forward. That's our expectation, anything less than that, to me, is a disappointment. If you ask me if last year was a disappointment, yes it was. I want to win this thing. We have a 2007 banner that hangs in our locker room and I want that thing torn down. But its a reminder, everyday, of how long it has been and I want our kids focused on that. It's a great group of kids, I love them to death, and I am really looking forward to the year.
Q: Are you going to redshirt any freshmen?
Yes. Criste'on Waters will redshirt this year.
Q: So who are the two freshmen who are going to start?
Well it could be a mix. There's three left. Abby Brockmeyer. 6-2, young lady out of Raymond, Illinois, that does a great job for us. What I love about Abby right now is she isn't turning the ball over. She can shoot the three, she can post up and she's rebounding well. Just the fact that she doesn't turn the ball over in that spot is huge. Rachel Pudlowski is a young lady that comes in with a lot of toughness. A really gritty kid. She's a scrapper. She's going to get in there and get in the mix. She rebounds really well and is high energy. She's got a chance to start. Makenzie Silvey has a chance too. She's got a really good ball savvy. A good scorer who is doing a lot of good things. A good passer. Right now, as many of you know, we do efficiency ratings and everything that we do is stated. Right now, Brockmeyer and Silvey are two of the top-five in those categories.
Q: Would the freshmen be starting out of necessity?
I think they're playing really well. The thing you have to watch for in freshmen is, are they taking care of the ball and are they taking good shots? They also need to know what you want in your system. Silvey is a coach's kid and Brockmeyer has been extremely well-coached as well. Our freshmen are all catching on really quick and are a tough group. We talk everyday about being gritty and tough and we feel like they bring that. Once they get a little bit more comfortable in our system, I think you'll see them really flourish.
Q: What will you miss most about Rishonda Napier- her presence on the floor or her physical ability?
With Rishonda, she was either going to find the person who was going to make the bucket and get the job done, or she was going to do it. She had a really good feel for making sure that the kids who needed the ball, got the ball. And if we weren't hitting, she would take over the game. Her knowledge of that is obviously hard to replace. Her leadership, getting the group together, getting the huddles clean, we don't really have that right now.
Q: Who's going to fill Rishonda's spot?
We still have a couple of weeks before our first exhibition. I never get too set on anybody until we start playing and we see who can perform under pressure. Chemistry is huge. You have to get the kids who play well together. Honestly, the point guard is going to be the communicator who best sees things the way I see them. Because the point guard has to be my extension on the floor. I have to have someone who sees things the way I do, has good communication skills and takes over.
Q: How will you measure toughness with this group?
I think you see toughness in different stats; steals, getting on the floor for loose balls, creating loose balls, deflections, defense, who's attacking the basket on rebounds. Those are the things you look for in toughness. We've got some kids who do it. We have to get them to do it more consistently, but it's there.
Q: Will you be a different looking team, style-wise, this year?
I believe so. I remember my first year here when we tried to put in a full-court press, and as good as athletes as I think we had, there's not one of those kids that wanted to play defense, full-court. They looked at me like 'you're crazy.' It's nice to have kids that can get up there and deny the ball. We're long and lengthy. We can cause a lot of problems with people when we are in the right spots. We are getting our kids to play more aggressive with that. I think that not only in the full-court, but just making things happen in the half-court. I think we will be better about taking things away from the opponent and getting them out of their offensive sets a little more. Last year, Kylie Giebelhausen had to defend the best player on the other team, weather they were a guard, post or point guard and I hope that's not the case this year. We have a mixture of kids this year that can come in and be defensive stoppers.
Q: Are you expecting more steals?
Absolutely. I think are hands are going to be on the ball a lot more. I think that we have the ability to get the rebound in all five spots and get the ball and go. I don't think we will be reliant on the point guard bringing the ball up the court. This year we are going to be able to do it with a lot of different people. I think we can run the lanes much better. I think were up and down the floor much faster than in years past and those are things that are definitely our style that we want to play.
Q: How much does the amount of experience coming back play into your optimism about the upcoming season?
I think that's huge. All are sophomores got significant playing time, and three of them got quite a few starts. And then bringing in a kid like Celina VanHyfte who's been out a year, but is a very talented player, is huge. I think if we can get Tiajaney Hawkins healthy again too that will be huge. But once we get different pieces like that, we are going to look better. I'll use Ashley Hummel as an example. She didn't get a ton of playing time the last two years, but she's such a great leader on the floor. She's smart and makes some good plays. Those are things that we look for. We have kids who are using their experience to their advantage, and are helping out the younger kids who might not know.
Q: Will you be a more post-centric team this year?
I think we will be a team that will always pound the ball inside but we will always have the ability to pop from outside as well. All of our kids can shoot threes but we will always look for opportunities to post someone up. In fact, we've but in some options within our offense so that anybody on the floor can take an opportunity to do that. I think that's something we will always look to do and that its to our advantage.
Q: Has the San Juan Tournament been cancelled?
We do not know yet. We will know a little more in a couple of weeks. I do know that they have a contingency plan if we are unable to go, but at the same time, were still awaiting word. We will still play regardless, but might move the games from San Juan to Miami. We are going to play Albany and Kennesaw State, its just a matter of where.
Q: How do you see the Valley race playing out?
Drake brings back a lot of experience, so they have a solid group, but you have to also look at Missouri State too. Missouri State is really talented and Northern Iowa is always good. Bradley returns a lot of players too. I have a lot of respect for Andrea Gorski and I know she's going to have a really competitive group. There really isn't anybody that I think is just going to run away with it. I think the league is going to be really competitive but I do think Drake and Missouri State have their notch a little higher heading into the season.
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's Basketball
F/C
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
PG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F/C
/ Women's Basketball
F
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