Sue Semrau Team Quotations

Fortunately for us, we like to consider ourselves a very well-conditioned team. I don't have a team where one player is the superstar. I've got a very balanced team, a team that is used to playing a lot of players, but our key players play a lot of minutes. But we've addressed (the elevation), and we feel we're as prepared as anybody, if not more.

I absolutely loved our team effort when we got down early in the second half. Our fight was tremendous.

Our team played really well at Miami. I keep talking about how much better we're getting and I think a lot of that is just developing confidence and the consistency we have on the defensive end of the floor. We're beginning now to not only defend like we can, but also rebound the basketball extremely well and because of those two things, we're coming up with some easy transition buckets on the other end.

I think we continue to get better and better with our road play. It's almost like it's our home away from home now since we don't have very many home games, the next two again are on the road and one team we've faced before (Virginia) and one team we don't have to travel as far to face (Georgia Tech). We've been intentional in preparing for it and we're going to be our best come Sunday.

I thought Carrie Mason was the best I've ever seen her. Obviously, she missed just one shot. Her shot selection was tremendous. She hit big shots when she need to. She hit all of her free throws. She ran the team and she did a great job. Virginia Tech did a good job of making the extra pass which is shown by the 18 assists. That's what you've got to do against a defense that's going to come at you. That's to penetrate and then find the next one. They did a tremendous job of that.

I think it is really important if you have any kind of vision for going to the championship game of the tournament because four days, four games is a very difficult task. It's been done, but at the same time, it's a lot easier if you have the chance to play three back-to-back games instead so I'm very proud of my team for finishing in the top four in the ACC.

Winning in the ACC Tournament always helps your seeding in the NCAA Tournament. Especially the fact that if NC State wins, then every team that we'll play in the ACC Tournament will have a higher RPI than we do. That can only help us in our cause for the NCAA Tournament.

We gave the team the Clemson scouting report tonight. Obviously we'll be somewhat familiar since we've played them before but that was a long time ago. I really trust my team to study that and be prepared for Saturday where we'll have a very light practice but we'll be going through Clemson's sets and get mentally prepared and try to take care of their bodies before we play a 3:00 game on Sunday.

We're a much better basketball team when she stays on the floor, obviously. She's just so well-rounded at both ends of the floor. I think she's one of the top players in the conference. It's exciting to see her numbers reflect that.

Boston College coming in is just the kind of game you just want to play. You have a Top 20-ranked team coming to your place and it's their first time ever in Tallahassee. There the team that will probably finish fifth or sixth in the conference and we just really want to lock in and go to work with that. We're not going to hold anything back, we're going to go after it and try to get this game with everything we've got.

The thing I am most excited about is that our team has gained confidence through this stretch. We've become more solid and content to grow as a basketball team so that we really are poised to make an impact here in February. It could have gone the other way. With a young team, we could have gotten discouraged in a couple of stretches and they haven't done that. They've stayed strong and I'm excited about what that means for this team.

This campaign was not about money. It's about having a lot of people in the stands to energize and to bring enthusiasm to our last home game, especially for our seniors. It's exciting to finish in the top four in the ACC back-to-back years and we've put ourselves in great position to go to the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back years as well. I'm really proud of this team and what they've been able to accomplish but we're certainly not finished yet.

Against Lipscomb, we were able to sustain our defensive intensity and show some different looks which I thought was really important for our preparation for a much-improved Florida team since the time we saw them last.

I like the way that we match up with them. We're a very athletic team as well. We can defend and we can handle pressure.

I'm just really impressed with the growth of our team ... The toughness that seems to be developing. The last two games down the stretch is when we've been our best.

I'm proud of this team who, I think, early in the season, had every right to question whether or not we could finish in the top four of the conference. They set their minds to it, even as a young team, and said 'we're going to do what it takes in order to gel into a team that has strong chemistry and a team that has a solid worth ethic and a team that defends. And boy, they did that tonight.

It's really going to be about getting to know each other. Initially, it has to be off the court. The way that our team was so successful last year was that they played hard for each other. We want to create that dynamic where you know and care about one another off the court.

Georgia Tech is playing great basketball right now. They, on the road, are going to be a real difficult match up for us. They've got great size and really do a good job on the defensive end of the floor. They are the number one rebounding team in our conference. We're just going to have to have a great rebounding effort against them and go in with the mindset that we're going to attack on the offensive end.

They haven't tried to step out and be stars on their own. They've committed to complementing one another with their strengths and their weaknesses. Even Hannah, who made a choice to say, 'I want to give to this team in other ways, and I can't do it physically.' That selflessness, I think, has been prevalent through this group.

It was a heartbreaker. I thought we had a good look (on Neely's shot). I thought my team stepped up, and I am looking forward to moving on into the NCAA tournament.

It's all about the game. Game, game, game. They know the big-picture stuff. ... I don't think I've had a team as determined to move forward as this one.

Even with Fordham and Lipscomb, we've been talking about taking it one game at a time. We've got a stretch here now that we really need to lock in to every single game with preparation. I just like the mentality of our team right now and I like the demeanor.

We were obviously thrilled when we were approached with the opportunity to light the spear. Obviously we have so much respect for our football program and to be the first team to experience that lighting of the torch for a special occasion is really awesome.