Everything Missouri WBB head coach Robin Pingeton said after loss to South Carolina

Missouri head women’s basketball coach Robin Pingeton spoke to the media following the team’s 83-52 loss to South Carolina on Thursday. Here’s everything she had to say.

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Opening statement

“Hats off to South Carolina. Obviously, Dawn (Staley)‘s got a great squad – they’re very deep, very talented. But I’m proud of our team. I thought we competed. I think, late in the second quarter, it’s a two-point game; I think, late in the third, it was an 11-point game. That’s the thing about South Carolina – they just need a little window and, all of a sudden, an 11-point game’s a 16-point game. And then, it turns into a 24-point game – they just go on runs.

“I thought our players did a nice job just staying the course. Obviously, (we) need to be better on the boards. I felt like we left some points out there around the rim – maybe a different look planning against the size and athleticism. But it’s a marathon, not a sprint. This is the SEC – you got to handle it; you got to learn from it. You turn around, and you got another top-25 team on the road. So, there’s going to be a lot of opportunities in front of us. We can’t hang our heads. Like I said, I’m proud of this team, and I think we’ll be better because of it.”

On how Missouri adjusted its lineup due to early foul trouble

“(It was) definitely frustrating. I mean, we had foul trouble, it seemed like, the majority of the game. Putting a team on the line 32 times is tough. But we got to go back and watch film and figure out how we don’t put officials in positions that they have to make those calls. You know, what do we need to clean up on our end? But it’s next man up, next rotation. I think we’ve got some players that can play position-less basketball; pretty high-IQ, young ladies that just adapted pretty quickly, and we’re able to function in different rotations than we basically had, pretty much, this season so far.”

On Missouri’s second-quarter scoring run with a smaller lineup

I did feel like, and we talked about this at halftime, we had some good looks at the rim that we didn’t convert on that, if we don’t, like that, they turn into transition baskets. We overran some of our tags offensively – that put us in a really bad position with our transition defense. So, we were able to pull up a couple clips at halftime. I think this group is a pretty visual group, and I think, once they see those sets and just adjustments that we need to make, they’re usually pretty good at making those. But I felt like transition buckets – I think it was a lot more than what this box score has – but that was also a… in the half-court, it wasn’t bad. Transition buckets hurt us, and second-shot opportunities.”

On the benefits of having tough tests early in SEC play

“I think we’ve got a locker room of young ladies that like to compete, and I don’t think they plan on backing down. I think they’re actually all really excited for SEC (play). We like playing South Carolina – I’ve got a lot of respect for Dawn; I’ve got a lot of respect for their program. But line them up in the SEC, every team, there’s some great coaches, great players. It’s going to be a dogfight every night. To start off with a team that’s top-two in the country – I think they’re ranked second in in both polls right now – (it’s a) great opportunity to learn and grow from.”

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On whether Missouri’s depth is where it needs to be to get through SEC play

“Yeah, I think we have the pieces, for sure. Tonight, I thought Hilke (Feldrappe) had some really good minutes for us. We’ve seen her start to come on ever since Christmas break. I think she’s playing with a much better motor, a lot more physical. I thought she had some big minutes, which is going to help us more, as well. But, bottom line is we can’t get in foul trouble the way we did. I mean, we had Angie (Ngalakulondi) and Hannah (Linthacum) both pick up two fouls in that first half. Then, Trey pulled her hamstring, so she was a no-go for the the rest of the game. So, that put us in in some tough rotations. But do I think we have the personnel and the depth in the league? There is no doubt in my mind.”

On South Carolina’s perimeter defense

“I thought they were pretty disruptive. I think they played the three a little bit tighter than they had been all season long, but that’s kind of what we do. So, when you play each other every year, you kind of get tendencies and understand personnel. So, I know that was a point of emphasis for them to really be disruptive and not allow us to get good looks from the three. I still thought we had a few that just didn’t go down for us.

“Again, I thought we had some really good looks around the rim. I thought there was, probably – I mean, I’ll go back and watch – but, golly, it seemed like 10 or so around the rim that we just didn’t convert on. And, again, I think that’s just making the adjustment of playing against you more athletic, longer, physical individuals. And I think by playing in these SEC games, I guarantee you, in our next game, it’s going to feel a little bit different to them out there. It’s hard to emulate and practice. We play pretty physical; our scout team’s been gone. But I think, again, it’s just an opportunity to learn and get better. And I really believe that these these girls will.”

On the timeline for freshman players returning from injury

“I don’t know for sure – I know that we’re excited to get them both back. I think Ma’Riya (Vincent)‘s a young lady that you guys haven’t had a chance to see yet, but she’s got really good athleticism. She’s been in some drills lately. And I think, in practice, just the way she defends, her physicality, her versatility – hopefully we’ll get her out there sooner than later. But they’ve been great – our freshman have been great.”

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