Virginia Tech women's basketball head coach Kenny Brooks, sophomore guard Georgia Amoore and senior guard Kayana Traylor met with the media following the Hokies' 70-55 setback to top-seeded NC State in the semifinals of the 2022 ACC Tournament. Read some of what they had to say:
KENNY BROOKS
(Opening statement) First and foremost, I don't think I've ever been prouder of a group of kids, the way they came out in the face of adversity and just really, really fought. We really didn't understand -- we didn't know what was going to happen today, who was going to be available, who wasn't. Elizabeth came out and she gave it a go and wanted to play, and it's kind of one of those things where these are my girls, these are my kids, and it's not just about the game that's at hand and what's going to happen in the future.
We felt like it was probably in her best interest to sit her today just so that she could rest and maybe not have a setback.
She wanted to play. It's probably the first little argument that she and I got into, and I said no, you can't play. And it was twofold, protecting her against herself, but also I had the utmost confidence in this group right here that we would go out and we would compete.
Again, proud of our kids. We didn't always play great today, but we never squandered -- we didn't play soft. We went out and we played hard. Very, very proud of them.
I told them at the end of the game in the locker room, we didn't just lose a game to a team, we lost a game to the third-ranked team in the country, and we fought. We fought. I'm extremely proud. It just goes to show you the character of these kids, and we've come a long way, and I'm excited to see what's going to happen in the near future.
GEORGIA AMOORE
(On the coach-player relationship with Coach Brooks) I think everything he said was right. I have immense respect for both KT and Coach Brooks, so I'm never too entitled. I'm always open to learn and they're great people to learn from.
(On if the team was tired in the fourth quarter) I mean, I think I took shots that I take in every game and usually I would make them and they just didn't fall. I don't think any of us really was out of character. I think we were more aggressive. But sometimes stuff just doesn't go our way.
KAYANA TAYLOR
(On the mindset heading into the NCAA Tournament) Yeah, I think the most important thing right now is just resting and getting healthy, so we're just going to focus on that this next week and obviously get back together and work hard and make a deep run in the tournament.
(On if the team was tired in the fourth quarter) Yeah, obviously being tired I guess took a toll, but I don't think we were really thinking about that in the game. We were just trying to at least leave everything that we had on the floor. And I think we did a good job of that even though we have played three games in a row. It's March, and kind of whenever you get your adrenaline going, that stuff really doesn't matter. So yeah, it took a toll, but I think we did a good job of fighting through it.
