March 12, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Two words are uttered often around the UCF women's basketball team - get stops. In the four wins the Knights got last week to claim the Conference USA Women's Basketball Championship and the subsequent automatic berth in the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship, it was the dominance UCF showed getting stops on the defensive end of the floor that carried the team to the title.
Over the tourney's four games, UCF held its four opponents to just 58.8 points per game, including just 52.5 points per game in wins in the semifinals and finals against SMU and Southern Miss respectively. In overtime of the 65-54 championship game win against Southern Miss, the Knights held the Golden Eagles to just two points on a pair of free throws and 0-for-3 shooting. For the first four-plus minutes of the extra session, Southern Miss managed just one field goal attempt.
"That is all we have harped on all season long is getting defensive stops," said head coach Joi Williams. "Going on the road in the tournament our players knew that the way we were going to win a championship was rebounding and getting stops. Even if you are not shooting the ball well and you are not making shots, you can still put yourself into a position to win if you play defense. That is what we have emphasized all season long, and our players have really bought into that."
Heading into the Conference USA Tournament, the Knights had shown signs of inconsistency at times defensively. The young basketball team was last in the league in field goal percentage defense and 10th in three-point percentage defense. However, UCF had held its last two opponents of the regular season to just 63 points per game, and that effort carried over to the C-USA Tournament.
In the tournament, UCF's four opponents shot just 35.6 percent from the field, including a staggering 10-of-52 from beyond the arc. In building halftime leads in the semis and championship, the Knights held SMU and Southern Miss to 20 and 19 points respectively.
"Everybody wants to play offense. Every kid that plays basketball wants to come into the gym and shoot. Nobody goes in the gym to do defensive slides and closeouts," said Williams. "The players hearing our staff talk about defense all year long and our staff being on the same page really helped. When we went back to that 1-3 road trip [in February] and looked at film, our players realized on their own that the reason we did not win those games was that we didn't get stops when we needed to."
The leader on the UCF defense is freshman Aisha Patrick (Rockledge, Fla.), who despite being just a freshman leads the team in minutes and night in and night out draws the toughest defensive assignment on the opposition. Patrick has answered the bell this season, leading the team and ranking in the top-five in the league in steals with 73. She has recorded a steal in all except three games for the Knights, including 12-straight contests.
"I think she really gives our team energy on defense," Williams said. "You can see it in practice that when she gets a steal or a stop that the rest of the players feed off that. We have given her the assignment of the other team's best perimeter player all season long, and she has answered that call every single night. Aisha is one of the rare players that want that challenge. When you recruit players it is normally because of their offensive prowess and their ability to score the ball, but she was a kid that could dominate a game defensively, and you do not see that too often."
Despite her impressive freshman season and outstanding defense, Patrick was left off both the C-USA All-Freshman and All-Defensive teams, something that sent shockwaves through the UCF locker room.
"She definitely had a chip on her shoulder, and I think her teammates did too," said Williams. "When her teammates found out that she did not get any type of recognition this year from the conference, they took that hard and had a chip on their shoulders as well. She tried to do even more so that people would recognize and see that she was deserving of those types of accolades."
While Patrick and her teammates must wait until Monday night to find out its first-round opponent, Williams knows continued effort and execution on the defensive end is paramount to having success in the NCAAA Tournament.
"Going into the NCAA Tournament, defense is our main focus," said Williams. "We went into practice today and we worked on defense. No matter who we play it is going to be an outstanding team, and we have to understand that if we want to give ourselves a chance to win, we have to get stops."
UCF will learn its NCAA Tournament fate on Selection Monday, March 16 and then play a first round game on either March 21 or 22 at one of 16 predetermined sites around the nation. The Knights will be making their third appearance in the national showcase, previously qualifying in 1996 and 1999.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.