Everything Kellie Harper Said After SEC Tournament Victory

Following Tennessee's 74-59 win over Alabama in Nashville on Friday, the Lady Vols' head coach Kellie Harper addressed the media to share her thoughts on her team's impressive victory.

Below is Harper's entire transcript courtesy ASAP Sports and SEC Tournament Athletics Communications.

Opening Statement...

"Proud of our team. You know we knew Alabama was coming in and playing really well, playing with a lot of confidence. I probably was most proud of our defensive effort to start the game. I thought we really locked in with a game plan. Thought Alexus Dye did a great job on the boards. We had players that made plays, Rae and Tess were able to knock down shots. Really proud of our effort. And like I said, beat a team that's been playing very well."

On Alexus Dye's performance...

"Yeah. I thought Alexus Dye's production on the boards especially and her offensive play to start the game really sparked us, really energized us and gave us some confidence there. I think you could see we were going to start the game pretty aggressive and, you know, she was a big part of that."

On ball movement and offense as a whole...

"Yeah, you know, it took us a minute but we started sharing the ball. You know, Rae had seven assists herself. And I think Brooklynn had four. So we were really looking to move the ball. You know, we knew that the ball movement was going to be important in this game. We needed to try to find ways to get the ball inside. You know, could have had a few more touches there. But thought we did a nice job of sharing the ball. That's always a great number for us to see."

On Brooklynn Miles...

"Yeah. Well, Brooklynn is a ball of energy. And she loves playing defense. She comes in, plays hard, gets excited. I thought she made several hustle plays. She battled on the boards; four boards, that's pretty good. And then handled a lot of the pressure with Jordan Walker on the bench in foul trouble. It's nice to have that energy, when she comes in off the bench you know what you're getting with her. And, you know, for a freshman, she's had a lot of growth this season and has been a big part of what we've been doing."

On the timing of Rae Burrell's big game...

"This game was really good for Rae and for our team and how she played. She was able to make shots. She did a nice job defensively. I thought she -- and she obviously had a really good floor game with her seven assists. So I thought she played really well. Good for her confidence and, like I said, really good for our team, I thought. Proud of Rae and how she played."

On players experiencing their first postseason game...

"I thought before the game I tried to give them the confident, have fun vibe. I didn't want them to be uptight. I think sometimes you can be when you go to a tournament. But, you know, I thought they handled it really well. Obviously there was a lot of orange in the stands and the game was very intense to start, especially that first half. And I thought we handled it. I thought our players stayed pretty mature and our freshmen didn't look like freshmen."

On Brooklynn Miles and Kaiya Wynn...

"Yeah. Really excited about how Kaiya Wynn played. I looked up and we had several freshmen on the court all at once, and I thought they played well. You know, Kaiya was aggressive handling the basketball. She did a really nice job defensively. She does a pretty good job on the boards as well. I thought the two of them looked pretty comfortable out there considering this is their first SEC Tournament."

On having a faster start to prevent falling in a hole...

"Our team did a great job of preparing for this game. I thought we were really focused on knowing the scouting report. We were focused on executing our game plan. And I could just tell before the game, you know, they had a great mind set and great focus. Now that doesn't always win the games. But, you know, to win a tough game like this, you've got to have great focus and great energy, and we had both to start the game. And I thought that was critical for us."

On containing Brittney Jones and Megan Abrams...

"Well, you know, those two have been absolutely dynamic in the last few weeks. They have done a terrific job. And, you know, I thought our team did a nice job of trying to take away easy looks for them. Really trying to pressure them behind the three-point line and obviously Tamari Key, I think she had five blocks at half time. You know, so when she's able to patrol the paint, it shuts down opportunities for drives. And our guards did a much better job avoiding screens, fighting through screens and defending one on one.

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