April 3, 2010 An interview with: you? I said, No, she's probably in the room somewhere. But she's pretty high. She's pretty high. Celeb. Q. Danielle, there were a couple of items in the media guide I was intrigued by. One of them, as you could probably guess, is you have a notation: Not my team, Stanford. And that was probably done quite a while ago. And, secondly, if I may, the other item is if you were not playing for Oklahoma, you'd probably be playing for Cal. How close were you to going to play for Cal? DANIELLE ROBINSON: Cal had been THE MODERATOR: I'm pleased to recruiting me before Coach Boyle had got there. introduce Oklahoma head coach Sherri Coale, as And I just really enjoyed my visits up there. And well as student-athletes Danielle Robinson and early on, I guess you could say, Cal was at the top Amanda Thompson. just because something important to me was being COACH COALE: Obviously we're excited close to home so my family could watch me play. to be here. Love the city of San Antonio and the And Cal is pretty close in distance. way they host the Final Four. Nobody in America And so I definitely took that into does it better than this city. Our kids have enjoyed consideration when I was making my decision. being here, and now we're ready to compete. THE MODERATOR: Questions for the Q. What about Stanford? student-athletes. DANIELLE ROBINSON: I grew up watching them, you know, for many, many years. Q. Danielle and Amanda, in Oklahoma And then as I took more and more visits and, you Sherri Coale's a rock star. Can you talk about know -- I respect the program a lot. Tara how -- has any of that gone beyond the state VanDerveer is a great coach. She has great borders, any of your travels with her, have you players. But I just didn't feel it was the right fit for had any experiences that can speak to her me. celebrity status nationally? DANIELLE ROBINSON: Everywhere we Q. For both Amanda and Danielle. You go, Coach Coale is known. You just hear people, guys have played the toughest schedule in the we'll be walking, Oh, it's Coach Coale from country. During the season you played three Oklahoma. I mean any particular incident, I can't teams that wound up being No. 1 seeds and recall. But I know she's pretty well known around now you're playing a No. 1 seed in Stanford. the nation. How is that schedule playing particularly tough AMANDA THOMPSON: I think she's nonconference games, how does that help you pretty high status, I mean, even out here. We get to where you are now? walked the River a little bit and it was only a couple AMANDA THOMPSON: I feel like it's of us and someone was like, Is Sherri Coale with helped us a lot. We faced all different kind of Oklahoma - 04 03 10.doc 1 visit our archives at asapsports.com teams, all different kind of styles. We've come So she's just a great person. from behind. We've had leads. It's just given us opportunity to experience different kind of play. Q. I wonder, your program has been And a long time in the tournament, you involved with some memorable games with know, you need that because when you're scouting Stanford in the past. Does the rivalry you have somebody, you can say, okay, we can compare with that school still resonate with newer that to a team we played and it helps us go along players who don't have any experience? And and helps our game plan. also how much would it mean to end that DANIELLE ROBINSON: Like she talked losing streak you have against Stanford that about, we see a variety of teams throughout the stretches to four now? whole season, especially in nonconference. It DANIELLE ROBINSON: I'm not really prepares us well for the Big 12 conference, and familiar with a couple. I just know the one that's that prepares us for the NCAA tournament. the most recent. I mean, it's a great rivalry for women's basketball. I don't know how big it is. But Q. Danielle, could you talk about I guess I could say it's somewhat of a personal playing against Jeanette Pohlen in the CIF final thing for me being from California. in, what was it, 2007, and what you remember But we're just going to execute our game about her as a player and also what -- if you've plan against a great Stanford team. watched her develop over the years at Stanford AMANDA THOMPSON: Well, like she and obviously she's made headlines in the last said, I'm not familiar, but I've heard about the week? games in the past, and it was against Oklahoma DANIELLE ROBINSON: You know, we and I feel like I'm a part of that family so I think it's played our senior year in the state championship. going to be a rivalry however long it goes on. She wasn't the point guard then as she is for That's how we'll play the game, as if we Stanford now. just lost to Sanford last year. She's a great player. I think she led her team for the whole season. I think they only had Q. For both of you, give me your one loss coming into Long Beach, if I recall that thumbnail analysis of Stanford and what you all correctly. So she was a great player, great leader. have to do to beat them? I got the chance to play her this past AMANDA THOMPSON: They have really summer, learned a lot about her. She's a great tall posts down there, and they just execute very person. We've actually become pretty close well. So we definitely have to take away their friends, and we keep in contact, especially since cadence and disrupt what they do and outwork she's close to home in Palo Alto. them and just play hard. So excited for where she's at. I was I think everybody's going to be good at this excited when she hit that shot last week. And time of the year, so we just to do what we do well, ready to play her, I guess. to stop what they do well. DANIELLE ROBINSON: We have to Q. Amanda, just to pick up on what you speed them up, use our athleticism to our were saying earlier, what do you think advantage. We definitely have to block out against accounts for why Sherri is so popular? Is it them. They're extremely good on the boards, just victory, or is it her style or personality? especially Kayla Pedersen. We know that we have What do you think it is? an advantage with our athleticism. AMANDA THOMPSON: I think it's just the way she carries herself every day. I know she Q. For both players, a lot of teams, pays attention to more the little things. She's all when they get to this point, look back at a about tradition and just doing the right thing. turning point in the season. Outside of the And people see that. And they feel that Whitney Hand injury, there doesn't seem like and they just gained a lot of respect for her. And I there was. Was this just a building process gained a lot of respect for her for doing that. And it and a maturity that you guys reached to get to just makes everybody else follow in her footsteps, this point, or what's your feeling on that? and she just makes great players and she plays DANIELLE ROBINSON: I think one of our great games and she's not afraid to challenge us. That's why she's so popular around. Oklahoma - 04 03 10.doc 2 visit our archives at asapsports.com turning points was the loss against Texas at home. pretty much together I feel 20 hours a day out of We knew that for us it was unacceptable, and we the 24 hours, regardless if you see somebody on had to make changes. And we went into that campus, stop to talk to them, or at the gym or go to locker room and that's what we did. And from here their house. We're like family. on out we've been playing that better. AMANDA THOMPSON: I would have to AMANDA THOMPSON: I think we've had agree. We're pretty close. And a lot of teams it's several turning points throughout this year. You hard to have fun and be honest at the same time know, those are definitely one of the key ones. and take constructive criticism and encourage at But I think that great basketball, it has a lot the same time. of changing points. In order to be a great team I think that this team, we can do that and you have to go up and down and go through also have fun. You kind of learn from each other struggles, and when you overcome them, that's and just enjoy every moment. I think I've enjoyed when you get to points like this, times in the Final every moment with these guys all year.