Lady Vols basketball went on the road and downed Mississippi State 90-80 behind a fantastic performance from freshman point guard Mia Pauldo. She finished with 26 points to push Tennessee to its third-straight win to open conference play.
Afterward, Lady Vols head coach Kim Caldwell and Pauldo both met with the media.
Here’s what they had to say.
More From RTI: Three Quick Takeaways: Freshman Mia Pauldo Leads Lady Vols to Another SEC Road Win
HC Kim Caldwell
Opening statement
“Good to get a win on the road. We know it’s a tough environment and we know that we got to win on the road in the SEC. It was good to do that. I wasn’t really proud of the rebounding, but I thought we looked a lot better in a couple different categories so that was good.”
On her message to the team when Mississippi State cut into the lead
“I think that’s really when the shift in rebounding changed. We were not going to rebound on offense, and then they were kind of clobbering us on their end. They were just pushing us under the basket and getting as many shots as they wanted. That’s a tough team. They hit a lot of tough shots tonight where they were guarded. Defensively, our offense was okay, but defensively, we just let them go on a run.”
On preparing for Mississippi State with roster turnover, how they project
“We’re a new team, too. I get it. I get what it takes to rebuild and it takes time. Once you get into the SEC, it’s a whole different ballgame. But they hit a lot of tough shots. You got to rebound. You got to rebound in the SEC and they do that. So I think they’ll be able to hold their own.”
PG Mia Pauldo
On what it meant for her to have this night
“Honestly, I came into this game thinking just be Mia, just be Mia tonight. Just be aggressive from the start and throughout the whole 40 minutes of the game. But it helps when my teammates trust in me, moving without the ball, and create shots for me. And the size advantage is always going to be there in the SEC. I feel like I can play it, any team, anybody, they ain’t going to be able to guard me. Or my teammates, not just me, my teammates, as well.”
