Wolverines Participate in Big Ten Media Day
10/16/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Oct. 16, 2014
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Head coach Kim Barnes Arico, senior Cyesha Goree (Grand Rapids, Mich./Wyoming Park) and Nicole Elmblad (St. Ignace, Mich./LaSalle) of the University of Michigan women's basketball team participated in the annual Big Ten Media Day on Wednesday (Oct. 16).
Barnes Arico opened the day with a press conference, and each member of the trio conducted a television interview. Following a photo shoot with all three, Barnes Arico, Elmblad and Goree were available for interviews in a one-on-one setting.
Following is a transcript of Barnes Arico's press conference and quotes from Goree and Elmblad.
Michigan Head Coach Kim Barnes Arico
Opening statement ... "Good morning. I'm thrilled to be here, as always. It's a special day for us and for our program. And really I think for the league. A few years ago I was at St. Johns, and we were in the Big East, the old Big East, and I was there during a time where we had eight and nine teams be eligible for the NCAA Tournament. And I feel like our league has now become like that. We have so many great teams with Rutgers and Maryland coming in, but also with Michigan State and Iowa and Nebraska and Northwestern and I can go on and on, just returning a great group of players. I think everyone is going to challenge for the NCAA Tournament and for championships. So I think it's really an exciting time to be in the Big Ten, and the league is tremendous. The players returning, the incoming kids, and the coaches, they're just phenomenal. So I'm thrilled to be here and great to see all of you, as always."
On what she expects from Nicole Elmblad and Cyesha Goree this season ... "It's exciting for me to have both those players returning. Cyesha came off an outstanding year last year, outstanding. She came in really and didn't play a lot prior to last year and finished the season as a All-Conference second team player. Almost rebounding, I think, 10 a game, which was pretty impressive. She's a driven kid. She's always in the gym. She wants to be better. So I'm excited to see with a year under her belt of experience how she's going to perform this year. And Nicole Elmblad is just a special, special kid. Last year she was named an Academic All-American. I think she's received one grade under an A, might be a B plus or an A minus. If it's a B plus and I'm saying this, she's going to give me a lot of grief for it, in her time at Michigan. Not only is she driven on the basketball court but also in the classroom. And she is our leader. She's just tremendous in everything she does. She sets an example each and every single day and she plays extremely hard. I think rebounding a lot of times is effort. And Nicole gives that effort each and every single day. We chart it every day in practice. So at the end of our first week of practice, Nicole and Cyesha were at the top of the rebounding board. Now we just have to get a couple of the young ones up there as well."
On playing an 18-game conference schedule ... "I think it will really make a difference. And it will be interesting to see how that works out at the end of the year. I think that's going to be really difficult because I think our league is so strong. And each and every night there's not a team on our schedule that could say this is a guaranteed win or this is a guaranteed loss. I think every game is going to be a battle and physically we might wear each other down. I think you have to be smart about your non-conference, definitely. But I think I'm not sure how it's going to pan out. We still have Notre Dame in the non-conference and some other tough games, but we've kind of tried to be smart about our scheduling and see where we are at the end of the year, moving forward."
On how the league will be with the addition of Maryland and Rutgers ... "Well, you know, being from the east, I've had an opportunity to play against Maryland a couple times. I had an opportunity to play against Rutgers many, many times. So I know the talent and I know the coaches pretty well. They're both Hall of Fame coaches in my opinion. And top programs in the country that are returning. I mean, Rutgers is returning everybody and they have a number of All-Americans on their team. So I think those two teams will definitely add strength to our conference. No question about it. But being in our league for the last couple of years, I think Rutgers and Maryland, by the end of the season will say 'oh my goodness' because I know I did after my first season here. This league is incredible and Iowa the players they have returning and Nebraska the players they have returning and Michigan State, and you can go on and on and on, and I think the other thing besides the players that we have returning, are the incoming kids. I mean, last year we spoke a lot about the freshmen and the impact that the freshmen in our conference made was incredible. Well, I'm interested to see now what the incoming freshmen as well as those young women that are now sophomores, the impact that they are going to have in our conference and really in the country. So I think it's really exciting time for our league."
U-M Senior Forward Cyesha Goree
On her experience at Big Ten Media Day ... "We have been able to talk to a lot of the other teams here, which has been cool. You get to know them a little differently than you do on the court. It is all business when you are playing, but here, we are able to talk and spend some time together away from basketball."
On her thoughts about entering her senior season ... "I am very excited. We have a really special group of girls who I believe can do something really great. This is the year, I think, to go somewhere and establish what we want Michigan to be about. We have such a good blend of experience and with the freshmen, we have a lot of depth."
On where Michigan is right now as a program ... "I feel like we have kept that bar high. We didn't drop from what the class of Jenny Ryan and Rachel Sheffer did. They left the program in such a good place and we have been able to be as successful because of what they helped build."
U-M Senior Guard/Forward Nicole Elmblad
On making her second appearance at media day ... "I feel like I have a new perspective on it. This is the last chance that I have to do a lot with the team and Michigan women's basketball. I have a bigger appreciation for this than I did last year. It is such a cool setting, having everyone from the Big Ten here in one room. We had a great dinner last night and met some new people while we have been here. It is a great experience."
On what she wants her impact to be on Michigan women's basketball ... "I think the biggest thing is really instilling a sense in our younger teammates that Michigan women's basketball is meant to be at the top. From the last few years and the culture we have established and still strive for every day, that is how we want things to be from here on out. We want to be competing for championships for a long time."
