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MOUNTAIN WEST WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPMarch 11, 2016Ryun WilliamsElin GustavssonEllen NystromKeyora WharryLas Vegas, Nevada Colorado State - 55 Fresno State - 54 THE MODERATOR: Coach, start with you. Some thoughts on today's game. HEAD COACH RYUN WILLIAMS: Holy cow, it was a really good championship game. Congratulations to Fresno. Their playing was outstanding. They played really well. They played really hard and tough. But what our team did doesn't surprise me. You don't win 30 games by laying down and folding. So the resiliency that our group showed, these three to my left, I couldn't be more happy for a basketball team. These kids have worked so hard to get to this spot. And they've wanted it so bad. And when you're supposed to do something, I think one of tougher things to do in all of sports is to do what you're supposed to do, and these kids did that. So I love my basketball team. I love my basketball team. Q. Toward the end there as you were chipping away and it seemed like you had four or five occasions where you actually had a chance to take the lead and you didn't and they got the ball back, came down, I believe a missed three. Keyora, you missed a lay-in and then on one possession a put-back. At some point in that time did you have any concern or just keep playing with a sense of urgency? ELLEN NYSTROM: No, we always kept our poise. And we knew we were back in the game. We never felt nervous or pressured or anything. We just knew we were going to go back in this game. KEYORA WHARRY: Same -- exactly what Ellen said. We kept our poise. We kept playing. We stuck to the game plan and just kept moving. Q. What was going through your mind stepping up to the free throw line? Those are your first points of the game and looked like you had no doubt you were going to make both of them. ELLEN NYSTROM: I just wanted to win the game, honestly. Q. No nerves, no pressure? ELLEN NYSTROM: No, nothing. HEAD COACH RYUN WILLIAMS: She wasn't missing. ELLEN NYSTROM: Nope, it was never in my mind. Q. What was the last possession like? ELLEN NYSTROM: We knew they wanted to foul, they had fouls to give. I wanted to get a shot up so I could get free throws. Q. The last two years obviously you guys have fallen short. You finally get it this time. When you finally saw kind of the final seconds run off the clock and see that shot miss, what was the feeling? Was it relief? Was it happiness? Was it a combination of both? ELIN GUSTAVSSON: Well, we're super happy. First of all because we've been waiting on this, as you said, for like two years. But at the same time, as Coach said, this team really deserves it, because we've been working so hard. And I feel like that was also in our minds. Q. How important was it to what Stine did coming in, she got you going when nobody else's shots were falling? I know she doesn't play a ton of minutes. ELLEN NYSTROM: She's a great, great player. She plays great defense, offense. She's a great shooter, and took away Jamie so much. She got open 3's, and she made them. She's a great, great player and we needed her tonight. Q. You've had somebody be able to come in and make those plays at critical times? ELLEN NYSTROM: Yeah, I think so. Like I said, if they take away one player, another player steps up. It's hard to play us just because of that. Q. Could you pinpoint any specific turning point in the game? Was there any moment when you guys knew you were going to come back? ELLEN NYSTROM: I think we always knew. We were in the locker room at halftime. We're good, we're going to come back. It's no problem, we just wanted to keep our poise. We were good. We just missed a lot of good shots. Q. What kept you from getting frustrated? Obviously only the two points there, but six rebounds and 16 assists. What kept you from getting frustrated with the lack of scoring and still being able to contribute in other ways? ELLEN NYSTROM: I think it was just my assist. If I make an assist with somebody that makes the shot, it feels like I made the shot, too, so I think that was it. Q. You had some really clutch buckets down the stretch there. Just what was the key to finally solving that zone that you had some issues with all game? KEYORA WHARRY: Penetrating the kick and if they weren't stopping me I was going to go. And if we could get it in the corner, I noticed they weren't dropping on me, so I would just go up. First half when we were just sitting in spots Furr was just stuck on me. So we figured maybe we could get a little bit more ball movement and we figured that out. Q. What keeps your confidence up when you're facing the biggest deficit you've faced all season in the most important game of the season? KEYORA WHARRY: Well, we were down, I believe, last game, coming into halftime. So we knew we could come back. And we would fight. Q. What was that postgame celebration like? What were your emotions as you're putting on the T-shirts, putting on the hats, cutting down the nets? ELLEN NYSTROM: We were talking we wanted these hats so bad. (Laughter.) Q. Just kind of what emotions were going through your head? ELIN GUSTAVSSON: It feels amazing, to be honest. And I'm just so proud of my team because, as I said, we really deserve this. ELLEN NYSTROM: And it's everybody, 1 through 15, and everybody's -- it's everybody's trophy. Everybody deserves it, because we've been working so hard, all 15, all year. ELIN GUSTAVSSON: Basketball is a team sport. Q. Being from Fresno, do you take any more satisfaction in beating the Bulldogs or is it just another opponent? KEYORA WHARRY: Tonight it had to be another opponent, just so we could win. I didn't want to come out too crazy. Last time I came out too crazy, picked up two fouls. I mean, it feels good, don't get me wrong, but I couldn't be more overjoyed right now with that one. Q. Has it really hit you guys you're heading to the NCAA tournament now? How much time do you have to celebrate? Now you have to focus because you're heading to the tournament. ELLEN NYSTROM: That's been our goal the whole year, so I think we're prepared for it. ELIN GUSTAVSSON: Yeah, no doubt. ELLEN NYSTROM: We wanted to go. Q. In your mind was there a specific turning point or something that happened there in the second half that kind of switched momentum in your favor? HEAD COACH RYUN WILLIAMS: We were getting great shots. Really, even in the first half we felt like we were getting some pretty good shots. We missed some easy things inside. Alana kind of struggled around the rim a little bit. Jamie had some really good looks at the three ball. We felt like what we were doing was fine, we just calmed down a little bit and maybe played to win. We showed some really good urgency, especially late. I think Stine coming in and making those 3's in that second half, Jamie stuck one. We went on that little run where we kind of spread them out, just changed our motion a little bit to open up the middle for Keyora. We drew that middle away from the basket and got some stuff at the rim. I just think really the whole second half was pretty solid. There was really never any panic in that locker room at halftime. So I don't know if there was a specific turning point, probably when Ellen made those two free throws, to be honest with you. Everybody is going to talk about she only had two points. She had 16 assists, 16 assists, and that is Ellen. You got to witness Ellen. Ellen isn't about scoring. Mountain West Player of the Year, you think she's going to be some big-time scorer, she could be. But she struggled shooting the ball tonight, but it doesn't mean that there's other ways to help a basketball team. And that is what Ellen is about. So when she made those two, that was probably when that might have been the turning point for me. Q. Just being around the game that you have for so long, have you ever seen a team in that situation like that and just overcome with everything on the line and come through with that much resolve? HEAD COACH RYUN WILLIAMS: This team, it's an amazing team. It's the best team I've been a part of because they are just that, a team. We don't do what we did unless they support each other, 1 through 15. There's just no way. So those were a lot of winning plays that were made. Our team played -- I know you guys have asked the question, our kids are really, for a long time now, have been under incredible pressure. We don't talk about it, they don't talk about it, but, come on, they're human. You win that many in a row, you're playing under a great deal of pressure, I would imagine. So how they handled that is just -- that's maturity. That's a championship medal, right there, to the T. To see them celebrate, to see them actually finally take a deep breath and now we can maybe take a step back and enjoy this a little bit for a few days, because our kids haven't really enjoyed what they've been doing. They're having fun, don't get me wrong. But now they can look back and see what they accomplished, which is quite amazing. Q. After the last two years obviously the two disappointments in the tournament, what were your emotions like as those final seconds ticked off? You see Collins driving to the basket. You see that layup go up and then you finally see it rim out. What were your emotions on the sideline kind of as that all unfolded? HEAD COACH RYUN WILLIAMS: Yeah, well, when she caught the ball it was like, Don't let it get to her right hand, that was thought No. 1. And then she stepped through, and I thought travel, No. 2, but I don't think it was. And then when that ball was -- it hit the backboard. It looked like it might have a chance. You're just hanging on to every nerve that you have. Basketball is an amazing game. The ball bounces funny sometimes. We made some plays late. I wanted it so bad for these kids, that's what was going through my head. Yeah. Q. How tough was it to draw up the play, to get Ellen to where she could get a shot off, they were fouling quick, they had the fouls to give and I think they fouled you three times there in those final few seconds before you could even get a shot up? HEAD COACH RYUN WILLIAMS: It's a good thing we had our timeouts, because we drew up three different plays. And even the play with six-point-something seconds to go, that was Colorado, all right, where she was going to catch in that same short corner and turn and shoot. And she turned and shot and they called it on the floor. And then we caught a break and got a bounce in our favor, got the ball baseline out-of-bounds, and I think it helped that the officials went and looked at it, that gave us some time to draw up just a little pop action. With that time on the clock, I mean we were catching, turning and shooting. And that is the value of a young lady like Ellen who can just turn and rise and shoot a true jump shot. So Emilie made a really good pass on the pop action and when she got fouled it was like -- one of my coaches said, Hawaii all over again, because two years ago at Hawaii, same action, same play almost, she gets fouled and is at the line to shoot two to win and missed them both. But there was really no doubt. Wasn't she cool on that line? Ellen was cool on that line. What a champion she is. Q. After the night that she had shooting the ball, was there any doubt in your mind of putting the ball in her hands at the end of the game? You mentioned the first play and then the second play, as well. Was there no doubt that she was going to be the one to take that last shot? HEAD COACH RYUN WILLIAMS: We had two options. We had Ellen on a pop. We had Key on a cut and replace to throw over the top right in the middle of the lane and a little lob action. So we did have two options. We were going to go through Ellen or Key, because both those kids are similar, they can both jump and shoot over somebody. And they both have a pretty good knack for drawing fouls. There was really never any thought to go to anybody else other than those two. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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