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NCAA WOMEN'S REGIONAL SEMIFINALS AND FINALS: ALBANY

March 23, 2018

Albany, New York

THE MODERATOR: We are joined by A'ja Wilson and Tyasha Harris. Congratulations on getting to the Sweet Sixteen.

Q. Ladies, you kind of were in this situation last year with a lower seed getting to the Sweet Sixteen like Quinnipiac. What is the main difference between Quinnipiac and Buffalo?
A'JA WILSON: I think Buffalo's a lot more aggressive. Any shot's a good shot to them. So that's kind of hard to defend because you never know when the ball's going to go in the air.

They're quicker, but I think something very similar is their energy. They're just happy. They're happy like we all are just happy to be in this situation, so I think that's always good, especially in March.

But we all know anything can happen in March. So we have to be on our A-game and play our best game, we can't slack off at all because they are a lower seed. But at the same time, at this point we've all worked harder to get here. So it doesn't really matter the number of the seed, it's just the team.

Q. Earlier this week you were joking about how your call time and shootaround was so early in the morning for Saturday. What has prep been like this week? Are you guys getting up earlier just because you've known the game time for a while, or how is the preparation for this game?
TYASHA HARRIS: (Indiscernible) I think we'll have a good practice today, but just being locked in and focused, you know, and the conversation that we have with Coach.

Q. A'ja, this is your last NCAA Tournament. Do you feel any pressure to play your best game every single time you take the floor? And Coach mentioned you guys don't have to play a perfect game, you just have to make more plays than the other team. How does that help you handle your performance as well as the team?
A'JA WILSON: I don't think it's a lot of pressure. I think all four years I've always tried to play my best game and play it like it's my last. That's how you love the game of basketball, so you take it all in.

So definitely I'm kind of sad this is my last NCAA Tournament. But I'm making the most of it and enjoying the moment.

When talking about Coach and when she says those things, I think it helps us out. I think we get hard on ourselves when shots aren't falling or we're making turnovers. But at the same time, if we're just making more plays and having fun, it overlooks those situations and it really calms us down. We're like, okay, of course we know we're not perfect. But at the same time, you want to play perfect basketball for your coach. But we all know that's not possible. So for her to have an understanding like that, it's a great feeling for us. I think it relieves pressure off of us in those situations.

Q. A'ja, just want to follow up, you were talking about fun, and you mentioned Buffalo playing happy. Because you can get focused on you want to take it seriously, but how important is that fun element and joy element to remember in the game?
A'JA WILSON: Yeah, I think it's very important. Like you said, sometimes you get really caught up in the moment and you kind of miss out on the moment that you're in. I think all 16 teams are very, very lucky and blessed to be in this situation. So we're definitely going to take it all in stride.

But for us, it's very important for us. I take a lot of pride in just having fun. Whether that's yelling, I don't care if I'm by myself, I'm still going to yell. If I get an and one, I'm going to yell, and if my teammates get an and one, I'm really going crazy. That's just part of the game. If you love the game, I just love seeing my teammates succeed in any situation. Whether it's a an assist from me, an assist from Ty, anybody. I think it really translates -- I was about to say transform -- I think that really translates into the offense and defense of it all. So definitely having fun is a huge, huge deal in this game of basketball.

Q. Did I hear right, you have a 5 a.m. shootaround tomorrow potentially?
TYASHA HARRIS: 5:20.

A'JA WILSON: That's when we have to be in the gym. Imagine what time we have to wake up.

Q. A'ja, obviously your relationship with Dawn is well known and you joke around all the time. But four years now, how does it come together that you are as close as you are? Every coach is close with the players, but you guys have fun every time you're together it seems?
A'JA WILSON: Yeah, I think we really kind of formed this relationship, I think, over the summer. She was my coach for USA, and it was kind of us one-on-one. I think that's when we really became close. Coach Staley's a coach that you can talk to her about everything, and that's what I really enjoy about her. She's like my mom away from my mom, honestly. I guess we're all her daughters, so she treats me like a daughter, I treat her like a mom. We argue a lot. We probably argue more than we have fun. I'm glad she sees the have fun part more. But we probably yell at each other. She fusses at me a lot. But who wouldn't want that? She's a great person to be around, and I just love her as a coach.

Q. Do you feel that as each round continues and the competition gets better, that you have to get better? Or is it just today and trying to beat this team?
TYASHA HARRIS: We actually talked about this earlier today, Coach was like just focus on today, Friday, we're not even playing, just focus on details, and once Saturday comes around, just focus on Buffalo. We're just going day by day, game by game. I don't know if we have to get better. I think it's more just playing in games (Indiscernible) and just enjoying every minute of the game.

A'JA WILSON: Ty had a great answer, good job. Gosh, they grow up so fast.

Q. When you chose South Carolina four years ago, did you even have a back-up school? Was UConn your second school or not? What was the choice? And I'd like to ask you a follow-up.
A'JA WILSON: I did not have a back-up school. My final schools were USC, North Carolina, Tennessee, and UConn. That was my list, and they were all pretty equal.

I don't know. I really didn't have a back-up school. It was really just kind of South Carolina was just the best fit for me, and my family, of course, had a huge role in that. My parents helped me out in that situation.

So, yeah, no back-up school, honestly. It wasn't like a number two. It wasn't like choices between this and this.

Q. Was it Dawn that attracted you most, or was it a chance to build your state school that hadn't been a great power into a great power?
A'JA WILSON: I think it was a mixture of both, honestly. Coach Staley was recruiting me when I was on the bench. She didn't play at all. So I kind of always recognized that she was always there for everything. She really went out of her way. She wasn't really the coach that was like call me, text me, blowing up my phone. So I kind of enjoyed that. Also just watching her change the program around, I really wanted to be a part of something like that. It just so happened to be in my hometown.

Just to be a part of that and just to change a program and be in history books now, it was something that I really wanted to be a part of. It's tough to change a program around. Like Coach would always say, there have been SEC teams that probably hated coming to South Carolina in the past. It was like, man, we've got to go play South Carolina? There's not even a hundred people in the stands. But now we're a powerhouse in the SEC. This is us.

So just to be a part of it and just of the journey and just being in history books like that, that was just a great thing.

Q. You were saying you and Dawn argue. I know after games you guys do have those many conversations. What are those conversations like, what are they about, and how have they made you a better player?
A'JA WILSON: They'll just be about anything. It could be me apologizing for a bad play that I had or just saying you've got to double-double tonight. Or stuff like that. It's just the many conversations that we have, I just take a lot of pride in it because it's something special. It's very rare that you come across a coach that just is so open like she is. She's really open and honest with everything that she does. I just really enjoy those conversations, because they're coming to an end, of course.

Oh, my God, I'm going to miss her so much. But at the same time they really help me out because she knows the game so well. She tells me in not just a coaching forum but in a parent forum where I can really understand that. And I really appreciate those things that she's done, taking the time and talking to me. Because it's kind of tough. Sometimes I feel pressure, but she definitely is always there to kind of say it's going to be okay.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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