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BIG 12 CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

March 10, 2019

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Iowa State 75, Texas 69

THE MODERATOR: We were joined by the University of Texas Longhorns head coach, Karen Aston, and her two student-athletes, Sug Sutton and Jatarie White. Coach, your thoughts about tonight's game?

KAREN ASTON: First of all, congratulations to Iowa State. Obviously a hard-fought game, and congratulations on a great year for them in particular. Tough, tough loss for us. Just in a sense of we dug ourselves a little bit of a hole, which we did last game in Austin. But the sense of urgency and our attention to detail was so much better tonight in a sense of being able to regroup.

The other thing I thought was so much better for our team was the ability to get the ball in the right places as the game moved along. We got it obviously in the paint some. Had some kids open up the floor with some perimeter shooting. We had much better flow offensively. But, again, very, very tough loss, really disappoint for our players because I thought we had ourselves in a position with some momentum, and had a tough situation happen that I wouldn't wish on anybody. I'm really proud of our team, proud of their effort, proud of how much they've grown in really just a week or two. I've seen a dramatic difference in how much our team is blending together and growing, so we will move forward from here.

Q. Sug, you're down 16 in the second half. Did you personally have a message to your teammates when it looked like it was getting away from you?
SUG SUTTON: I think it was a collective thing. Everybody was in the huddle telling each other that we need to get out this hole and play with a lot of heart. We've been in the position before, so we just needed to come together and play with a lot of heart.

Q. What have you guys been working on individually throughout the season?
JATARIE WHITE: Well, postwise we've been working on kinda getting physical in the paint, making sure all of our shots are to the basket and not fading away. Also, as a team we've been working on, like, building each other up and making sure that if somebody makes a bad play or a bad decision just picking them up because we've got to move on to the next thing. So I think those are the biggest things.

Q. Jatarie, Coach mentioned getting the ball into the right places at the right time in the second half. Looked like you and Joyner were open. Talk about what it took to make it all the way back to a tie?
JATARIE WHITE: I think it took everybody making sure we were in the right spots moving at the right tempo. Being patient on our screens and making sure we buried our men and since we had the size advantage kinda getting in the paint and doing our work there. I think the guards did a good job of recognizing that.

THE MODERATOR: Ladies, congratulations and good luck.

Q. Coach, team rallied back from 16 points toward the end of the game. You guys sorta pulled back away. What was the deference in the game that you saw?
KAREN ASTON: Well, I definitely thought that shot selection had a lot to do with the flow of the game in the second half. We got the ball where it needed to be a little bit better than we did in the first half, didn't shoot it as quick in the first half that led into easy buckets for them. Alexa Middleton was really good tonight. We gambled a little bit on going not under her early in the game and she made us pay for it. I thought we made adjustments defensively. We got a guard on Bridget midway through the first half which I thought helped us defensively. It was anybody's game. It really was.

Q. Why is their 3-point game so difficult to defend?
KAREN ASTON: I think it's decision making on their part. They really, really share the ball well. So I think that's always a big piece of good offensive flow is when the ball doesn't stop in someone's hands all the time and they have a good flow. They all share it together. They make the right plays at the right time, and they can all shoot it. That helps. The fact that they all can shoot it. But I think it also takes collective effort to make the right play and make the right pass.

Q. I've never seen her even raise her voice, but did you talk to Olamide take after the technical foul? I've never seen her do that even in practice.
KAREN ASTON: Yeah, that's a tough one for me. I mean that young lady I asked her to go in for one minute and do her best. Give Jatarie a break for one minute. And she makes a hell of a play. She didn't say anything. She didn't bend down. I have a hard time with that. I have a hard time with that.

Q. Did they explain it? Was it a stare down thing? I'm just asking. I don't know.
KAREN ASTON: Yeah, I just watched it.

Q. Can a game like this help you in the future because of how you came back and there must be some good feelings in the locker room to know that they made a battle of it until the very end?
KAREN ASTON: It's hard for those kids to have good feelings. I mean, as a coaching staff we're absolutely going to try to lift them up because it was a difficult set of circumstances that changed the game. But, you know, in sports you have to teach them that it's not about one play. You have to teach them that, you know, unless it's golf or tennis, one person's not responsible for a win or loss and that's the way sports is, team sports. Our team has got to look at this performance and say, okay, where could we all have been better and move forward. But to answer your question, we should be lifting them, because we're playing a little bit different basketball. You've seen us all year long, Rick, and you know we've been on a roller coaster all year long, but I think the team's cohesiveness is better right now and I think we're on an upswing. I will be shocked if our seeding doesn't improve on the performance given the last three games and I will be shocked in the Big 12 doesn't get six in. But right now I just want my team to, you know, you've got an Audrey Warren that's not played much at all since her concussion and comes in and starts and plays her heart out. I have a lot of things to be excited about with this group.

THE MODERATOR: Good luck, Coach. Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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