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PAC-12 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

March 6, 2020

Las Vegas, Nevada

Oregon - 79, Utah - 59

KELLY GRAVES: First of all, I want to congratulate Lynne and her team on a well-played game. I thought they played really, really hard. Lynne is one of my best friends. I respect who she is and how she coaches and what she's done with that program.

They're a good, young basketball team. You know, they got their first win I think -- she got her first win in this tournament. They're the type of team that will continue to be better and better and be up towards the top of this conference soon.

Happy for the win. A little displeased on how we played. I thought we were inconsistent at times in our effort and our execution. We still won the game. I thought after that first quarter had it under control the whole time. We just didn't have that killer instinct tonight and we didn't put them out when we had a chance.

Then again, you have to credit them. You know, overall, we're just happy. I think this time of the year, you take the good with the bad, you just want to make sure you're playing the next day, and we're playing the next day. That part we do feel good about.

Q. Coach, that first -- the first quarter, was it just a little bit -- they played yesterday, maybe had some fresher legs, were in game mode, whereas you guys -- it was the first game of the tournament, or they were just playing well?
KELLY GRAVES: I think a little of both probably. You know, we have been playing really, really well. This is one of the first games in the last maybe 16 or 17 where we just didn't play our best. We weren't in sync really defensively or offensively.

Then we came out in that second quarter and, you know, played like we're capable of playing. I think we outscored them 18, 19 points that quarter. I don't know. We have been actually a really good starting team. We just weren't today. So we'll have to figure out why and hope to fix it.

Q. Sabrina, in the second quarter you guys had I think eight three-pointers, but was it the defense that really got things going? That seemed like you had a bit of problem with that in the first quarter and got it fixed.
SABRINA IONESCU: We were getting stops on the defensive end and, you know, our bench players that came in helped us tremendously. They were getting in passing lanes, getting steals that helped us get transition shots, and our guards were shooting the ball well.

Defensively really fueled our offense -- our offensive shots. And, I mean, we were getting shooters in the right position, and they were shooting it like we normally do. So defense played a huge role in that.

Q. Sabrina, as a senior, this is your last time around in the Pac-12 Tournament. What difference are you feeling being here now compared to the last couple of years?
SABRINA IONESCU: I mean, just the familiarity with being in this position and having been here for the last three years, knowing what it is like to win and knowing what it is like to lose as well.

Coming in every game, trying to be mentally prepared, getting the team mentally prepared, and really understanding that it is 0-0 when you come in. Everybody has an opportunity to beat you, and every team will try do that. We have a target on our back. We have to make sure we play to our level of expectations and we don't let, you know, us go down or up based on who we're playing.

It's always about us and what we can control. And now that we have this first game out of the way, I think we'll keep building from here.

Q. Sabrina, for you, there was a point in the first quarter you came down and dished across, I think Erin missed it, it was a turnover, Kelly looked at you and said shoot that. It was a while before you took your fifth attempt anyway. Is it important for you to get everybody involved, knowing your game will come around at some point? Obviously you want to get everyone. How important is that for you to get everybody else involved first?
SABRINA IONESCU: I do try and get everybody involved, but sometimes that doesn't always help us, and that doesn't always help me. I really just need to be reading the defense and taking what they're giving me and understanding that, in the flow of our offense, everybody is going to get involved at some point.

I think it is something that I need to continue to work on, just let the game come to me, not rush getting everybody else involved.

Q. Sabrina, you said prior to the season that you came back for unfinished business. Obviously last year you all lost in the Pac-12 Tournament to Stanford. Is winning the Pac-12 Tournament just part of that unfinished business?
SABRINA IONESCU: Yeah. I mean, there's so much that goes into that. I mean, we just won one. Now we have two more we're trying to win. It is really one game at a time and a one-game winning streak from here on out.

Obviously it would be awesome to cut down nets here. We weren't able to do that last year. You know, we have Arizona in front of us, and we need to take care of them first before looking too far ahead.

Of course, it would be a blessing and awesome to be able to come back in my last year and win it here.

Q. It seems like you all were having a lot of fun out there. Can you speak on the continuity of the team and what attributes to the chemistry you all have?
SATOU SABALLY: Our coaches did a great job of recruiting the right people and recruiting the right players that are selfless and play like that on the court. I mean, we're competing against the best teams in the Pac-12, so we have to have fun outside -- off the court.

And, I mean, yeah, we're just having a lot of fun. Great people, I mean, they're my sisters, and great coaches. So, I mean, basketball is -- like we do what we love. Yeah. Everyone should have fun doing it.

Q. Coach, you guys took the day off yesterday. How did you keep yourselves fresh, and do you think that attributed to the slow start this afternoon?
KELLY GRAVES: Oh, we had practice last night. You know, the way the Pac-12 does it, we have 30 minutes on the court as the No. 1 seed on Wednesday night, other than the 27 minutes we get between games, that's all we get on the court here. We shot it pretty well.

No, we were ready. You know, we're in a good place right now. We're healthy, we're hungry. You know, I think we're playing with a lot of confidence. Last year this time there were a ton of question marks, you know, Ruthy was playing on one leg basically, Taylor was gone for the season. You know, we had seven -- we suited out seven players.

You know, this year, we don't have that, that excuse. You know, I think we have just kind of set a really high bar for ourselves. We should be up here happy. We just won a game by 20, and we want to move on. But that's kind of not who we are, and that's not how we're driven.

We want to make sure that each and every game is kind of a masterpiece in some way. We want to play absolutely the best that we can play. And when we don't -- and I think that's why, you know, it is a testament to the greatness of these guys. When we don't, we don't feel well. You know, we don't feel good about that.

But, no, we were good. We worked out last night. We actually practiced better last night than we played today.

Q. Coach, as you said, you just beat this team by 20 points, and that's kind of been the story throughout the season against Utah. You said you saw some, I guess, prospective success in them. What do you see in that team that you think that they may have success in the future?
KELLY GRAVES: Oh, I think they have got playmakers, they shoot the ball really well, they execute. I think they run one of the most creative offenses in the conference.

You know, the one thing, and I thought we defended the three fairly well tonight -- we shot it well, thank goodness -- but they are capable of making 15 threes. And that's really the only way they were going to beat us. They would have had to have that kind of a shooting night.

That's what scares you about Utah, because they have done it in the past, and they're always capable of doing it. So I think -- I think Lynne does a really good job. She gets the right players. She knows how to fit pieces together. I anticipate they're going to continue to get better, and I hope so. She's really good people. I have known her since she was a player. Maybe off the record we can talk about what kind of player she was.

Q. Coach, you say that you're in a good spot right now, healthy, but mentally as far as not being satisfied with the game, is the toughest point in the semifinals right now, with as talented as the Pac-12 is, the mental game, being more mentally prepared and mentally sound to face an opponent knowing there is a target on your back?
KELLY GRAVES: I think you should always be mentally prepared. I mean, that's every bit as important to the game plan as physical preparedness. I think this time of year none of us have a ton of time to make a lot of adjustments at this point because you have to turn right over and play quickly. You don't have that day in between.

So then it does become a lot of mental preparation, a lot of film work. And then they have to internalize the game plan. It will be different. It has to be different.

We handled Arizona, you know, pretty well at home in our last game. They gave us -- they were a handful at their place. You know, we have seen both against Arizona. They're going to be -- they're going to be fired up. And I'll tell you, I thought they looked good tonight. Yeah. We better be ready mentally, we better be ready physically this time of year.

Q. Congrats on the win. Sunday is International Women's Day, so I would love if each of you could shout out an important woman in your life and why.
SABRINA IONESCU: Shout out to my mom. I think probably everybody will shout out their mom. Obviously she showed me how important life is. She's worked hard for everything she's gotten, and she's the strongest women I know, and I wouldn't be here without her.

I'm very blessed to be able to call her my mom and see her come out and support me every step of the way.

SATOU SABALLY: I'll shout out my mom, too, because she's -- yeah, she sacrificed so much for me and has just been a strong role model for me, always paving the way, doing whatever I needed to do. She showed me. Yeah.

And also Nyara, my sister, because she's really been in a tough two years, and she's been the most positive ever, and it is just a great teammate and showing other people around there that no matter what kind of obstacles or circumstances are happening around you that you can overcome these and, yeah, you always have to stay positive and have a good mindset about it.

KELLY GRAVES: You know, a shout out to my team, all 13 players. You know, they're really special people. They inspire me each and every day to be a better coach, a better person. I love the love they have for each other. I think that's what's carried us. We have talent, no question. But there's a lot of talented teams out there. This is a very special group, and I enjoy working with them each and every day. I truly do love them.

But really the backbone of my whole life has been my wife, Mary. She is the greatest assistant coach that I have ever, you know, had. She keeps me motivated each and every day. I love her. She is in tune with what's going on, right? I know these guys rely on her a lot. She's always there for them.

You know, every time I kind of come home and go, you know, honey, this and then that, she goes, Kelly, you're on the same team. She always brings it back, it's always about the team. Yeah. They're all my inspiration.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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PAC-12 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

March 6, 2020

Kelly Graves

Sabrina Ionescu

Satou Sabally