BIG 12 CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

March 12, 2021

Kyra Lambert

Texas Longhorns

Postgame Press Conference

Texas - 84, Iowa State - 82

Q. Kyra, just kind of the initial reaction to today's win. Have you ever played a 45-minute game before?

KYRA LAMBERT: Not in a very long time. Not in a very long time. First reaction is God is good, honestly. We had been planting seeds all season, and now the harvest is starting to come. We're peaking at the right time. We're getting better every single game. I mean, I couldn't be more proud of my team. We say Texas fight all the time, but that's what it looks like. So we just want to continue to build on this and take it to tomorrow.

Q. What was the attitude when you all went into overtime? Obviously, you stepped up. Joanne drew that charge. Ashley had that great first minute. What was the attitude as you all went into overtime without Charli, and Audrey not being available today?

KYRA LAMBERT: We're built for this. This is what we go so hard for in practices all year long. It's moments like these that really show what we're made of, and we rose to the occasion.

Yeah, super proud of Ash. Without the game that she had, we don't win that game. She stepped up big time when her number was called, and she rose to the occasion, and I could not be more proud of her. It's nice to be on the floor with her, for sure.

Q. You're a player, but you're also a seasoned vet who's seen a lot of ball. Were you looking around, the way you guys were winning under this kind of adversity without Charli, and seeing like, good, all this hard work that we're doing, like it's all coming together right now, that sort of thing? Is that the feel?

KYRA LAMBERT: Yeah, yeah, for sure. I mean, our team was very together, like more so than we had been in last games. Previously, I said that our chemistry is getting better, and that was definitely on display today.

But, yeah, I think we showed a lot of maturity. Like I said before, our freshmen aren't freshmen anymore. Our sophomores aren't sophomores anymore. Everybody is a year older, a year wiser, and that just comes with a lot of playing time and experience.

Q. And because of the way you won, not just because you got the W, but the way you did it, how much does it mold this team? Does it help them grow confidence-wise moving forward?

KYRA LAMBERT: Yeah, that was a possession ball game down to the wire. You know it really pushes us forward and motivates us in a way that shows we can play with anybody, we can win in any situation, as long as we're together and we execute our game plan? Yeah, our chemistry is getting so much better. I think that's the key. That was a big key in why we won today.

Q. Yeah, Kyra, God is good all the time.

KYRA LAMBERT: All the time, God is good.

Q. When a jumper is wet like yours was, how hard is it for you to just not go look. I'm jacketed up every time I get it because for a minute there, you were smokin'.

KYRA LAMBERT: Yeah, I just try and find my shots within the offense. My teammates did a great job of finding me when we were reversing the ball and moving it. Sometimes we hit Charli on the inside, Lauren on the inside, sometimes it comes back out, and I was locked and loaded. Credit to my teammates for finding me. You know, we just got to hit shots. A lot of people hit shots today.

I think in the first quarter, I think almost everybody hit a jumper. It was like you get a piece, you get a piece, you get a piece. Our team doesn't really care about who shoots the ball. We have confidence in everybody, and today was just my turn.

Q. What has changed -- I watched the overtime against Oklahoma, and it was hard to watch. I mean, it was hard to watch. You guys had that game, and they just took it over. This was a completely different looking team in this overtime in a bigger environment. What's changed in that month since?

KYRA LAMBERT: Yeah, a lot has changed honestly. We're a totally different team. If I were to look at that Oklahoma game again, it doesn't look like how we look today. We're a totally different team. We've matured a lot. That win -- I'm sorry. That game, the Oklahoma game, helped us to see a lot of things that we needed to work on. We didn't have the energy, the fight, the toughness that we had today, and today we put that on display.

Again, that Texas fight that we always talked about was demonstrated today. That's just something we need to hold on to, take that onto tomorrow.

Q. Obviously, they still have to play, but I think all of us assume Baylor is who you all will get tomorrow. With the trouble they have given Texas over the years -- I know you've only been here for a year -- but what does that mean to possibly get the opportunity to play Baylor again at the tournament?

KYRA LAMBERT: Yeah, it's a great opportunity for us. We want them again. As soon as the last time we played them -- as soon as that game was over, we wanted them again. So I mean, tomorrow is a great opportunity for us. Again, we're going to take what we did today onto tomorrow and continue to build on it. Our team is only going to continue to get better. We're going to come out of the gate fighting tomorrow.