ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

March 1, 2023

Megan Gebbia

Jewel Spear

Elise Williams

Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Postgame Press Conference

Wake Forest 68, Virginia 57

MEGAN GEBBIA: I think we talked about it in the locker room coming out that we needed to execute in order to win the game at both ends of the floor, and we had been moving towards that in the month of February. And it didn't really turn out to see some Ws, but I think we were really focused today, were able to execute at both ends.

I think as a collective, we made some plays when we really needed to make some plays. We came out of the locker room in the third quarter, were able to score different ways, which was nice, and then just really kind of held on to the lead in the fourth quarter.

We did talk about maybe taking some better shots earlier in the shot clock in the fourth quarter, and we know we're a team that's growing and getting better every day. We'll take this game and we'll learn from it and hopefully perform better tomorrow.

Q. I counted five or six different players on you in their man-to-man. It's something you're used to. What do you do when you see another opponent right there?

JEWEL SPEAR: Yeah, Coach just says keep cutting through the contact, whether I'm curling, back-door cutting, I'm getting my teammates open if I'm not open. So just continuously being aggressive, even if it's not me getting the shot.

Q. Elise, just walk me through the second half and the pressure you felt spaced, full court, especially with one less ball handler on the court to help you out. How much of that load did you have to take on yourself?

ELISE WILLIAMS: I kind of had to take on a little bit of a challenge. I know it was pretty much just me and Jewel were the primary ball handlers. I knew they were going to start pressing and being scrappy because they were down fourth quarter. But kind of just relying on people, not trying to do everything myself, just finding the open cutter. Just different things like that.

We deal with presses all year, so it wasn't really that much different from anything else. But yeah, just trying to stay calm, not crack under pressure.

Q. With about two minutes to go, you called a time-out and ran a play and got a good bucket underneath. That kind of was the deciding point there. How big was that time-out and getting those two points right there?

MEGAN GEBBIA: Yeah, I felt like we were a little out of sync, and we know Alex can do a good job on the block there, and she's one that will go for it and not afraid to take that shot. Because they were so focused on Jewel and not allowing Elise to penetrate, I felt like it was the right thing to run at that time in the game.

Q. Coach, obviously first year at Wake, but you've never lost a first-round game in the conference tournament. What is it about this time of year that brings out the best in you and your team?

MEGAN GEBBIA: I'm not sure what brings out the best in me, but the credit goes to them to be able to execute the game plan. You see these teams the second time, but this game is really interesting just because it was November 13th. But we were a completely different team at that point in time. They were just starting to run our system, and they were running around, not knowing what they were doing. And today was much better, and our defense evolved throughout the year.

I think it's really just execution. It really is. I just am so proud of the team. Based off the fact that we were 0-5 coming into this, you could fold. Kaia goes down, and you could fold, and they didn't fold, and they continued to play hard. I think that's growth for our team this year.

Q. Jewel, you mentioned cutting through the contact. Does that get frustrating for you, and then how do you work through that in order to get 19 points still?

JEWEL SPEAR: Yeah, it can get frustrating, but my teammates and my coaches always are in my ear trying to help me out no matter if I'm getting grabbed, hit, whatever, and it's just a mental mindset. I think like Coach has been preaching, you have to continuously run the offense and you'll get things. I think it says I drew seven fouls and that's what my assistant coach, coach Nikki talks about is when I'm impacting the game, it doesn't just have to be scoring, but it can be getting my defender in foul trouble, getting my teammates open, just finding ways to win, especially in March. That's all you want to do is survive and advance.

Q. Coach, seemed like Demeara had a big stretch in the 3rd quarter, did a lot of work on the post, grabbed 11 boards for you all. How important was her play tonight?

MEGAN GEBBIA: She was huge. She came up with some big offensive boards, too. We started to slip balls screen in the second half when they were hard hedging, and they left her open. She's a scary person to leave open in a restricted are. So happy she came through and was able to contribute. All five starters contributed perfectly, and that's kind of what you wanted.

Q. I know it's March; every game is must-win, but tomorrow becomes a must-win if you want to gain eligibility to the WNIT. You're playing Florida State, a team you took down to the buzzer just a week ago. Walk me through the importance of this game and what you hope to take from last Thursday and implement tomorrow?

MEGAN GEBBIA: Yeah, they're a tough team to play. They put a lot of pressure on your defense. And I thought last time we played them, we played our defense fairly well, but we fouled like crazy and put them in the free-throw line. We know if we want to win, we've got to keep our hands off people and allow help to be there and then box out.

Because I think the offensive -- they got some key offensive rebounds last game. Our focus going forward is to watch ourselves, watch the good and the bad, how do we make adjustments off that, and go for it.

I think, like you said, we're fighting for the NIT right now. Actually we're fighting, who knows, further than that, right? We're taking it game by game. That's what that game means. If you can win that, that means NIT. But after that, you never know.

I think it's really just studying the film and making adjustments.

Q. Coach, Niele Ivey was just named the first Black woman to win Coach of the Year in the ACC and she thanked and gave credit, of course, to former Wake coach Charlene Curtis who passed away in August. I wanted to know if you have any reflections on her legacy. I think you probably were there for some celebration of life events back in August.

MEGAN GEBBIA: Yeah, I did. I went to her funeral. It was amazing. There were so many people that came back. I got to meet a lot of the alumni, which was special for me to share that moment with them. But she meant so much as the first Black head coach, just going through all that. I think she set the standard for Wake women's basketball.

It's such a sad thing to have to go through but they did celebrate her life and her legacy, and we're just trying to do the same.