NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - ST. JOHN’S (NY) VS. NORTH CAROLINA

March 17, 2023

Courtney Banghart

Value City Arena

North Carolina Tar Heels

Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: Coach, any initial comments?

COURTNEY BANGHART: Yeah, glad to be here. You know, it's been like my I guess my -- someone told me my 11th NCAA tournament. Just never gets old, the opportunity that awaits, the magnitude of the event.

Another rainy day here in Columbus. We're glad to be here.

Q. I don't know if you can put into words what this junior class has meant to this program. This will be their third straight NCAA tournament. How much have they meant and how much have they helped bring up the younger classes below them as well?

COURTNEY BANGHART: Yeah, I love the opportunity to speak about them, because it was kind of the first priority when I got this job was to figure out who were the right fit, right? You do that by building relationships as quickly as you can, but also being really thoughtful because they are going to set the tone.

So if you make a mistake early, it doesn't end well. When I think to each one of them, not only recruiting them, but watching them mature through their process, I made the right decision five times.

The ascension of our program is in very small part due to me. It's in large part due to not only their talent on the way in, but what they have done while they've been here, how much better they've gotten year to year.

If you look at their statistics year to year right across the board, the improvements that they've made.

So it's easy to come to a program and say I'm going to do something. It's not as easy to then do it. They came because they wanted to help me and be a part of bringing this great tradition back.

They've literally done it, one step at a time. I would be lying if I said it was always easy. That's what makes it so much more special. I remember some of the hard conversations, some of the doubt that can creep in.

But in a way, this is -- I don't know Carolina without them. Thankfully I still have them, right? And so three years in a row is a big deal. It's hard to get to this tournament once.

So, yeah, just a huge shout out to them and what a pleasure it's been to be their coach.

Q. You saw Jayla Everett last few years at Pittsburgh. What challenges does she bring to you tomorrow?

COURTNEY BANGHART: You know, Jayla has been a great player in our league, great player in Division I basketball. She has a ton of experience.

The finality of your career, your athletic mortality is on full display here in the NCAA tournament. She takes and makes a lot of tough shots. She is a huge focal point of the offense. Reminds me a little bit of Jewel Spear at Wake Forest where we had to put so much emphasis on making sure we make her uncomfortable.

You make really good players uncomfortable and they still make shots. Just a really gifted offensive player that's going to require a good defensive effort by us 1 through 11.

Q. You faced a lot of good three-point shooting teams. Virginia Tech comes to mind. But they have a lot of perimeter threats. I guess the experience against Virginia Tech will be helpful tomorrow in that regard.

COURTNEY BANGHART: You know, we haven't had much success against Virginia Tech this year, so hopefully not. But I would say we knew that -- coming into March we didn't know until yesterday who we were going to play but we knew we would play somebody good.

The way they try to attack you we had to break down quickly. A team that can score off the bounce, off turnovers, they can score off the offensive glass, and they can make threes. They've got star power. They've got depth. They've got guys off the bench. They scored, what, 22 points off the bench, 27, something like that?

So it's not a one-man band at all. I do think our league has prepared us really well. We've seen lots of really good players, lots of dynamic threats, lots of deep teams. You hope what would have been prepared for all year in terms of talent that you've played against prepares you well for an opportunity like this.

It's 40 minutes inside the lines and you got to be good for those 40 minutes.

Q. When you met after the watch party as a team, what was the discussion like about maybe the frustrations of not hosting when you expected to and maybe using that as motivation?

COURTNEY BANGHART: You know, actually the conversation was more geared towards that the outside world thought this would really fire them. All year I've never needed to fire these guys up. Even the games we lost it's not been because of lack ever heart or an overconfidence.

There has been a humility to this group all throughout the year. We quickly turned to page to who we're playing when and where, and it comes down to matchups. We thought playing in Carmichael would give us a little bit of an edge because of our environment, but if you don't like your matchup, it doesn't really matter.

Didn't really address it much if, I'm being honest. I've never had an opportunity to play in a tournament where I haven't known who I'm playing on Sunday night, so it was more the uniqueness of that and how that gave us an opportunity focus more on ourselves for a little bit longer for a team that didn't get to practice as much as I would've liked all year because of injuries. We're finally able to practice, so it's been a fun couple weeks.

Q. You guys had a long break here, but it's been different because most of your practice guys have been away because of spring break. What kind of challenges did that present for your team last week?

COURTNEY BANGHART: Yeah, our practice guys, we were without them for sure. So they were with us all of last week. We did have them for last week, and of course we left on -- I don't know what day it is today -- we had a couple days of practice without them.

We're as healthy as we have ever been, thank God, so we actually have ten people in uniform and got to practice against ourselves a little bit. We had them in the important week of last week, and just grateful for what they've done all season for us.

And the last couple days we've been able to play against ourselves a little bit, which is good. Playing against girls is different than playing against guys, so that's been helpful as well.

Q. Deja mentioned how much she gets up for playing on the road. She's an immensely talented player. Do you see that swagger, that energy go up a little bit more, and how do you feel that affects the whole team?

COURTNEY BANGHART: Yeah, I think what you started with what the fact that how much experience that class has. They've been in three NCAA tournaments. They haven't played at home yet in an NCAA tournament. This is not just new terrain for them.

In the ACC we play a lot of road environments that you have to really be connected, and I think that there is a level of a focus that that requires when you can't lean on anybody else. You know, so the fans that are here, I hope they provide some comforts of Carmichael for us, but the ones that aren't are kind of how we've done it all year. We've got to do it for them on the road.

So I think Alyssa prefers to play on the road, too, ironically. Not prefers, but really likes it. You know, so luckily the ones that are actually trying to make the baskets and trying to make the stops are the ones that like to play on the road.

I prefer to play at home.

Q. You mentioned you haven't played at home in the tournament. Got out of Arizona last year.

COURTNEY BANGHART: Yeah.

Q. How do you think that helps prepare this group for playing here?

COURTNEY BANGHART: Absolutely. Just the standard, right? The standard, every coach in the country is saying, let's go to a Sweet 16 and win a Final Four and a national championship. A lot of coaches haven't been able to do it and people in the locker room haven't been able to do it.

I know we're all dreamers, but we also have to be doers. This is a group that's dreamt it and done it, so I feel like I'm not looking at blank faces or not having to pep them up.

They understand the mortality that March brings and they understand that Ohio State is a lot like Carmichael, a lot like McKale at Arizona. Lots of people that won't be rooting for them. You kind of got to go through their house.

So I think it will -- they're not going to be surprised by it. They're not going to be like -- you know, it's hard to replicate that, so in good sense they've been there before.

Q. You mentioned wrapping your arms around St. Johns quickly. Who in the ACC, if anyone, or someone you played in nonconference do they remind you of most?

COURTNEY BANGHART: Bits and pieces of a variety of them. In a way, Jayla is the same player she was at Pitt, right? So there is a comfort there. A little bit like Jewel Spear at Wake. They have other three-point threats you have to we are about and more space-out fours that you have to worry about and they are great on the offensive glass.

So a little bit there.

And a little bit like Clemson and their ability to be disruptive. I mean, our league is so deep, as you know, and talented and different. And so it's as much about what's your experience against them as much as your knowingness of who you are. You just as a coach can't forget that.

We didn't get here because we had a lot smoke and mirrors. We got here because we good at a lot of things, and we have to remember as much as we can our own identity as well as how to prepare for our opponent.

That's how we kind of spaced out of the last couple weeks.

THE MODERATOR: Coach, thank you very much. All the best tomorrow.

COURTNEY BANGHART: Thank you.