NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - MARQUETTE VS SOUTH FLORIDA

March 17, 2023

Jose Fernandez

Elena Tsineke

Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu

Colonial Life Arena

South Florida

Media Conference

South Florida 67, Marquette 65

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: I was really proud of our group. Got to give Marquette a lot of credit and the job that Megan has done with that program. Yeah, two very evenly matched teams today, and what a way to start the NCAA women's basketball tournament. As the first game to go into overtime, I believe we took our first lead down the stretch there with probably a couple minutes to go.

With us offensively, not playing and shooting the ball unlike we usually shoot it. But really proud of our kids, the plays that we made defensively at the end of the game to finish it off. This is what March Madness is all about, because your next game could be your last one for the season.

We have two seniors that are very, very talented, and the reason why our program is where it's at is because of them and what they have done on and off the floor.

It's great to have them continue their college basketball career and also to have our underclassmen, because we do have five freshmen, experience this atmosphere and experience the NCAA Tournament.

Q. Elena, to trail this game for 36 minutes and come out with a win, what does that say about the group you have around you?

ELENA TSINEKE: It says a lot. It says we simply don't give up, we don't lose our confidence. We know what we're capable of, and for us to come back, it was big. So I'm very proud of this group.

DULCY FANKAM MENDJIADEU: I would say we are very motivated. We didn't want it to be our last day playing college basketball, so with everybody out there, they made it happen.

Q. Elena, how did you keep confident. You were having a bad shooting day but yet you kept confident, made some really big plays down the stretch in this one?

ELENA TSINEKE: Yeah, I mean, I had a bad shooting days, but it didn't faze me, I knew that I had to respond in one moment, and God will put me in situations that will challenge me, so I just had to believe and trust.

Q. Elena, down the stretch there was a review on a possession, whether it went off of Rose Nkumu or not and Marquette was huddled up with your coach, but you were huddled up with your teammates. What were you talking about between just student-athletes?

ELENA TSINEKE: We were talking about every possible scenario. We just made sure that we have a good huddle so we can respond on any situation. Either we would have the ball or not.

Q. If it is South Carolina that you're getting in the next one, have you had a chance to watch them at all this year, and what is it going to be like to try and hand them their first loss of the season?

DULCY FANKAM MENDJIADEU: I mean, they're the first team in the nation right now. It's going to be tough, but we believe in us and we believe we can do it.

ELENA TSINEKE: I completely agree with her. I mean, yeah, they are the first team in the nation, but we also are a very good team, and when we get together, we play like ourselves, we are capable of many, many things.

Q. For Elena, what were you thinking when you hit that jumper that put you guys up for good there at the end of overtime. And Dulcy, you're on the foul line there trying to extend things. What were you thinking about as you were shooting those shots?

ELENA TSINEKE: So I was thinking that I just had to contribute for the team. I didn't want to leave this game without having done nothing for the team to win. So I had to take responsibility.

DULCY FANKAM MENDJIADEU: Me, I mean, I was scared, like honestly. We were up by one and I have to make two free throws. Ooh. I'm not usually in that position. So I did good, I guess.

Q. How does going through such a chaotic game like this help prepare you for the next game against South Carolina, presumably?

ELENA TSINEKE: It can only give us confidence. I mean, we came back, we were losing by a lot at some point, and we came back. That can only show us that we can believe for more stuff.

DULCY FANKAM MENDJIADEU: We tried to keep believing. It was really chaotic, like you said, but at the end we made it. We just need to keep going.

Q. José, how did you keep your team confident when things weren't going their way?

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: Well, I mean, you asked the question for El. She had a very uncharacteristic night. I've seen her do some really, really good things and some special things. In that fourth quarter even though she didn't shoot the ball well, we ran her on that iso, that drive and that middle jumper. And when she hit the three, they had to help out on Dulcy.

Those three guys, Sammie, El and Dulcy, we go as they go. So as a coach, all you can do is, you know what, the ball is not going in the basket. The one thing you can control, go and defend better and try to make some plays. What I tried to do tonight, I think this gentleman here in the front brought it up, you get to this point, they hear my voice so much they've got to start talking. They've got to start talking and coaching themselves, too.

And holding themselves accountable on what to do and what not to do and making sure that the same message I give them, they understand the message themselves.

Q. That fourth quarter was really flip of the switch for you guys. What did you talk about in between the third and fourth --

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: I told them, hey, we're running out of time. We've got 10 minutes to go. We were down four at half, we were down six going into the fourth. The first five minutes are key. They're very, very important. We needed to get the ball inside to Dulcy and try and move some stuff around. Where she got doubled, the ball was going to get reversed to different places.

I think the one kid we didn't talk about, I thought Carla Brito as a freshman today was the X factor today. Before we talked about it, I thought Carla had a very, very good game. The lay-up that she made on the action at both those elbows, that was crucial. And you know what, she had a big job in that fourth quarter having to defend Marotta, who's a very, very good basketball player.

It's a shame that one team had to lose, because it was a very, very even matchup. I think we showed we're a very good basketball team and so is Marquette. Look who they played in the non-conference. Look who they beat in their conference.

Sometimes teams like Marquette and us, they don't get -- we don't get the respect that we deserve, and it shows in the seeding.

Q. A potential chance on Sunday to earn a lot of respect. Should it be No. 1 South Carolina waiting for you, have you gotten a chance to watch them, and what kind of challenge would it be?

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: Yeah, we have. You look at who we've played this year, it's going to be a different -- probably the only environment that you can compare to that we played was at Texas this year and at NC State.

But our guys, El and Dulcy, we've played Connecticut, Tennessee, Oregon, last year Stanford coming off winning the National Championship. I don't think we're going to be fazed by South Carolina. They're very, very good, but it's a great opportunity.

Second round of the tournament, they are the No. 1 team in the country, they've won a ton of games on the road. But look what's happened in the men's NCAA Tournament. You had a 15 and a 14 win. That's why you play the game. They're very well-coached. They're very talented.

We're going to have to play exceptionally well. We're going to have to shoot the ball exceptionally well. We're going to have to do a very, very good job on the paint and on the glass.

Q. Overtime came, Liza and Chloe for Marquette fouled out pretty early on. How did that help you guys secure the win down the stretch?

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: Well, if you look at Marquette, they've only had one kid foul out all year, and that's Jordan King. One game. Neither of those two post players had fouled out. When we went into overtime, probably some guys -- they're a different team when they're not in the game or when one of them is not in the game.

What we needed to do was try and get the ball inside to Dulcy, and they had to get a smaller -- a perimeter guy to play the 4. And that's where Carla had that big drive. And we were able to then -- on the offensive end, on the defensive end switch 1 through 4, and Dulcy was just able to stay with her guy.

Q. Having brought together such an international roster, how do you think that gives your team a unique advantage in the tournament?

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: A unique advantage? Well, I mean, it's a great experience for them, I think. I think it definitely helps us recruiting because a lot of our recruits were watching this game all over the world. You know, our kids, especially the five freshmen that are all international, they've played basketball at the highest level. I think the only thing different is the crowd, how the game is officiated.

But I think for the future of our program, this was a really, really good experience for our international players.

For El and Dulcy, they have an opportunity, as well, on Sunday to play against a very good basketball team that's going to help hopefully their draft stock and their professional aspirations. You know, we've got one day to prepare for them, they'll have one day to prepare for us. So we'll see.

Q. I counted at least 20 more gray hairs, it's all about survive and advance, isn't it.

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: Yeah, we tried to not make it too exciting. Those two sideline out of bounds, we were up four, those hurt us a little bit because they had the jump ball and they made a good defensive possession, then went to review.

But I was happy that when we went into overtime, we closed it out.

Q. Elena does not have a good shooting night, yet she's not afraid to take that last shot in overtime and get you the win. How important is that for a shooter to just say, hey, keep letting it go?

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: Yeah, Elena is not afraid to shoot the ball, that's for sure. But you've got to have -- she's a kid that, you know what, she's put in the work, and she's spent a lot of time in the gym.

For us, for her and for Sammie, the next shot is the most important one. But even though she didn't have the night that she usually has, you've got to have a great feel and a great confidence in yourself to step up and want to take those shots.

Some guys when they're not playing well, you know what, they freeze up, they stand over there in the corner, they don't want the ball, and it shows when the game was on the line, she wanted the ball in her hands.

Q. I wanted to talk to you about the progression of you guys' being able to create offense for one another as the game progressed, only one assist in the first half. But talk about how that progressed as the game went forward and as you guys made your run.

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: Well, I mean, as far as sharing the ball, it was very uncharacteristic. Marquette took away a lot of driving lanes, and they clogged up where we couldn't -- they took away the middle a lot and side pick-and-roll, middle pick-and-roll and made it difficult to get downhill.

I don't know if these stats are correct -- it said we only had four assists. We average over 15, so I don't know. We threw the ball plenty of times to Dulcy inside and she scored, so I don't know if that's correct or not. Four assists? That's our season low.

Q. I wanted to speak to Carla, as well. You mentioned she played a pivotal role in this game. Speak to how big it is to have a game like this on a big stage?

JOSÉ FERNANDEZ: She had a great maturation. She had 15 points, she was 7 for 8 from the line, but she had a really tough assignment guarding a fifth year senior on Marquette's team. So it's great for her to experience and be put in that situation today.