NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - TOLEDO VS IOWA STATE

March 17, 2023

Tricia Cullop

Sophia Wiard

Quinesha Lockett

Thompson-Boling Arena

Toledo Rockets

Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: We'll take questions for the student-athletes.

Q. For both you guys, obviously, you guys are now here in Knoxville. You guys flew in yesterday. First things first, is it starting to sink in how close it is getting to playing in the NCAA tournament for thee first time in six years?

QUINESHA LOCKETT: This is very exciting. Like, everything really hasn't really set in. Like, maybe tomorrow, like when we get there and just see everybody in the arena and everything.

But I just feel really excited and I'm real blessed for this opportunity. All of us are.

SOPHIA WIARD: I would like to piggyback on that too. It hasn't really set in until today, watching a lot of the other games happening. But we're just really excited to be here and we're ready for tomorrow.

Q. You guys played a good non-conference schedule, really went out and challenged yourselves, got wins over Missouri State, Michigan at Michigan. Is that something that you guys talk about a lot going to remind yourselves what you're capable of going into this weekend?

QUINESHA LOCKETT: I wouldn't say like we talk about it a lot, but it is like one of the things that we talked about before we got here and stuff, just like knowing we've played bigger teams, so we're prepared to go in here and play in the tournament, things like that.

SOPHIA WIARD: I would say it's more of a confidence boost as well. In that pre-season of conference play, I thought we had a lot of good teams that kind of got us ready for conference play. But we're definitely looking to bring that forward into the tournament now.

Q. Curious, I know you haven't been to the arena except for like 10 minutes. Just the whole experience of being in the NCAA tournament. I know you went to the Hall of Fame today. You get to play at Tennessee, which obviously has been so important to women's basketball. Just curious what the whole kind of experience has been like the last 24 hours?

SOPHIA WIARD: I think it's been eye opening, right? You don't get this experience often. It just kind of shows you what basketball can really bring in your life. But I think Coach Cullop has done a really good job of giving us those opportunities. We've watched a few videos on Pat, and being able to go to that Hall of Fame was really something. That's really special.

QUINESHA LOCKETT: Being here is a real blessing. Walking into the locker room we got some gear and stuff in there. That just made everybody really happy, including me. I was just feeling real, I don't know, excited.

Q. Everyone comes into this tournament coming off of their own conference tournament, but curious, based on what you guys were able to go through, especially that first game in Cleveland, to go through and beat Bowling Green on Saturday, how do you feel like that's going to help prepare you for this kind of atmosphere coming up tomorrow?

QUINESHA LOCKETT: I would just say like going out there and doing our best every game, just because like one team isn't just going to bow down to you. You have to go out there and give every team your best, give every team your all, because you never know when it's going to be your time to end or when you're going to keep going forward.

SOPHIA WIARD: I think the BG game was a momentum game. Our first two games in the conference tournament we played pretty well against Kent State, Buffalo not as well. But I felt we finally got into our groove and our rhythm in that BG game, had a really good start, and we're looking to keep bringing that momentum into tomorrow's game as well.

Q. You guys win your conference tournament, but so did Iowa State. How do you handle that mentally, knowing that they're coming off with just as much momentum as you guys?

QUINESHA LOCKETT: I would just say by being ourselves. Don't go out there and try to be something that we're not, just stick to the game plan that we've been doing all year and just be that blue collar gold standard team.

SOPHIA WIARD: I think it's more about ourselves at this point in the season, just playing, like she said, how we know we can play. But we know they're a great team as well, but we're definitely excited to be playing them.

Q. You mentioned it earlier, but this is a win-or-go-home now. You're not guaranteed the next game. How do you plan to attack that notion, knowing that this could be it or you guys could keep your season going? How do you attack that?

QUINESHA LOCKETT: Again, just like giving it your all, like never, never being settled with what you're doing out there. Get that extra mile because like right here it's definitely go home or go home -- I said go home or go home -- go big or go home. You just got to give the extra mile on defense, on offense, go out there and get extra rebounds that you usually don't get, or just little things like that just to keep you playing.

Q. Obviously there are multiple players who can put the ball in the basket for Iowa State, but Ashley Joens certainly stands out as a player to game plan for. What's the biggest thing for you guys in containing her and making sure that she isn't -- especially with her performance in the Big-12 tournament this last weekend?

SOPHIA WIARD: I think we're going to throw a lot different people at her. Sammi's a great defender, Khera is a great defender, Q is a great defender. I think we're going to just try to tire her out. And on the defensive end, when she's on defense, we're going to run her through a lot of screens and hopefully that will take away her legs on her shot on the other end.

THE MODERATOR: All right. Thank you so much. We'll be back with questions for coach.

(Pause.)

THE MODERATOR: Could you start us off with an opening statement, please.

TRICIA CULLOP: First, we're thrilled to be here. This team has worked extremely hard to put themselves in this position. We're really excited, not only to be in the NCAA tournament, but in such a historic place for women's basketball. We took our team to the Hall of Fame this morning. But also just to think back to all the memories of Pat Summitt and what she built in women's basketball and all those memories in my coaching career. It was really cool for us to be selected to come here. Our kids got a chance to learn a lot of that history this morning.

THE MODERATOR: Questions?

Q. You mentioned obviously the experience aspect of it. How important is it, because obviously this game is -- this team hasn't been part of a NCAA tournament in terms of this group. How important is kind of the experience of it prior to the game to loosen the team and kind of relief maybe some of the pressure and anxiety that may go into tomorrow?

TRICIA CULLOP: Our team's been watching the games on TV since the First Four played. I think they know what to expect. I think, had we not played a hard schedule, this would be a little different. But because we've already played several teams that are in the tournament and been in some pretty difficult situations at Michigan, played Duke at home, Penn State on the road. We've played a lot of teams that were very tough and we had to play well in order to be in the game and even have a chance to win or win. So we feel very prepared for this moment. Plus I'll give props to our league, we had three teams that were in the top 50, if you were going by RPI, that have prepared us for this moment as well in our MAC Conference. So the MAC is not a kid conference. It's a conference that's gotten us prepared for now.

Q. Obviously there's multiple players for Iowa State who can put the ball in the basketball but Ashley Jones sticks out as a challenge. What's most important thing that you tell your team about trying to contain a player like her?

TRICIA CULLOP: Yeah, 3,000 points. That's a lot of career points -- and counting. So it's going to be hard to stop her. But I think if we can slow her down -- she's capable of scoring at all three levels. She's someone that can grab the ball and go the length of the floor in transition. So we have to be aware of where she's at at all times. We want to try to keep her off the free-throw line too. Their team is a heck of a free throw shooting team. They're second in the country in free throw percentage. So the tough thing about guarding her when she drives is that if you help off you're helping off a 3-point shooter that can knock it down. But I think you got to pick and choose your moments because she is such a lethal scorer. We have a lot of respect for her. I think we've got to do everything we can to slow her down.

Q. I remember after the Buffalo game in the MAC tournament you mentioned how it wasn't obviously the best performance from the team, but obviously you guys didn't have much preparation in terms of getting adjusted to the arena. You guys have two hours today to get yourself familiarized with it. How beneficial is that going into the game tomorrow?

TRICIA CULLOP: We're thankful for the practice time. Because I think that is so beneficial when it's completely different than what you're used to. But I also think -- we purchased some balls to get ready too because the ball's different than what we're used to as well. We wanted our players to have a few days to get ready. So I think those two elements, having some extra practice time, as well as getting used to those basketballs is a big deal for our kids. Our kids are pretty good shooters as well and we want them to have every advantage possible.

Q. Obviously the win that sticks out on your resume is the win over Michigan at Michigan. How big was that for their confidence, just in general and is it something to look back on as they go into this weekend?

TRICIA CULLOP: I think the thing that sticks out to me is since December 8th, since that game, we have, that's the last time we were the underdog. Since then we've had the pressure on us and a target on our back because we were picked No. 1 in our league and we've had to sustain that. The pressure's off now. We're not the top pick in these two games or, I'm sorry, in our game. So with that being said, our kids play really well as an underdog. They're very excited about the opportunity. They love being able to prove themselves. They're not just happy to be here. We have a lot of respect for Iowa State. I know their coaching staff very, very well. But I do think that we can draw from the confidence of going to an arena in the Big Ten, a ranked opponent and being able to steal one. This team was very focused that whole game. When they went on runs toward the end of the game I really didn't see us get nervous or get rattled. They really, our team trusts each other and you can see it in how they play. I do think chemistry plays into this our kids get along really well. Because of that they will run through the wall for each other. I'm glad we have played a Michigan and some of the other opponents that I mentioned earlier, because you have to get prepared for this moment. If we had played a weak schedule and gotten here I would be a little bit nervous. But I think we have earned the opportunity and we've been through the rigors of a very tough schedule.

Q. You are facing Bill, who was at Toledo before you. What's it like to face off with him and do you guys keep in contact?

TRICIA CULLOP: Not 20 minutes before the selection show I had just texted his entire staff congratulations. And then I followed that with, Well, see you soon. None of us expected to see each other. But I will say that throughout the season when we have a big game, a big win, a big moment, that is the first staff I hear from. We try to do the same for them. Latoya's one of the best players to ever play in our program. She was MAC Player of the Year. Bill was a tremendous coach in the history of our program and Jody spent a lot of time at Toledo as well. I know that they are very loyal to anybody in their past and I respect that because they have been very helpful in my career. I think the absolute world of them.

But I know that we both have a job to do. So even though we have that mutual respect, when the ball's tipped we are opponents for 40 minutes. That's how it goes. This is an ironic pairing, but in the same vein we're really looking forward to it.

Q. The players mentioned momentum that this program has created. You won 16 games in a row. How does that, I don't know if fuel is the right word, but how does that help their mindset? You mentioned all the experiences they have had in the regular season with going up to Michigan and things like that. But how does the momentum that you guys have created coming off a championship help them and kind of fuel the notion that it's now kind of win or go home, how do they get in the psyche of that atmosphere now?

TRICIA CULLOP: I think with every win you gain belief in yourself and belief in your teammates. We've been through a lot. Not every one of those wins was easy. I remember toward the end of the season we had to come from 17 down to win our last home game. So we've been through obstacles, but I think through that the trust has gotten stronger with our team and with our coaching staff with the belief in this team and their abilities. We don't try to do something out of the norm. We rely on each other's strengths to get us where we need to be. But this group's also very coachable. When we're making a mistake in a game we can turn the dial in a timeout and get us where we need to be. But we know that it gets tougher now. Every team in the tournament's here for a reason. They're all very skilled and we have so much respect for the opponent we're about to play. But I would say that the momentum that we built to this point has our players playing with a lot of confidence. That's not a bad thing right at this moment.

THE MODERATOR: All right, thank you.