NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: SECOND ROUND - NORTH CAROLINA VS OHIO STATE

March 19, 2023

Courtney Banghart

Alyssa Ustby

Eva Hodgson

Value City Arena

North Carolina Tar Heels

Media Conference

Q. What's the feeling the day after, more of relief or what are the emotions going back to the hotel last night?

ALYSSA USTBY: There's definitely a big sigh of relief. It's like, ahh, yes, we made it. We made it through another round. Because that's just all of what March Madness is, it's surviving and advancing. No matter how great or how ugly the game was before, at least you made it out. So we are sitting here today so just very grateful for that.

EVA HODGSON: I think there's also some excitement, too. You made it through the first round and now you have legs under you and it's like, okay, what's next, and it's always looking ahead.

Q. For you particularly, you were really animated on the sidelines, in the back of your mind, are you thinking, this might be the last game?

EVA HODGSON: Yeah, something that's constantly going through my mind is leaving with no regrets and passion is one thing that is perfectly in my control.

So being able to bring that every night is important but especially last night, I was like, this isn't going to be my last game. And so I'm going to will it not to be my last game, and that's what it showed on the court.

Q. How was it watching the last six minutes? Did it tie your stomach in knots watching the last six minutes?

ALYSSA USTBY: We were all hooked on the bench together anticipating what was going to happen next because that's what we are all focused on at the moment. Just trying to give all of our energy from the bench to the players on court because the game is finished inside the line, so just trying to give as much as I could, even though I was fouled out.

Q. For either of you, Ohio State, next opponent, I know you've just started the scouting process with the coaches to get ready for tomorrow's game, but who among the teams you've played, whether it be in the ACC or other non-conference opponents, do they remind you of?

ALYSSA USTBY: I don't know if it's because they are also in the Big Ten but I was thinking Michigan just because they have some strong post presence. They have perimeter threats. Their style of play and their intensity reminded me of them.

EVA HODGSON: Yeah, I'd agree with that. It's hard for me to draw a direct comparison to some of the ACC terms, but the post preparation that we have within the ACC prepares us well for their post presence, and the shooters, similarly, I think we'll be prepared.

Q. Two of the better turnover margin teams in the country, you guys are four and change, Ohio State around six. What makes your defense, we know they press, what makes your defense either significantly similar or different in terms of pressure?

ALYSSA USTBY: I think we have a relentless defense and I think that's something that a lot of teams struggle with, and especially with our intensity. We are very active with our hands, jumping passing lanes, just making it very difficult for other teams to feel comfortable running their offense or bringing the ball past the halfcourt line. I think that's our big advantage there.

EVA HODGSON: And the layers of our defense, too. You're not just trying to get by one person; you're trying to get by every single person. Once you get past one of us, there's bound to be another one of us just standing right there waiting, whether it's in the gaps or taking charges or whatever it is.

So I think the layers of our defense also make it difficult for offenses.

Q. Taylor Mikesell, who does she remind you of or what challenges does she bring tomorrow?

EVA HODGSON: She's a great shooter, and so thinking to like conference play, I think like a Georgia comes to mind. She's not necessarily their immediate point guard, so that's where it's a little bit different.

But the speed in which she can get her shots off and the number of shots that she'll take from the three-point line is similar in my mind to a Georgia.

Q. What about Taylor Thierry?

ALYSSA USTBY: Number is that? 2?

EVA HODGSON: 2.

ALYSSA USTBY: I can't remember.

EVA HODGSON: More of a post player -- no, she's a guard. We just started our scout, sooooo (laughing) give us some time and we'll get back to you.

Q. What do y'all think you need to shore up the most coming out of that game to be successful against Ohio State and potentially other opponents down the road?

ALYSSA USTBY: I think a big thing for us will be just taking care of the ball, because we know that we're good when we can play with connected possessions, connected on offense, connected on defense.

So just making sure that we can take care of it with a full court because we are aware of their full court pressure that has disrupted a lot of teams. So with that in mind, we want to be very cognizant about how we move together.

Q. Can you speak to the clutch play from Deja last night in big moments? You all looked to her a lot and it happened again last night. I guess you come to expect the kind of play she gave y'all last night?

EVA HODGSON: At the end of the game, she's definitely a person we want to have the ball in the hands of, and for big moments like that and big plays like that. We knew how we needed to score at the end, and she was able to execute it really well along with Teonni setting a great screen for her. I was just proud of how we executed.

Q. A fun one for you: The bucket hat, where did it come from and where did you get the pins? What's the story for the people?

EVA HODGSON: Yes, the people must know. Well, I originally got the bucket last year when we were in Arizona for March Madness, and actually, Alyssa encouraged me to buy it. I was, like, walking around Dick's Sporting Goods with it on, and I was, like, it kind of feels like a vibe. And it was beautiful weather so it was fitting.

Then the pins on the front, they are the March Madness ones from every round. I'm still waiting on mine for this year, and then I kind of got the idea of let's add some pins. So as you go around, there's different Tar Heel ones, an ACC one. Robby has given me plenty to add.

So if anyone has pins that think they are deserving of going on the hat, let me know, because it just needs -- there's plenty more space. But I am the OG bucket hat person despite the NCAA gifting everyone. I think I was the trendsetter.

ALYSSA USTBY: She inspired it. Without a doubt.

Q. I read in the notes where you're one of seven children in your family. There are I think six McGuff kids.

EVA HODGSON: Okay.

Q. What's it like? Can you give us any idea of having that many siblings?

EVA HODGSON: Gosh, well, there's never a dull moment. I have five brothers as well so there's just constant back and forth. But I've loved it. It's been an absolute blast. As a kid, literally your friends were your siblings.

So you would go outside or play sports or literally do anything, and you would just be like, hey, you want to do it, and they would be like I have no -- yeah, let's do it. It's fun, too, because it's almost a team atmosphere itself. I was born into, like, five. Like, I finished out the starting five for my family.

And so it's definitely a fun dynamic, and I love my family very dearly. It's just been fun to watch all of them grow and develop in different ways and have them support me throughout this one journey, too.

Q. Does having weathered a close game in the first game somehow provide a sense of comfort? To make it -- you're there, make it more comfortable going into the second game having survived the first one?

EVA HODGSON: Definitely. I think to be able to weather a close game like that where towards the end of the game, it swung in their direction even, and at points you were unsure of who was going to get the last touch. To be able to weather that I think is really important for our team just as a whole, and for Paulina, Teonni, who didn't necessarily get to play in March Madness last year, they we were able to experience a high-intensity game right of the bat, so it sets you up well moving forward I think.

ALYSSA USTBY: In addition to that, I think we had multiple games throughout the season that were very close. Some of which we've come out with a win. Others were a heartbreaking loss. But I think that game last night is just another one of those games where we've had multiple experiences in that setting on the court.

But when you're outside on the bench or in the stands it's very nerve-wracking. But on the court, we're always like, "Guys, we've got this. We can do it. We've been here before."

Q. You came in with Deja. Somebody described her as a "silent killer" because she's the same mood the whole time. What's it been like to see her growth, and what's it like on the floor, having a leader who is so calm even in the toughest moments?

ALYSSA USTBY: It is absolutely incredible. I am blessed to be a teammate of Deja Kelly. You reminded me, she is a silent killer. We go to her towards the end of the game, and I think everybody knows that the ball is going to be in her hands and she still is able to execute with everybody in the gym knowing she's probably going to get the last shot. So it's just been a blessing to be part of her team.

There is a lot of comfort when she has the ball because I know that she'll be able to take care of it, and I'm there if she needs me for like an outlet pass. And then just to see her growth throughout her career as leader has been the most impressive thing to me. Like, I knew she was going to grow in different areas of her game, and she's, like, it's excelled so much in that sense.

But to watch her grow as a leader and just be able to bring everybody else along in her team has been very impressive to be able to witness right next to her.

COURTNEY BANGHART: Survive to live another day. We are looking forward to the next challenge which we know will be a really good one, two good teams here in Columbus.

Q. On this national stage, there's so much attention paid to this junior class that they have laid the foundation. But yet when you needed the clutch plays down the stretch, it's your rookies, Paulina and Teonni that made some big, big plays there in the waning minutes. How rewarding is that as a coach to see them step up on this stage?

COURTNEY BANGHART: Yeah, and also part of it is the leadership of Eva and Malu and those juniors giving them the confidence throughout the year and the expectation and the standard that you come here and you contribute. That's what you do, and your journey, everybody's journey looks different.

But you know, I met with both Teonni and Paulina, I met them all, but Paulina and Teonni in particular right after the ACC tournament and said, "This is two weeks. Two week s is a long time for a freshman, so you need to be two weeks better."

Yeah, them shining, given how hard they have worked and how much they have bought into the journey. Always makes a coach happy.

Q. The day after, is it more a sense of relief than anything else after the back-and-forth and the drama at the end of that game last night?

COURTNEY BANGHART: You know, we knew that St. John's is a really good team. They have got six guys that have five or more years of college basketball experience, right. As Matt just alluded to, we have the opposite of that, right.

So we knew that their athletic mortality was staring them in the face, and that it's a team that had beaten some really, really good teams. What our defense does is it forces you to take tough shots. What they are good at is making tough shots. We new the matchup right away was a bit of a challenge.

We were hoping we would play better I think, so I think there was a chance for us as a group to regroup and say, you know, winning in March at some point, in November, you care what it looks like. In March, you don't. So I had to learn that lesson myself and I had to then exude it to my guys; that it's a win and I'd rather win in any way possible regardless.

I'm sure Ohio State wasn't celebrating how they played either. They are just glad there's a win and they move on to play again.

Q. What areas does the team need to prove upon their performance to compete against Ohio State and others down the road?

COURTNEY BANGHART: It's a totally different team. Ohio State is totally different than either Purdue or whoever we just played, St. John's. So Ohio is going to run a lot of press; if they can score, then they will be pressing a bunch so that will extend the floor. Whereas St. John's was more, packed it in, right, so they are totally different in that way.

And also, St. John's can really hurt you behind the arc. Ohio State is going to be more aggressive at the rim, so they are just totally different teams.

Same deal. In March I'm not going to worry about what we have to get better in. I'm going to worry about what to game plan in and how to beat Ohio State.

Q. Does Mikesell remind you of anybody, and the style they play, does that remind you of any team you've played this season?

COURTNEY BANGHART: I think their pressure defense is a little bit like Duke's. You know, Mikesell is a great shooter much like Virginia Tech has a bunch of them, and then you've got Cotie McMahon is a problem. She's a problem. She's an ACC-level athlete playing in the Big Ten, and so we've played a lot of great athletes like her that are relentless and whatnot. There's bits and pieces of them.

When you get to March, you focus on literally the team. So it's very little about me teaching them how to grow our offense and grow our defense. It's literally completely obsessed on what Ohio State does and doing that.

Q. Over your coaching history, thoughts, run-ins, relationship with Kevin McGuff?

COURTNEY BANGHART: Oh, yeah, I was in -- he might remember -- we were like four hours from Antarctica, we were in Chile and I wasn't going to -- I didn't get a car because I was just going to Uber around. I would have assumed there would be more English speaking down there.

Well, he and his wife rented a car. So here I was at the gym and after the game -- when I say it was cold, I'm from New Hampshire. It was cold, and I didn't bring a warm enough jacket because I was too lazy to carry it on the airplane. I think I was wearing a Clemson jacket for my friend who coaches at Clemson. And I was like, "Hey, Kevin I need a ride back to the hotel."

He's like, "I got you."

You've been in the business for a long time so when you get to this level, when you get this far along in your coaching journey, you know them all pretty well. But he's one of the good guys.

Q. You mentioned Cotie McMahon. What stands out to you about somebody who looks that comfortable on the floor, that confident on the floor but it is a freshman?

COURTNEY BANGHART: She's like LeBron James in a lot of ways. She's really physical. If you put her in football pads, she'd be a tight end. So her physicality is part of what you're guarding in that way and she's playing fearlessly partly because I'm not sure she entire had I knows what she is doing and that's a beautiful thing for a freshman.

I would say the same of our guys they don't necessarily know what they are doing. Kayla McPherson is more like a running back; she'll run it down your throat before you realize that she just went by you. And part of her beauty is she's not afraid of the moment because she hasn't been in it before.

Q. On Deja, the players described her as a silent killer. She's calm but she's really competitive. When someone like that who is also your ball handler, how does that help you as a coach, because the team seems to feed off how she's feeling at all times?

COURTNEY BANGHART: I think, I'm not saying they are wrong but what I know of Deja is not silent. I think it's just that Eva is so vocal. Deja is promote vocal and she is pretty fiery and she's not letting these moments go by without her I am present.

What Deja is known for in our locker room and our team is just her relentless competitiveness. She doesn't always minutes words. She didn't always care how they are received. She just cares about winning.

But I wouldn't put her -- I'd put her in the assassin. I wouldn't put her in the silent assassin category.

Q. You mentioned surviving and advancing and how in November, you care more what the games look like and now you just want to win. How much value is there for young players to have survived and weathered what you guys did yesterday and come out on top?

COURTNEY BANGHART: Yeah, you know, I've always said this, there's really no replacement for experience. I know that has -- I was a head coach at 29 at Princeton, and I was so worried about making sure I knew what to run and when to run it, and I realized it's much about winning your locker room, right, than it is about what you're running. But you learn that from experience.

Those guys getting the experience they got yesterday and that they have gotten in big ACC games clearly was pivotal and that's partly what you care about in November is using your bench so that you can count on them when you need to. I think we have done a good job of that. Everybody on our team has played impactful minutes and we were able to celebrate that and make sure they knew that coming into the tournament that there are multiple moments for each player that we relied on them, and you guys saw that last night.

Q. Is it more valuable to have played such a close game to start it off?

COURTNEY BANGHART: I don't know. That's a good question. I'm not sure. Again you do package them really differently. I think there could be value in that. I'm not sure. If we win, I'll say yes.