NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: SECOND ROUND - SOUTH FLORIDA VS SOUTH CAROLINA

March 19, 2023

Jose Fernandez

Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu

Elena Tsineke

Colonial Life Arena

USF Bulls

Media Conference

South Carolina 76, South Florida 45

JOSE FERNANDEZ: First of all, just want to acknowledge South Carolina and the basketball team that they have. They've got a lot of pieces. Very versatile, and they're well-coached.

I thought for 20 minutes, we did a really, really good job. That third quarter really hurt us offensively and defensively. I thought they just really assaulted the glass, and at some points our best offense was the second shot, and that's what hurt us.

I think their physicality bothered us a little bit, too.

What I told our team -- I've had a really, really great time coaching this group. I've had more fun with this group than I've had in the past, with everything that we've been through. They won 27 games, tied the school record for wins. They've got a lot to be proud of.

We've been to the NCAA tournament nine times, second round five times, and we've been to postseason play 18 or 19 of my 23 years. But I've had just a wonderful time coaching this group.

The transfers adapted well to our culture. We had five freshmen. Then the two young ladies sitting next to me have just been a pleasure to coach. When two of your best players are your hardest workers, everything falls in line really easily.

What I told our team, don't let this define the year that we had. We had a tough stretch playing three games in three weeks, and getting bounced in the quarterfinals of Dallas, then having a lot of adversity the other night against a really good Marquette team and battling back and winning in overtime, and then the next 20 minutes that they played, they should be very, very proud of.

Just got away from us. Got away from us in that third quarter.

Q. Dulcy and Elena, what happened in that third quarter? Looked like you had kind of blunted some of their momentum in the second quarter, and then they were just hard to handle it looked like.

ELENA TSINEKE: Like Coach said, their physicality started to kick in us, so I guess we just couldn't really keep up with that, but overall I'm very proud of our group. We fought, but they were the better team, and they were more athletic, so credits to them.

DULCY FANKAM MENDJIADEU: I think that we couldn't handle their transition offense. They were really great at going up and down, and we just lost it, I guess. But that was it.

Q. Coach said don't let this game define the year you had. Is it going to be difficult not to think about this game, or will it be easier the next couple of days to say, look at the year we had and the things we accomplished?

DULCY FANKAM MENDJIADEU: I definitely think the next couple days are going to be hard. Like to really realize it was our lost game and going out this way, it's not easy to take it. It hasn't dawned on me yet that yeah, it's really my last college basketball game. I will have to take some time.

ELENA TSINEKE: For me, I think it was easier because all I will remember is how much fun I had with this group and how much I love them. Yes, this game we lost, but I can have with me all those memories that will make me smile every time I think about them.

Q. José, before the third quarter, what in the first half did you like, and what was the game plan, and how do you feel like you'll execute it and keep it that close?

JOSE FERNANDEZ: I think the game plan was fine. I think we defended elbows and blocks and kept them in front and made them take jumpers. But again, I don't remember the last time we got out-rebounded by 27. 24 offensive rebounds. We've got to go back and look, but they only committed seven fouls, as well. You play five months a certain way of basketball, and for us -- again, you've got to adjust to the way the game is being officiated; I get that. But they're very, very talented. They're very good. We'll see them play on all the way through to Dallas.

But I was happy in that first half how we defended. It was a four-point game, and again, you've got to make shots against them. Got to make baskets, and we struggled. Struggled to score.

Q. Early in that third quarter, you called that time-out. Did you sense that maybe things were changing and you were just trying to get your team back?

JOSE FERNANDEZ: I had to settle them down. I called that time-out when it went from four to eight, and I just go, listen, we're three minutes in and we're only down four, and we've got to come back and answer. We went the rest of the way -- the rest of the way I think we scored maybe four points in the final seven minutes.

Q. It wasn't Dulcy's type of game this year or wasn't her best game this year. Did she get bottled up down low? Did the two fouls early take her out of her rhythm?

JOSE FERNANDEZ: Yeah, she picked up two fouls in the first quarter but we needed to leave her in there. Next guy in line was a freshman, which we had to play Emma and Dulcy together, just because they bring in Cardoso and they've got Boston and they've got Amihere, they're huge. I think the physicality took a toll and a wear and tear, where she's going up against Boston and Cardoso and those guys can play one-on-one against her. Again, she's very, very good and has had a very, very good year, but it was a tough night.

Q. I was going to ask you about watching Boston play; there were a couple times, especially in the second quarter, I think, she got on the floor twice to chase loose balls, and then she came over to double-team Emma, I think, on the sideline and forced another turnover. That's not every --

JOSE FERNANDEZ: Yeah, she made a lot of plays that don't show up on the stat sheet. I'm a big fan. She's one of the best players in the country.

If she was on another team, probably her stat line is a lot different because they have so many weapons. That shouldn't penalize her from getting any national awards, because her stats are different. Her stats would be a lot different -- I mean, I thought Cook had a great game. She was good. She made shots. That's what we talked about, if Cook and Fletcher and Beal and any of the other perimeters can come off and they don't shoot it well and we block out, we give ourselves a chance. Well, that's what happened the first 20 minutes, because in the third quarter those first three or four possessions they went empty, but so did we. That's where we could have cut it, and then they went up eight, I took that time-out, the crowd is back into it, then it skyrocketed to double digits.

Q. José, you've talked about how your team would not be fazed by the environment because of the way you schedule your non-conference. Can you speak to how you guys rose to the moment in the first 20 minutes?

JOSE FERNANDEZ: Yeah, I think it didn't faze us. Well, they missed shots in the first half, and we made some, and we just kept within striking distance. I thought our kids came out and were ready to play. That first quarter, we were up four or five, so there wasn't a question on preparation and excitement and them coming in and not being star struck.

That's what I told our guys. I was really proud of them, and then that second quarter, things ramped up and the way that they guarded Tsineke and Sammie and Reidinger and forcing our point guard to start our offense in a certain way on a certain type of -- cutting the floor in half, so that hurt us a little bit.

But you know, I told our guys, we're a lot better than how we played in the second half, because you look at the score, after watching 20 minutes of basketball and you go, the final score was 31, we're a lot better than that.