NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: REGIONAL 1 FINAL - MARYLAND VS SOUTH CAROLINA

March 27, 2023

Dawn Staley

Aliyah Bostor

Zia Cooke

Brea Beal

Bon Secours Wellness Arena

South Carolina Gamecocks

Elite 8 Postgame Media Conference

South Carolina 86, Maryland 75

Q. Ladies, does this feeling ever get old? I know you're used to being here on the dais, especially in this building, but do you ever take this one for granted?

ALIYAH BOSTON: No, never. Not a lot of teams can say they're able to do this. So for us to be able to do it feels really good, and it's such a blessing we won't ever take for granted.

Q. Zia, that first quarter they were able to take it to you guys and get around for some easy baskets. What did you guys do in the second quarter to really lock it down and turn the game?

ZIA COOKE: I think we just had to start attacking them the same way they were attacking us. Coach kept telling us that we see how they're playing so we've got to make sure we're going the same thing. But they definitely were getting downhill on us, and we just wanted to make sure we did the same thing, made lay-ups and just became great defenders.

Q. That two-point guard lineup, Kierra and Raven playing together, what is it that works well playing together?

ALIYAH BOSTON: Yeah, they're two great point guards and they both play two different paces, so it's good to have that mix at the same time happening. But they both see the floor really well and I think they did a great job of attacking the guards' feet.

Q. Aliyah, before Dawn started recruiting you, what did you know about the state of South Carolina and what did you think about the state of South Carolina? And now having played your last game in this state, unless a WNBA franchise relocates you, what does this state mean to you?

ALIYAH BOSTON: I knew the weather was good so that's probably the biggest thing for me. South Carolina has been a home for four years, somewhere where I really grew up so it's always going to be that second home to me. And it's going to feel so good when I come back whenever it is, visit, see everybody, see the coaches. It's going to be really nice.

Q. You all were celebrating with your families on the court and everything. What's that moment like as seniors to have them all around you?

BREA BEAL: I mean, that and on top of that, you've got the fans, and this is our senior season. So it's surreal to finish that and go to a Final Four game, like she said earlier. Not many can say that. Just to look into the crowd and see our parents a couple feet away, how proud they are of us as women making it this far. It's a blessing to be here.

Q. Did you guys get an opportunity to watch any of Iowa last night, and what do you make of this matchup and specifically what it means for the game? I think Caitlin Clark is trending already on Twitter.

ZIA COOKE: We definitely watched them, but like I said, I just think we really want to cherish this moment right now with one another. When it's time to scout for them, we'll definitely do that.

Q. Aliyah, this game kind of mirrored the first matchup you had with them, highly contested first half, then you pull away in the second. What do you think allowed you guys to do that.

ALIYAH BOSTON: I think the way we were attacking. I think we attacked a lot more coming from the guards and the post, which was really good because they were doing a great job of pressuring so they were higher up on the floor, which kind of left the backside a little bit more open for attacks, which is really good.

But I also think that we used our length. We had Kamilla in and we threw lobs over the top and she was able to rebound, give us second chances at other possessions, so we did that.

Q. For any of the three of you, of course in the same building cutting the nets down a couple weeks ago and then obviously making the Final Four the last three years, what keeps that moment special for you guys knowing that you've done it again but continuing to do it? What keeps the specialness of the moment?

BREA BEAL: I think for me personally, I know what it feels like to lose. I know what it feels like to be sent home. So every game that we played this season, we played with that feeling on our mind, on our chest. Really going into any game we play, we don't want that feeling.

I mean, especially this time of year everybody is bringing it, everybody knows what they've got to give to be able to continue on and make it to a Final Four game.

Q. Several teams who have played you guys talk about you come at them in waves. There's your starting lineup, there's your bench, you're big, you're long, and you can't ever really get ahead of you guys. Have you ever faced a team like that or been in a situation like that, and if you did, can you remember what it was like to be in that situation?

ALIYAH BOSTON: Just to get this clear, you're talking about a team with length and size like us?

Q. Yeah, or just that has your depth and just, like I said, comes at you wave after wave after wave.

ALIYAH BOSTON: Yeah, I think Stanford. Playing Stanford they are pretty long from point guard up to their posts and they have several posts, Cam and Betts, so they do a great job of that. And they also score the ball really at a high level, so you can't really ever take a possession off with them. So I think that they are probably one of the teams that match with us in size.

Q. You all correct so well, whether that be in a new game or in a second half. What about this team does a good job correcting errors? Aliyah, I know in the SEC tournament you gave away your trophy. Did you give your trophy this time or do you keep it?

ALIYAH BOSTON: I don't even know where it is. Did I get one? I don't know.

I think just us being able to talk about it at halftime. Even before the coaches come in, we talk about things that we're seeing, if we need to come over on help side more, if we need something offensively. And then Coach Staley comes in and she talks and we listen and we adapt.

The biggest thing about games, especially now, deep in March, is being able to adjust, so the quicker we do that, the better it'll be for our team.

DAWN STALEY: I'm just super proud that we get to experience Greenville, South Carolina, in this way. The tournament was put on first class. They hosted us with great pride and joy. Everywhere we went, we felt like it was the NCAA Tournament, and I know it was more so because of the people who make it go. And they made us feel welcome and at home. I'm sure the other seven teams felt the same love.

Q. How hard is it to get to a Final Four? I know it's not as easy as you've made it look. But now five times in eight years, can you wrap your head around that you've gotten there that many times?

DAWN STALEY: I mean, you've got to get a little lucky, and you've got to get some players that really believe in it and that are unified, that really see honestly the bigger picture. That is rare nowadays because a lot of times young people only see themselves and what they want to accomplish.

But when you get a combination of players who want those things, individual things, but they see the overarching -- the big picture, and this group of players -- we've been very lucky at South Carolina where we got groups of players that basically clump together and want to play together to do some special things.

The bar is set pretty high for us to continue to do what we've done, and that's the challenge of it each and every year, to try to top last year.

Q. You've coached a lot of good teams and you've also played against a lot of good teams. Where does this one stack up, and then if it's up there as one of the tops, what about it makes it so good?

DAWN STALEY: You mean our team? I mean, this team has been to three consecutive Final Fours. I think they separate themselves from any other team that we've been a part of. This team is undefeated. No other team that I've coached ever, besides an Olympic team, or participated on an Olympic team that don't lose very many basketball games.

But this isn't just about what this team has done on the court. You have to prep for being able to be as successful as we have, and they come every day, like every single day. They've created habits in which they just get the job done. They don't ask about how long is practice, they don't ask what drills are on the practice cards. They just say, okay, this is what we have to do, let's get it done.

It turns out to be one of the most -- they're lean. There's no extra to what they do. I just am really proud of them.

I just hope that we're able to win a National Championship because they've done it the right way, and they're just exemplary of what you want every student-athlete to be.

Q. We know Aliyah's game sometimes goes beyond numbers, but today she did have the 20 points and the five assists. What were your thoughts on the way she inserted herself into the game?

DAWN STALEY: She was great. She was great. We made some adjustments to some -- the Sweet 16 and Elite 8. Just we weren't going to sit here on a block and just allow people to just play physical and guard her with two and three people. We moved her around, and because we moved her around, she was a moving target. It was hard for them to double her because they weren't doubling her from the perimeter. She made some incredible drives.

She was just all over the place. I thought we did a great job just allowing us to play through her, no matter where she was on the court.

But she was due. She was due for one of these big games.

Q. You guys obviously draw Iowa, two teams with really passionate fan bases, two players that everyone is talking about in Aliyah and Caitlin Clark --

DAWN STALEY: They are?

Q. You and Caitlin Clark are both trending on Twitter already. What does a matchup like this mean for women's basketball?

DAWN STALEY: I don't know. I want to enjoy this. We're going to have these questions for the next four days, so I want to enjoy our team and something special that they've been able to accomplish today. Like getting to another Final Four is pretty special, so we're going to answer the Iowa, Caitlin Clark questions in the near future.

But I just want to enjoy this and just give our players an opportunity to be talked about, to be -- the joy that I feel for this team to be able to be where they are, I'm just really happy, and I'd like to just answer questions about that.

Q. After the end of the first quarter, kind of a fidgety quarter. You go back to Kierra, back to Aliyah, back to Victaria. How much did this team's senior leadership championship experience come in handy in a game that was a little bit frenetic those first ten minutes?

DAWN STALEY: Yeah, the game had to settle down. Obviously Maryland came on and played extremely fast, just moving the ball up and down the floor. They were extremely physical, and I thought it just took us a while to get our footing, to really make adjustments to how they were playing us.

And once we did, we basically just fought aggression with aggression, because they were really aggressive. And just over time, I just thought our depth and our ability to go inside and our ability to apply a little pressure to make it a little difficult for them to straight-line drive us or just to get wide open perimeter shots.

Q. This game kind of mirrored the first one you guys played them, contested first half but you guys pull away. Not that they need to prove that they're battle tested because they have, but what allows them to continue to do that over and over?

DAWN STALEY: I mean, this team just wants to win. They don't really care how it looks. They just want to do what's necessary for us to score more points than the other team, by way of defense.

They're seasoned. They're veterans. They know how to win. They know how to win at different styles of play. And the main thing is they just don't want to lose, so they sacrifice themselves for the greater good of our team.

Q. When you're building a program, how important is it to have those players like Aliyah who are obviously stars on the floor but also become beloved by the community and the fan base and the state at large?

DAWN STALEY: I mean, it's important that you build around great character individuals who are really talented. Aliyah, that entire class -- I know we hear a lot about Aliyah, but the entire class in their own way are just big-hearted people.

I have stories about Zia. Zia is always checking up on me to see how I'm doing just to check in. Rebuild, she does it in a different way. She comes in and there's no issue. Let's get going.

Olivia is the best teammate that you could ever have. Like the best teammate you could ever have.

Then LA, LA shows her love through her community service, through her being a good teammate, and through her, just sacrificing, never really being a full-time starter for us and just embracing it.

Q. When you climbed the ladder and you cut down the net, you turned to one sideline and then turned to the other and then turned to the middle like you were a rock star at a concert or something. How does that feel to do that as many times as you've done it?

DAWN STALEY: Well, we've got a choreographer that wants to make sure they get the right pictures, so I've got to do that. I'm just following instructions really.

Then also I just like to acknowledge our fans. If they wanted to take a picture from way in the stands, I want them to capture that because they pour so much into our team, and if we can give them a little bit of ourselves in that moment to share with them and to create memories, I'd like to do that.

Q. If I could go back to the pursuit of perfection, if you go back to your senior year at Virginia, as great as that team was, you still had one loss going into the Final Four. Can you try to put into context how hard it is to not get tripped up once, especially as tough a schedule as you played this year?

DAWN STALEY: It's extremely hard. Like it's extremely hard to do what we've done, and to do it -- I do think in this era because parity is so much alive in our game that you have to be levels above everybody else. Because you get everybody's best effort every single time that you step on the floor, and you can't have any slippage.

But I think this team is really -- they've built to this point because they had excruciating losses, one in 2020 when we lost to Indiana in the Virgin Islands, and then the following year we had a couple losses. But the biggest one was in the Final Four. Like they've built up some endurance of what it feels like to lose.

And then to come back and win the national championship last year, I think they just have enough losing in them to not want to feel that way. And they've cried buckets of tears for the losses, and especially the big losses that they don't need a lesson of losing a game along this journey that we have this season.