Junior Tiffany Mitchell
What South Carolina went through in Greensboro Regional to get to this point:
“I think we’re in a really good place. We’re riding that wave after two tough games against UNC
and Florida State, and we pulled those out so I feel like we’re pretty good coming into this game.
A lot of people don’t have us winning this game so we switched into an underdog role and we’ll
use that as motivation.”
How it feels to be only team in Final Four without a national championship:
“You realize that after you get here and hearing people talk. We know we’re the only team that
hasn’t been here before, but I think we’re going to use that to our advantage. We have nothing
to lose. We can just go out there and leave it all on the court.”
On reminding yourself that it is just another basketball game:
“We do just because it’s a really big stage, especially for our younger players, but for everyone
because we’ve never been here before. We just have to approach it like a regular game and not
get caught up in excitement of the Final Four.”
Impact of playing better competition throughout the season:
“We’ve been honing in on Notre Dame and what they do, and not really looking back on the
other teams we’ve played this season. We’ve just been scouting them and seeing what we need
to do.”
What do you know about Notre Dame:
“They are a really good team. They have a lot of weapons with Brianna Turner and their back
court with Jewell (Loyd) and Lindsay (Allen). We need to wear them down and try to make it
hard for them to get into their offense.”
On the “WOW” Factor of being in Tampa at the Final Four:
“I think it’s a great experience for our whole team, especially for our freshmen because no one
has ever been here before. We’re just soaking it all in.”
On going head-to-head against Jewel Loyd:
“Jewel and I played USA Basketball together this past summer and we have a connection. We
both have similar games which is what I think makes this such a great matchup. I know she has
a pretty good jump shot, and it’s hard to defend her coming off ball screens. Our friendship is
definitely there, but, on the court, its business so the friendship will be left at the door.”
Are you concerned about Notre Dame’s experience vs. this being your first time:
“We are new, and I think we’re going to use that to our advantage. They’ve been here before, so
I feel like the pressure is on them to win. Coming in as the new guys, we have nothing to lose
and we’re just going to play it like a regular game and refuse to lose.”
How do you stay relaxed on such a big stage:
“We try not to think about it like that. I try not to say ‘Oh, this is such a huge game,’ because that
affects people’s heads, and the mental part is a huge part of the game of basketball. We’re not
trying to hype anything up to be more than it needs to be.”
Why does Notre Dame match up so well against you:
“We both have really good teams with really talented players. Our guards do some of the same
things the Notre Dame guards do, and I feel our advantage comes in the post because of our
size and how physical we are. Our bench plays a big part as well. We have a really deep team
and having 6-4’s coming off the bench is a huge help.
On the key factors:
“Getting stops and making sure they don’t get easy buckets, as well as rebounding. They’re a
pretty efficient team so trying to make them work for everything is going to be the biggest thing.”
