AMERICAN CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

March 11, 2026

Karen Aston

Idara Udo

Ereauna Hardaway

Legacy Arena At The BJCC

UTSA Roadrunners

Postgame Press Conference

UTSA 60, Temple 51

KAREN ASTON: Super proud of our team. I think that any time you bring a group to the conference tournament you definitely don't ever know how they're going to respond to having maybe the day to sit around and watch somebody else play and then on top of that just some young players that have not experienced this before.

I think the two sitting beside me led the way from an experience standpoint. They had a lot of calmness about them today.

And I just thought we were resilient again. It's kind of been the theme of this team is they've been able to bounce back. We went through a stretch in the second Qatar that wasn't really very pretty and I thought we regrouped at half and played very well in the second half. Super proud of our team.

Q. I'm just curious, in that second quarter was when kind of Temple was making that run, turning you guys over and grabbing a lot of offensive rebounds. Coming into halftime you guys flipped that script. What changed during halftime. What did you say to your team to get everyone to regather and refocus to go out and play the way you did?

KAREN ASTON: I'll let Idara answer that, because I really think a lot of the changes they made at half were probably them talking about it.

So I'll let her have that.

IDARA UDO: I think it's us just regrouping, having a really positive mindset, and just knowing that you have to keep playing no matter the circumstances.

I was just focusing on our core values that we have and we uphold as a team, and honing into those principles that we have really helped us down the stretch.

Q. Coach, I just wanted to ask how does it feel to just get this first one out of the way?

KAREN ASTON: It feels good. You know, I think that they were super excited. It's nice to see a team be really excited about being here, be excited about winning. Can't get to the next one if you don't win it.

So from a coaching standpoint I'm proud of them, and I'm glad that they get to keep experiencing this, because they've made a point to get better. You know, they made a point after the Tulsa loss, I thought, to try to hone in on some things that Idara is talking about.

And they've really made a decision to do that. And I think that they're giving their best effort. I think it's showing that we're having a little bit of mental toughness through hard times, and that's been something that this team has sort of struggled with, as you know, Jerry.

It's never too late to grow, and I think that this team is doing that.

Q. I just wanted to ask Ereauna, that was a physical ballgame out there. What was it like out there? I know there was a moment there late in the second half where they were wiping up something off the court. I'm assuming that was somebody's bleeding out there or something. What was it like out there just the physical nature of the ballgame?

EREAUNA HARDAWAY: It's cupper time. I mean, tournament time, in general. Toughness is going to happen. Who's going to be the toughest team. I think we battled through it. We all played together. And it was fun.

Q. Idara, what did you think about the way your teammates responded at halftime tonight?

IDARA UDO: I'm super proud of them. Just touching on what Coach said, just mental toughness and growth has been a big thing that this team has honed in on and this team is doing. So I'm really proud of us battling through adversity and keeping our heads up and staying together. That's been a big thing for us.

We stayed together throughout the whole game and the rest of the game and the second half. I'm extremely proud of this team. I couldn't be prouder.

KAREN ASTON: I do want to mention real quick, because I appreciate you covering us all the time. Our young guys did a great job on defense. That team is hard to handle. Their guards are hard to handle.

I thought that all the young ones really, their attention to detail, and they were really to me defensively the difference in the game.

So I just wanted to give them some props. I thought Mia was terrific. I thought Damara came in, did a good job. Adriana.

And that's something that we really try to hone in on is just doing your job and paying attention to detail. I think that's a little bit of a hidden reason why we won.

Q. Could you expand on that, Coach, a little bit about Adriana's first tournament game as a college player?

KAREN ASTON: Yeah. I thought she was really good. She had one little hiccup there after she made her fancy play she came down and tried to make another one back to back and she looked at me in the huddle afterwards and said, I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't have done that.

But her energy is contagious for sure. Her wheels, her motor is very contagious. But I also thought that really all of the young ones that if you really get down to it, even Mia, Damara, Jayda, none of them have had tournament experience here really.

So I think when you look at that, I think Idara hit it on the head, like the growth has been a lot. I'm proud of them, and I'm proud that they were able to experience this and have some positive things that happened that aren't all about scoring.

Like I thought that their defense and their attention to detail was really, again, the difference in the game.

Q. And Idara, just one more, if I might ask. How do you feel about getting another shot at South Florida tomorrow?

IDARA UDO: I'm really excited. They're a really good team, and we're here to compete and we're here to battle. So I'm really excited to play and have another opportunity.

Q. What do you remember about those previous games this season with them?

IDARA UDO: A very physical team. A team that gets out in transition, runs the floor well, runs their lanes well and has players that can score?

MODERATOR: All right. Thank you, Coach. Thank you, ladies.