NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON VS DUKE

March 20, 2026

Robin Harmony

Taylor Barbot

Taryn Barbot

Cameron Indoor Stadium

College of Charleston Cougars

Media Conference

Duke 81, Charleston 64

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by the College of Charleston Cougars. We have Head Coach Robin Harmony along with student-athletes Taryn Barbot and Taylor Barbot.

We'll have an opening statement by Coach, questions for the student-athletes, and then questions for Coach.

Coach, the floor is yours.

ROBIN HARMONY: I think that we played 40 minutes. We battled. We didn't shoot the ball well from 3-point, and that was one of the goals we had to take care of. We missed a lot of point-blankers in the middle, the five-, six-footers.

Our kids never quit. We did make them turn the ball over 20 times, which is a good plus, positive from it. We didn't get blown out of the gym. We worked and kind of held our own. If we'd have hit some more of the 3s and point-blankers, it could have been a closer margin.

Really proud of our team for showing up and really pushing.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for the student-athletes.

Q. Taryn, obviously, a ton of points you put up today in a tournament game. Will you remember it for the fact that on the biggest stage, you put up 36 points, or just the loss?

TARYN BARBOT: I'll definitely remember both. I'm super proud of what I did on the court today. I definitely don't like losing like that. It hurts to lose, but I think I did good today. I think I gave it my all. I'm definitely proud of that.

Q. Taylor, just talk about this kind of being that first step that y'all are taking. Coach said you wanted to build each step and get back here next year and build on that.

TAYLOR BARBOT: I mean, yeah, that's the goal. I think we've done that all our years here. We've built upon what we did the last year. So, yeah, I'd definitely say that's the plan, to keep going.

Q. Taryn, did you feel like you were a power conference player tonight? You were up there against Duke and putting up those types of numbers. Did you feel like power conference skill?

TARYN BARBOT: I definitely did. I was like once I got hot, my teammates kept finding me the ball, and I kept attacking. So yeah.

THE MODERATOR: Seeing no more questions, student-athletes, you are welcome to leave. Thank you.

Questions for Coach.

Q. Robin, just was it what it was cracked up to be, being on the biggest stage in women's basketball and holding your own against Duke? What was the overall feeling that you'll take from it?

ROBIN HARMONY: I think we definitely held our own. When you play a team like Duke, who is very good, and don't be surprised if you don't see them in the Final Four, we could have gotten beat by 60. We kind of hung in there just long enough. Again, hit shots, and we'd have been still back in that ball game a little bit more.

So we'll take that. We'll learn from it and keep it moving.

Q. The same question I asked Taylor about how this is maybe the beginning for you guys and kind of building on this foundation and returning here next year.

ROBIN HARMONY: You have to get to win championships, whether it's regular season, tournament, get to the NCAA to let the kids know what it's like, the younger ones coming up just for that tradition. This is that first step to help us get that done. No matter what, they'll always remember this.

Q. Are you a little concerned that Taryn might be targeted after a 36-point performance in the NCAA Tournament?

ROBIN HARMONY: Not really. I mean, she's 20. She's going to make her own decisions. She's an adult. It's whatever is best for her. So I'm not even thinking about that. That's not oh, my, this was a big stage, and she showed she can do it. We already knew she could do it. That's not surprising. Everybody that came after her last year, they knew that same thing.

So it's just, again, there's no doubt that she is a Power 4 player, and this is where she's happy, and that's what she wanted to do. And that's the important part is the kid's happy with where she's playing. If she's not, then she has to change.

Q. Could you just give us a little bit, like just the positives of a game like this? Anything you would like to bring into next year off of a performance like this?

ROBIN HARMONY: We made them turn the ball over 20 times. We only turned it over 11. I think that we had a really good defensive scheme where we switching on all screens and smothering the ball. But it was a start. We need to play a little bit better post defense, but it's a start to build on and know what our style is.

Hit more baskets, we'll hang with teams like this. Then you catch them getting in foul trouble, and it's a different story. It's just the atmosphere we played in is going to help us. Our team didn't fold. They didn't back down, they didn't look like they were scared, and they competed. That's the positive part we'll take.

Q. Robin, when you look back on this group, what will this specific group and this specific last four months mean to you over your career?

ROBIN HARMONY: Well, they're the ones that got that first banner in the gym so they're the ones that set that stage for the next step in this program to continue to get better. These kids are somebody that we never won. Seven years, we were always the doormat, and they just pretty much turned the whole program around, and it's great.

Q. Kind of a two-parter. Grace has 15 rebounds, played great in the interior. Then you didn't kind of get that secondary scoring that you normally get. What did they do that kind of shut those other guys down a little bit?

ROBIN HARMONY: Well, Grace didn't get too many touches. When we did feed her, the ball went out of bounds three or four times, a couple of easy put-backs she missed.

With Grace, we have to develop her defensive game more. She can rebound. She has the ability. She can move her feet. It's just that we don't really have her where she's a post player that's back to the basket. She has an entire summer to get better and improve on that.

I think if we'd have had that, that would have opened it a little bit more. We were driving. They were zeroing us. We really couldn't throw the ball to our 3-point shooters. If they did shoot, they didn't have a lot of time. The length of Duke, you know, they're 6'4". With length, they're like 6'7". Trust that. It's us getting better and us working.

Now the kids see. They can watch it over and over and see where they need to improve. We are always lecturing it to them. Unless they get on that stage and do it and see it, they're not going to know that they have to make adjustments. But either way, still we're proud of them.

THE MODERATOR: Coach, thank you for your time. Congratulations on a great season.

ROBIN HARMONY: Thank you.