SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TIPOFF MEDIA DAYS

October 14, 2026

Ayla Guzzardo

Georgia Bulldogs

Women's Media Day Press Conference

AYLA GUZZARDO: Good afternoon. I'm excited to be here with you for our first Media Day as a Lady Bulldog. Happy to serve as the fourth head coach in the history of the Georgia Lady Bulldogs. There is a lot to be excited about in Athens. We have a group of players and coaches that are ready to compete at a high level in the SEC.

From the moment we arrived in Athens, we went to work to bring student-athletes who share the same vision with us. The passion, the competitive spirit, and we want to continue to be in the community, we want to play hard and have great work ethic every day.

I wouldn't be remiss to say you already know that Georgia has a rich basketball history. Established by one of our best players or best coaches in women's basketball history, Andy Landers, all the former players and athletes who came before us.

We know the expectation and the high standards of wearing the Lady G. We hold that really close to our heart.

Throughout the off-season we've been intentional in building just a culture that is rooted in accountability and work ethic. We've been doing that since the summer. Our main thing, I'll be honest, is our defensive principles. We love defense. It's almost in a way where you get off the bus and we're picking you up 94 feet already. We're trying to keep that passion on both ends of the floor. It's going to be hard to score versus us. We're going to be very fast paced and fun to watch.

We're proud to be here, proud to be ready to work. Athens has been great to us. We're excited to get ready to go work in the SEC. Go Dawgs.

Q. You obviously added Harmonie Ware from the transfer portal. What stands out about her? Why was she somebody you wanted to bring in?

AYLA GUZZARDO: We needed people to be able to put the ball in the hole, to be blunt and honest. Harm can do that. Harmonie has been working hard as extending her game. Her three-point shot has been magnificent this summer. She puts in almost 2,000 shots a week. Her work ethic on the floor is going to translate into games.

She's a great player for us, and we are excited to see what she can do for us with that Georgia on.

Q. You brought in 11 new players this off-season. What was the selling point when you went in the portal?

AYLA GUZZARDO: I'm going to be honest. It wasn't hard to convince them in a way. You bring 'em here on campus, our administration has done a great job at pouring into us. We want to talk about resources, they give us all the resources we need to be successful and compete at a high level.

You get them on campus, it's sold. Georgia has a great academic and athletic powerhouse of a university. I think once they get here, they start realizing how much passion and our culture that we're going to have established. It's that buy-in is immediate.

Q. You mentioned y'all love defense. Where did that mentality come from for you? What can the SEC expect that to look like?

AYLA GUZZARDO: We've been since we've been going for the past eight to nine years, our defense has been our identity. We're high octane, high-pressure defense. We want every single possession to be tough. You have to work to score against us.

Then those defensive principles help create us easy buckets on the offensive end. The SEC is going to be tough. We know that. We're not crazy. We've been watching it for years. We're excited to be involved in it.

We're going to be able to keep up.

Q. What are some new things that you like to bring to the program, maybe playing a special game in Atlanta or something, different marketing ideas?

AYLA GUZZARDO: I'll say I don't necessarily think it's new, but we're trying to play Georgia Tech every year. That Georgia rivalry runs deep in our blood. We're actually going to Georgia Tech this year. We'll be seeing them in Atlanta. Not too bad of a drive right there.

We're in the community. That's one thing that you're going to see about our Lady Bulldogs. We're not going to be just on the floor doing a lot of work. We're going to be in the community pouring into the people that pour into us.

Q. How do you go from 10 wins one year to the year you get there and you win 29? What was the secret to that?

AYLA GUZZARDO: A lot of people don't like it: transfer portal. It is what it is. We brought nine players with us from Southeastern to McNeese. I was very blessed to continue to have my foundation. I think that's what we're really trying to create right now, a foundation that lasts.

People asks me what does it take to be successful in the SEC this year: building a foundation that lasts. It starts with the buy-in and the culture. The standards are set.

Q. One of the players that is left over from last year, Vera Ojenuwa. How nice is it to have somebody who is in the program?

AYLA GUZZARDO: Yeah, Vera has been all throughout the SEC. She was at Arkansas, been here at Georgia with us. Brings a lot of leadership and SEC experience and size. With her 6'3", 6'4" is not always easy to come by, but she brings that size, that immediate impact down in the importance. Her athleticism is unreal.

She was someone that we had to fight and make sure we kept her here at Georgia.

Q. Obviously you touched on your experience in the Southland. In a competitive league like that, how do you feel like those experiences prepared you for your next challenge here?

AYLA GUZZARDO: People ask that a lot. But this is a different type of beast. We're playing very great competition in the Southland, very good competition. But we're going to see the best of the best every single night. This is why you want to be in this league. This is why when you grow up in the south, this is where you want to end up as a player, as a coach.

We're excited to be able to put forth that effort every single night and see the best of the best. Test us, challenge us. It's exciting. We're excited about it. But at the same time we're going to be prepared.

Q. When you were hired, Kim Mulkey had a lot of nice things to say about you. Can you talk about that connection.

AYLA GUZZARDO: Yeah, they gave me a little plug with my barbecue restaurant.

Kim has been I'll say a great mentor to me throughout the years. She's done a lot. She broke a lot of barriers for women's basketball, women's sports in our area where we grew up. Just watching her be able to compete and watching her coach was a real treat for me. I got to see the foundation she laid and build on my own.

Having her, what she said about me and our program, it means the world. I'm just ready to compete against her.

Q. Talk a little bit about your time at Southeast Louisiana.

AYLA GUZZARDO: Yeah, so when I got to Southeastern Louisiana, I was born and raised in Hammond. Coming back to Hammond was a real treat for me. My family's all there. Louisiana kid. If you ask me my favorite game, of course it's probably going to be LSU.

Time at Louisiana was critical. I was 28 when I got the job. Brand-new head coach, I was young. Didn't really know much. That's where we started building.

Took a program that won four games every year to championship seasons. It was consistent championship seasons. So we know how to turn around a program. We know how to keep a program successful and keep it relevant.

Q. What is the name of your restaurant? Where is it? How long have you owned it? How do you balance that with coaching?

AYLA GUZZARDO: Listen, now I'm not even just a coach, I am a business, I'm a CEO, I do contract negotiations. I do it all now.

Owning a restaurant, Hi-Ho Barbecue in Hammond, Louisiana, has been in my family through years. My grandfather owned it. My dad unfortunately passed away. So I got his portion. I'm a part owner, a silent owner. Don't ask for anything for free, you're probably not going to get it.

It's great because it gives me my backbone, my foundation, which is my family. They set me up for great success. I'm just trying to carry on that Guzzardo name.

Q. Dakota Howard is somebody that who followed you over from McNeese. What about her makes you think she's ready for the jump to the SEC? What have you seen from her that excites you the most this off-season?

AYLA GUZZARDO: I'll say go watch our last game versus Texas A&M in the WBIT. She's ready. This kid is elite. She's unreal. Watching her in practice right now, she's a go-getter. She knows how to score the ball. She's got great defensive instincts.

With her, I think her motor is probably her best attribute about her. But the kid is a sponge. She's very smart. Her IQ is unreal. But she's going to be exciting to watch this year.

Q. Is Guzzardo a popular last name in Georgia as it is in Louisiana?

AYLA GUZZARDO: It is not. It is not, no. The Italian roots kind of stop on that Louisiana border.

I did meet someone who has the last name Guzzardo probably right down the street from us. He's a soccer coach.

Q. You're not the only SEC coach from Hammond, are you?

AYLA GUZZARDO: I'm not. We have a few. Actually we need to get a few more. If there's anybody else out there that needs to coach in the SEC, c'mon, we need you.

Pete Golden, Kim Mulkey, my phenomenal A.D. Josh Brooks is also from Hammond. A lot of good products coming out.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you very much.

AYLA GUZZARDO: Thank you all. Go Dawgs.