What Adia Barnes And Players Had To Say About NCAA Tourney Opener

TUCSON, AZ — Adia Barnes has the third-seeded Arizona Wildcats in a place that the program hasn't been since 2005.

Barnes and company are in the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament, which is being held in a bubble setup in San Antonio this season.

The player of the year for the former PAC-10 addressed what it's like to lead her alma mater into the Big Dance, as well as how the team handled this year's bubble setup and more in a call with the media Friday afternoon.

Barnes and veteran starters such as guard Aari McDonald and forwards Sam Thomas and Cate Reese addressed a wide range of subjects Friday ahead of the Wildcats' first-round showdown with 14th-seed Stony Brook on Monday.

Below is an edited transcript covering some of the topics that Barnes, McDonald, Reese, Thomas and junior Bendu Yeaney discussed in their Friday chat.

Adia Barnes

On her first few days in the NCAA Tournament bubble

"It's been really special, because I've been here as an assistant coach with Washington and as a player. It's really different in the non-COVID years. And for players that haven't been here, I'm trying to get them to visualize what it's in a normal year with thousands of people walking around and all the festivities and all the excitement. The whole city's kind of shut down for the tournament. So I'm sad that the players now can't experience that. But for us, there hasn't been a drastic change. We've kind of been dealing with this the entire year. We've been on the road and have been on a lockdown, so it's not that different. Especially for us in the PAC-12. So we're just really excited to be here and to be playing."

On steps she and her staff took to keep players engaged inside the bubble

"The days have been kind of broken up, and it's gone by kind of fast. So I know that because it's an exciting time, and it doesn't feel the same as a typical NCAA tournament. So I just try to be intentional about, 'Let's do some fun things.' So we played Heads Up, where you have to ask questions and act it out, like a charades-type thing. Just anything to try to make it fun. Just trying to do what we can. Last night was a lot better becuase we were able to eat together in the conference room. So that felt like something really special because the previous nights, we haven't been able to do that.

"But we're fine. We're enjoying the moment. We're loving being here, loving playing. We're all safe. So I have no complaints. I know there's a lot of of focus on the disparity, and that's fair. But for us in the moment, we're focused on Stony Brook, and we're happy to be playing. We're happy that no one's tested positive. We're ready to play.

"So all the other stuff, it's all kind of noise. We're focused on what we need to do."

On how her team is balancing the excitement ahead of Arizona's first tournament game since 2005

"That's going to be the challenge for us because last year we didn't get this experience. So last year if we would have gotten this experience, we would know what to expect. And I had a talk with some of our players during our testing where I said that we're in a neutral place.

"So usually the advantage of being the higher seed is that you get to host the games at your place. So we'd have 15,000 fans. But here, it's neutral. It's a place that none of us have played in and have no idea what to expect.

"So we don't really have an advantage. So I think you're going to see a lot of different outcomes than what are expected.

"So there is going to be a bit of nervousness. But nervousness is good for basketball. Scared is bad. And we don't have any players that are scared. We have a lot that are nervous, and they get nervous. I think our trainer sometimes calls us the 'Pepto Team' because a lot of us get nervous stomachs.

"But I think there's an excitement. Everybody wants to be here; that's what they've worked for. And I see it in their eyes. It's kind of getting more real as the days go on, so I think the players are just really excited."

On the social media posts showing the disparities between men's and women's tournament bubbles

"I've been a female athlete my whole life. So for me it started with childhood. There was no girls team when I was 10 years old. So for me, it's always been like that. Now, is it better now that I have a voice? I have followers, so I tweet about it, and we have more recognition.

"But it's been going on forever. I had no girls teams, so I played on the boys team. There were no girls allowed on the boys teams, so I had to get approval to play on the boys team. So it goes on and on and on. We've never had similar facilities. We've never had similar treatment overall through the history of us playing.

"So, yes, every woman my age has dealt with this our whole career."

Senior Guard Aari McDonald

On how it feels to be in the tournament

"It's a humbling experience right now. I'm happy and just blessed to be here, and I'm pretty sure my teammates could say the same. This is what we waited for a year later, and we're finally here. I'm excited to be here and to just play, honestly."

Junior Forward Cate Reese

On how the team feels right now

"I think it's exciting, and like Aari [McDonald] said, this has been two years in the making. We were supposed to go last year, and unfortunately, everything got cut short. But we're here now, and this is Aari's last year, Trinity's last year, Sam's last year.

"So I think it's exciting to finish off the season and finally get our answer of how the NCAA Tournament is and how we're going to be able to compete at a higher level. So I think we're really excited, and we're ready to get that first game going. I mean, I feel like I've been here for a month already."

Senior Forward Sam Thomas

On differences between men's and women's bubbles

"You can’t deny that there’s a difference. If people actually want to support us and make a difference, they need to actually watch the games and talk about anything positive about women's basketball, because at the end of the day, that’s what’s actually going to make a difference."