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Reniya Kelly and Alyssa Ustby dressing room interviews after first-round win over Oregon St. #UNC
Mar 22, 2025
Reniya Kelly and Alyssa Ustby dressing room interviews after first-round win over Oregon St. #UNC
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0:00
what what turned things around in the
0:01
third quarter it seemed like the Press
0:03
really changed things around and what
0:05
what were the struggles in the second
0:07
quarter um well first obviously you saw
0:11
the Press yeah and also Lexi got hot um
0:15
so I think offensively for the third
0:16
quarter we were very aggressive and we
0:18
were pushing Tempo I think the second
0:20
quarter we were just we weren't playing
0:23
our game that's the easiest way I can
0:25
explain it we weren't really pushing but
0:26
we were playing their game their speed
0:28
so I think that was really for the most
0:30
part we just weren't being ourselves the
0:32
whole first half was it was it Rus
0:35
something said I mean you can say that
0:37
but that's no excuse so I think we
0:38
practice enough but I just maybe it was
0:42
nervous I don't know I don't know but we
0:44
were just not ourselves the first but it
0:46
sound like uh coach bangart was ready to
0:49
unleash the press in the second half is
0:52
that what the message her message to you
0:54
half time um not really we don't really
0:57
talk about defense we mainly talked
0:59
about just getting a ball in my hands
1:01
quickly so no we don't really talk about
1:04
the first was there concern at halftime
1:06
when we Le by two no we no there was
1:09
really no concern we're never concerned
1:11
I don't think no one is like worried
1:12
about us losing um so we just knew we
1:15
need to get everything together the
1:16
second half so no it was definitely no
1:18
concern for us yeah thank you yeah it's
1:21
like of like guard shooting a guard
1:23
shoot and like it's literally just post
1:25
rebound and finish and so it's very game
1:27
like simulated we'll do that out of like
1:29
running our off offense um and so and
1:32
then we also have like some other
1:33
rebounding drills that we do Maria's
1:35
definitely helped me become a better
1:36
rebounder and India because they also
1:39
crash for rebounds really hard and so
1:42
that's kind of like challenged me to
1:43
step up a little bit especially in
1:45
practice when we go against each other
1:46
all the time they're kind of priming me
1:47
for this moment I know you talked about
1:48
your brothers before have they
1:50
contributed any of your toughness
1:51
growing up or was that like something
1:52
you would battle in the driveway with
1:54
them rebounding stuff like that yeah my
1:56
brothers have contributed a ton to my
1:57
toughness they just like they didn't
1:59
really care if I Tri or fell or like got
2:01
like beat up a little bit and so I
2:03
definitely credit that like early on
2:05
kind of set like set the path of
2:07
becoming a athlete that like embodies
2:11
grit and perseverance and just toughness
2:13
all around so yeah they get some credit
2:16
too how how great was it to have that
2:19
home game again after missing senior day
2:21
and and then to break the rec no I was
2:25
heartbroken when I got injured um most
2:28
importantly because I couldn't on the
2:30
court with my team and my role kind of
2:32
adjusted a little bit and especially to
2:33
miss my senior night um that was really
2:36
tough being like a kid that stayed her
2:38
whole career here and like looking
2:40
forward to a senior day where I could uh
2:42
like celebrate with my fellow seniors
2:44
and get a win but um yeah I was really
2:46
heartbroken and um but we had a ton of
2:49
girls that stepped up which is what team
2:51
basketball's about and that's how we
2:52
play and we were able to secure a
2:54
hosting spot cuz that's kind of what was
2:56
the worry if we were going to be able to
2:58
secure that spot um but we never doubt
3:00
it ourselves and we got that done and
3:02
then getting the record is just kind of
3:03
a carry on
3:05
top and just I guess a quick clarifying
3:07
question you were out it was your left
3:09
knee is that correct is are you feeling
3:11
better there yeah a ton better yeah I
3:13
had surgery I don't remember what day
3:14
but it was like 14 days till I got
3:16
cleared and so my uh Sports Performance
3:20
staff are calling it a a medical uh
3:22
Miracle because I came back really fast
3:25
and I was feeling good and they trusted
3:27
me to let me off the rains uh to go back
3:29
and play and I just trusted my body and
3:31
trusted the work that I put in during my
3:33
recovery sure and what was it
3:35
specifically it was a medial medial
3:38
miniscus and yeah so typically that's
3:40
like four to six weeks recovery it was a
3:43
strain uh it was a tear so I had surgery
3:46
um I pretty soon after right no
3:48
literally the day after yeah so shout
3:52
shout out our our my surgeon who put me
3:55
on his schedule lit literally the next
3:57
day so when it happened did you feel or
4:00
anything or yeah I knew exactly what it
4:01
was cuz I had the same injury on my
4:03
right leg 2 years ago and so I was very
4:06
familiar with like how things felt and
4:07
my knee was really weak all season long
4:09
so like I always had a knee pad and like
4:11
uh like a compression sleeve On It All
4:13
season cuz I like it kind of felt like a
4:15
like a inevitable thing that was about
4:17
to happen and I just didn't know when
4:18
and then as soon as I like Twisted on it
4:20
and the NC State came I was like yep
4:22
that was it and my and my knee like my
4:24
knee was just like stuck like usually if
4:26
like you have like tweak a muscle or a
4:29
bone or whatever you kind of walk it off
4:31
but I knew I couldn't walk that one off
4:33
I scoured the first few couple minutes
4:36
of the State game and didn't see
4:37
anything was it really non- contct um it
4:41
it was non- contct but I had all my
4:43
weight on one leg I was saving
4:44
ironically a rebound a rebound from out
4:46
of bounds and I twisted on it and it was
4:49
just like it was literally just like the
4:50
perfect movement that like officially
4:52
tore it but my Manus was already pretty
4:54
torn it was just like it just finished
4:56
it through when you when you tore the
4:58
first time how long did it take you to
4:59
come back four weeks okay and so that
5:01
was yeah that was that four that end of
5:04
the four weeks I didn't have a practice
5:06
before our first game of the season I
5:07
don't remember what so that would have
5:08
been I don't know which year it was but
5:10
so I played the first game of our season
5:12
after like not practicing for four weeks
5:15
when you came back you what does it feel
5:17
like was it soreness when you first
5:18
played or what like um it's just really
5:20
weak like everything feels weak so like
5:22
doing certain so I I've had to be like
5:24
pretty strategical about like how I move
5:27
but like the left side I had a lot of
5:28
experience with my first my first go
5:30
around so I knew what I needed to do to
5:32
get the strength back and now I feel
5:34
much better sopr me appreciate it thank
5:37
you so much l congratulations
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