THE MODERATOR: We are now joined by the head coach of the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Amy Williams. We'll have an opening statement from Amy and then questions from the room.
AMY WILLIAMS: Just incredibly excited for this Nebraska team to be back dancing and to have opportunity. I think this is a group that feels like we have not really maxed out yet, so to have another opportunity to do that on this stage in the NCAA Tournament just feels like kind of new life for this group.
We've had a great week just trying to keep getting better and crescendo to be playing our best basketball here tomorrow.
THE MODERATOR: Questions.
Q. Amy, I am told there's a picture of you in this building as a freshman.
AMY WILLIAMS: Yes.
Q. Now you get to coach in the NCAA Tournament here with your daughter. How special is that? What kind of memories do you have of when you came here the first time?
AMY WILLIAMS: Yeah, there's no sports information director like Jeff Griesch. Of course, he's going to produce from my freshman year, with the bangs and everything, a photo from my freshman year of college. We got to play in a tournament here, and I thought I was living out a dream.
The number of times that I had watched basketball games with my dad sitting in Spearfish, South Dakota, watching games on TV in Cameron Indoor Stadium and then to be playing here, I was just enamored as an athlete.
Now to be back here and coaching this particular team and also watching my own daughter have the opportunity to be able to play on this stage is pretty cool. It's surreal. It's just special.
Q. I was looking at some of you guys' numbers and noticed that Britt is having a 50-40-90 season. What has made her so efficient shooting the ball at all three of those spots this year?
AMY WILLIAMS: Well, Britt is a worker, so that's part of it. You know, she just puts in the work. She's very diligent about knowing and understanding, okay, where are my shots coming from and then how can I practice those shots and be really good at them.
But I think the biggest thing is that she's just done a great job of embracing kind of in year two our system and how if I rebound down and can get involved with our defensive rebounding, how that allows me to push with pace and create a little higher percentage shots for myself.
She's a student of the game. She really watches and observes and learns, but she's just a worker. Because of that, obviously she's very skilled to be that efficient. There are times where -- she's just such an unselfish player. She makes everybody else better.
There's times where maybe I'd say, Hey, we'll deal with a little less efficiency if you would hunt your shot a little bit more. But honestly, the way she just involves everybody in our offense, it's just been special, and it's allowed us to have the success that we have had.
Q. Callin Hake is a senior. I know she holds a special place in your heart. Four years with her. How important was it for you to hear Nebraska's name called on the Selection Special, particularly so Callin could come back to the NCAA Tournament to wrap up her career?
AMY WILLIAMS: Yeah, well, Callin Hake has meant a lot to this program. It's pretty well-documented the type of young lady she is. Not just competitor, but obviously just being the president of our SAAC and representing the Big Ten Conference in that capacity. She's just such an incredible mentor.
The loyalty that she's shown, staying in the program for four years, really being committed, growing from her freshman year through her senior year, and now to be playing in another NCAA Tournament, just really just so excited for her and the rest of the players on this team to have the opportunity.
Q. I assume that when you watch Richmond a little bit, Maggie Doogan kind of jumps to the top of the scouting report. What are you going to have to key in on with her in order to kind of contain her tomorrow?
AMY WILLIAMS: Yeah. Well, I've watched a lot of film on Maggie, because I happen to serve on the Katrina McClain Award committee. So obviously she's been on the top of my list with that just being somebody that's really one of the best forwards in our game.
So I have a lot of respect for what she's done throughout her career, but really watching her have just a special senior season. She's that key player that just whenever they need a bucket, they can put the ball in her hands. She can score at all the levels.
I mean, to do what she's done from behind the arc, but still to be able to be so versatile with pro post moves and off the dribble and just crafty, smart, high IQ, the way she directs her whole team on the defensive side of the ball, she's just a really special young lady. We're excited to have the opportunity to go up against her even though we know what a tall task that's going to be.
Q. Your players earlier said that maybe Creighton was as close to a team that resembled the style of play that Richmond has. They play five-out. You've played a very tough schedule this year. The Big Ten pretty much you've said prepared you for about anything. Is there any team you've played this season that reminds you very much of what Richmond is going to do against you?
AMY WILLIAMS: Well, I don't know that we've played anybody that's been as effective at utilizing the 3-point shot the way that Richmond has. I do think the girls were probably accurate in Creighton runs some similar actions where it's, okay, staggered screen, flare screen, some of that five-out motion that puts their five players and their four players out in really good positions to get open looks from the 3-point line.
I think they get such great 3-point attempts because of the paint touches that they get from Sweeney, and their guards can get in the paint and collapse and create. They have forwards. Everybody is just so versatile on their roster.
So I think that that is similar to what we see when we play Creighton every single year with their ability to play out and really have everybody on their team such threats from behind the arc. That's something that we haven't seen a ton in the Big Ten Conference, even though there are a lot of teams that have great shooters. Just to have it up and down the roster the way Richmond does is a unique challenge.
Q. The First Four is a relatively new thing for the Women's NCAA Tournament. We've had it for a couple of years now, but this is also the second year we've had units. I imagine playing in a First Four game is pretty attractive because you're, like, you know, that's a game we are the same seed line, and we can earn some money. Am I right in that line of thinking when you kind of get this opportunity?
AMY WILLIAMS: Yeah. I mean, obviously we just want to hear our name called. We want to have the opportunity to be dancing with the best teams in the country, and we feel like that's where our program belongs.
But obviously we want to represent the Big Ten and this conference in the best way we can. I mean, obviously the unit distribution is a huge positive step forward for women's basketball, and anything we can be doing to do our part to help represent the Big Ten Conference and return revenue to our league for all the support that we get there, we want to do that.
When I just think about the individual young women on this roster, for them to have the opportunity to be playing in the NCAA Tournament and to have an opportunity to really peak out or max out in March, that's what I'm the most excited for.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports