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Tar Heel Tribune Podcast, Episode 2: Former #UNC & current pro star in Italy Alyssa Ustby joined us.
Jul 7, 2026
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0:00
there.
0:04
Hey, welcome back to the Tarhill Tribune
0:06
podcast alongside R. Albinham, the
0:08
publisher of the Tarhill Tribune. I'm
0:10
Brett Whitmire. Proud to have with us
0:12
our guest, Alyssa Usby. Alyssa is one of
0:14
the most decorated players in the
0:15
history of the women's basketball
0:16
program at the University of North
0:18
Carolina. Four times all ACC, twice
0:21
first team all ACC, and the owner of the
0:24
only triple double in women's history at
0:26
the University of North Carolina. Thanks
0:28
for joining us, Alyssa.
0:29
Hey guys, thanks for having me. Excited
0:31
to be here.
0:33
>> Yeah. Um I'm so happy that you were were
0:36
able to come on with us. I mean, I've
0:39
I've covered uh the women's program for
0:41
several years and you're the more
0:44
entertaining players. I was able to
0:46
cover just uh the the grit and the
0:50
determination, ability to mix it up
0:52
inside, somehow come out of traffic with
0:55
a rebound. It was just amazing. and uh
0:59
last season team could have used some of
1:00
those intangibles. So, I'm glad you're
1:03
here. Uh
1:05
how do how did you become that sort of
1:07
all-around player? I mean, you got to
1:09
have the ability, but I think it comes
1:11
with has to come with some mentality on
1:13
top of that.
1:14
>> Yeah, I think there's a healthy balance
1:16
of both. A little bit of mentality and a
1:19
little bit of skill. And to be able to
1:22
attain the skill of being a consistent
1:24
rebounder, you have to practice it. So
1:26
every single practice I show up, whether
1:29
it's a summer practice in season, I'm
1:32
giving 110% because I know that I'm
1:34
training a habit. And so those habits
1:37
are just displayed on game day. And
1:39
they're really impressive to the people
1:41
that see me on game day, but to my
1:43
teammates and to my coaches, they're
1:45
like, "Oh, this is what Alyssa always
1:46
does." And so I take pride in always
1:48
doing that because I know that's how you
1:50
form a habit. And to say the least, you
1:54
had an impressive season in Italy in
1:55
Sira. I'm not sure there are any other
1:58
players who won awards because it seemed
1:59
like you won them all. [laughter]
2:02
>> Player of the year, prospect of the
2:03
year, guard of the year, three all
2:05
league teams, scoring title. Uh tell me
2:08
about your season over there. Um and and
2:11
how much how much how much Italian did
2:13
you know before you went out there?
2:15
>> Yeah, so I played my first professional
2:18
basketball season overseas in Italy. I
2:20
played right outside of Rome in a town
2:23
called Rosettto. And Rosettto is a small
2:26
beach town. It has a really strong
2:27
women's basketball community. And I was
2:30
really excited to get out there. And
2:32
something that was interesting after
2:34
having a five-year college experience,
2:36
I'm going onto a team that's brand new,
2:38
a program that's new to that Siri A top
2:41
division, and playing for a coach and
2:44
teammates that I've never met before.
2:46
And so it was an opportunity for me to
2:48
reestablish myself in a new environment.
2:51
And I think I did a great job of taking
2:53
advantage of that opportunity because
2:54
when I got in there, I felt like I was
2:58
able to explore more areas of my game
3:01
that not necessarily my college game
3:03
limited, but because college we have we
3:06
recruit very specific pieces to fill
3:08
certain needs, we can kind of share the
3:10
effort that it takes to be a highle D1
3:13
basketball team. But overseas, every
3:15
year you're getting a brand new bunch of
3:17
girls and you're figuring out how the
3:19
pieces fit. And so I decided early on
3:21
that I was going to take on the role of
3:23
being a point guard, shooting the ball,
3:25
getting downhill, producing, uh, just
3:29
night in and night out, double doubles,
3:30
and getting in the 20s consistently
3:33
every single game. And so it was a great
3:35
opportunity for me to grow on the court
3:37
as well. I felt like I really expanded
3:39
my game as a player and that was
3:41
something that's so exciting as an
3:43
athlete in any sport like to explore
3:46
more of yourself and uh so yeah that was
3:48
a blast and we were projected to finish
3:51
last in the league and we ended up
3:52
finishing fourth and so we had just a
3:55
stellar season um and I'm super grateful
3:57
for that first year but as far as
3:58
Italian goes I didn't know a single word
4:01
of Italian but when I got there I had a
4:04
family that I became really close with
4:06
who made it their mission to help me
4:08
become fluent. I'm not fluent yet, but I
4:11
was studying for about seven to eight
4:13
consistent months when I was over there.
4:15
And then I study for about an hour a day
4:17
now just to stay up uh stay up with my
4:19
Italian as much as I can.
4:21
>> Well, let's get down to the important
4:23
stuff. I want I want to talk about the
4:24
important stuff. How was the food? Was
4:25
that Italian food amazing?
4:27
>> Oh my gosh, it's literally as amazing as
4:30
we've all as we've all heard over here
4:32
in America. Like just the quality of the
4:35
food is incredible, right? And obviously
4:38
the wine going with every meal is
4:40
fantastic. And so it was really cool to
4:42
explore my like culinary palette as
4:45
well.
4:46
>> Yeah. Did you have to kind of watch
4:48
yourself? I mean, you didn't want to
4:49
because you you're you're playing a very
4:50
intense sport and you have to you have
4:51
to be light on your feet and all that
4:53
stuff. Do you have to kind of watch
4:54
yourself like, well, I better back away
4:55
from dessert tonight. [laughter]
4:57
>> No, not necessarily. I think when you're
5:00
a professional athlete, as long as you
5:02
have a good balance, like I'm eating 80
5:04
to 90% of the time I'm eating really
5:06
healthy, high protein meals. So, I'm
5:08
definitely in some homemade tiramisu and
5:13
just a bunch of desserts. So, it was
5:15
incredible.
5:17
>> You used to cook on the road during your
5:19
college career.
5:20
>> Didn't you used to cook cook on the road
5:22
during your college career? There was
5:24
one time in my college career during
5:26
COVID when I like brought um some items
5:30
for me to cook in my hotel room. But in
5:32
college in general, I did cook a little
5:34
bit, but not not a ton.
5:38
>> What was the Alyssa Husby? What was the
5:39
Alysa USB signature dish in college?
5:44
>> Like coincidentally, it was a pasta.
5:47
>> There you go.
5:48
So, I think that was a little bit of
5:50
foreshadowing that I was going to go to
5:51
end up in Italy for my first pro season.
5:54
>> 100%.
5:55
>> Was there a welcome to Italy moment or
5:57
crazy story about living over there as
6:00
an American?
6:03
>> Um, I would say there's one culturally
6:06
and one basketball-wise.
6:08
I think just cultur culturally I was in
6:11
a really small town and it wasn't a
6:13
tourist town so there wasn't a lot of
6:14
English and so just like my first like
6:19
welcome to Italy moment was going into
6:20
the grocery store and not like
6:23
recognizing a single thing not knowing
6:25
what any brands of different products
6:27
are and just having to use Google
6:30
Translate for every single decision that
6:32
I was making in the grocery store. So
6:34
instead of a quick like 30 to 45 minutes
6:37
into the grocery store like I would in
6:39
America, it took me like an hour and a
6:41
half to just figure out where I was,
6:42
what I needed and what version what like
6:45
what's the Italian equivalent um to the
6:48
things that I want in America. And then
6:51
>> on the court I would say it would be
6:53
another language barrier piece is
6:55
hearing my coach yell things or like in
6:57
timeouts talking in Italian and then
6:59
just my eyes really big because I have
7:01
no idea what he's saying. and we have a
7:03
translator on our team that will run
7:05
over to me and quickly translate what's
7:07
going on. But sometimes in a in a 30
7:09
secondond timeout, you don't have enough
7:11
opportunity to discuss between
7:13
yourselves. And so there's a lot of
7:14
times where I was left clueless walking
7:16
back out onto the court.
7:18
>> Did you have other English- speakaking
7:20
teammates? I had there was one other
7:22
American on my team and then there were
7:24
just a few girls that could speak
7:26
English, but then majority of them could
7:28
not and they weren't studying it and it
7:31
just wasn't something that we're
7:32
interested in. And as an American, I'm
7:34
not going into Italy expecting everybody
7:36
to speak my native language.
7:38
>> And so there's a little bit of balance
7:40
there. I'm like, "Oh, this is
7:41
frustrating." But I also understand
7:43
because this isn't America. This isn't
7:44
my country or an English-sp speakaking
7:46
country.
7:47
>> Did you learn the Italian curse words?
7:49
Oh my gosh, those are the first words
7:51
that all the girls [laughter] were
7:53
trying to teach us. I was like, "Hi."
7:56
And it was so funny. They would like
7:58
they would come over and whisper like,
7:59
"Hey, say this word." Then they would
8:01
tap their other Italian teammate be
8:02
like, "Listen, listen, listen." And then
8:04
you'd say the word and they all start
8:05
laughing. So, I mean, those are some
8:07
really fun bonding moments. But yeah, I
8:10
definitely know a good few of those.
8:12
>> Well, you want to know when the coach is
8:14
emphatically cursing at you. You want to
8:16
know that, but I know that word. Okay,
8:17
I'm not doing something right there.
8:19
>> That is exactly right. I definitely
8:21
picked up on those pretty quick.
8:23
[laughter]
8:23
>> Did you ever get a technical for
8:25
something you said last season?
8:26
[clears throat]
8:28
>> I don't think so. I definitely was on
8:31
the receiving end of some technicals,
8:32
but [laughter]
8:35
but I was not the one that initiated
8:37
having a technical. So, yeah. And most
8:40
of the refs spoke only Italian, so they
8:42
weren't really understanding what I was
8:44
saying. So I would if I deserved a tech
8:47
they wouldn't have known.
8:49
>> Was the basketball was was the
8:51
basketball in Italy was it more physical
8:53
than what you're used to or is about the
8:54
same as you encountered in college?
8:57
>> I [snorts] would say it's just as
8:58
physical if not a little bit more. Um,
9:01
and I also think another big difference
9:03
is like every practice in Italy on my
9:06
Italian team, which this is pretty
9:08
consistent across the board in a lot of
9:09
different countries in Europe, is your
9:11
hour and a half practice to two hours a
9:13
day, we're playing five on five the
9:16
whole time where and full court and
9:18
where in college you're a little bit
9:20
you're breaking stuff down in drills,
9:21
you're playing half court just to
9:23
maintain your bodies. So the um the
9:27
Europe structure was a little bit
9:28
different. So, I felt like it was a
9:29
little more physical and the flow was a
9:32
lot better on both sides. So, it was
9:34
faster because there weren't a lot of
9:36
hiccups of like girls not understanding
9:38
where they're going or just like bad
9:40
turnovers out of bounds because
9:41
everybody's really comfortable playing
9:43
with each other.
9:44
>> Circle back to what you said about
9:45
playing point guard. I don't remember
9:46
you bringing the ball up very often uh
9:49
when you were at Carolina. I mean, I I
9:52
know that you're versatile. I know you
9:53
can kick a football. You can
9:56
participate. You participated in a bunch
9:58
of practices for different sports while
10:00
you're at Carolina, but point guard, I
10:03
mean, did that come easily?
10:06
>> Yeah. So, I mean, I took the ball up a
10:08
couple times in college going coast to
10:09
coast after getting a rebound and nobody
10:12
picks me up on defense. But, yeah, as
10:14
far as being a point guard goes, I was a
10:16
point guard probably all the way through
10:19
like most of my high school basketball
10:22
career. And when I was in when I was in
10:24
middle school, I was one of the shortest
10:25
girls on the team. And so that typically
10:27
deemed your position. So I have a lot of
10:30
point guard skills that were kind of
10:32
like deep inside me. And so I think that
10:34
was another one of the skill things that
10:36
I was mentioning that I was able to
10:37
explore is like really being able to
10:39
handle the ball under pressure and to
10:42
analyze what's going on on offense and
10:43
making game time decisions. And I think
10:45
that's one of my biggest growth areas
10:46
that I had this past year is being a
10:48
consistent and reliable ball handler
10:50
under pressure.
10:52
I um I was looking at some of the videos
10:54
on YouTube when we were doing research
10:55
for this and one of the things that's
10:57
really changed so much in college
10:58
athletics over the past few years of
11:00
course is the NIL stuff and I saw you
11:02
doing an interview about building a
11:04
brand using social media and all of that
11:06
stuff. Has that something that's come
11:08
easily to you or is that something
11:10
you've had to kind of work at and did
11:12
you take any marketing or business
11:13
classes at Carolina to help you out with
11:15
that stuff?
11:17
I didn't take as many classes that
11:20
related to the skills that that stuff
11:22
requires, but I think a lot of it was
11:25
just trial and error. Like I started
11:27
freshman year of college, I maybe had a
11:29
couple Instagram posts and I didn't know
11:31
anything else about social media, but
11:34
then I decid I gave myself a choice
11:36
mentally. I was like, "Okay, listen.
11:37
either you're going to start
11:39
consistently posting and sharing your
11:41
story online or like we're going to stop
11:44
thinking about this opportunity of how I
11:46
wish I could like be somebody who posts
11:48
a lot on YouTube and Instagram and Tik
11:50
Tok. And so I made a conscious decision
11:52
that this was going to be something I
11:54
was going to try to figure out. And I
11:56
think I learned a lot of valuable
11:58
lessons throughout the trial and error
12:00
process, but also I've been able to
12:01
connect with other athletes and um
12:04
influencers that have a lot of knowledge
12:07
as well. And so just starting and
12:09
getting myself over that hump really
12:12
like brought into my network to people
12:14
that I'm in a similar industry in now.
12:16
And so, but I've I know I've always had
12:18
a creative side to me and I didn't know
12:19
what that was, but after finding social
12:22
media and video making, content
12:24
creating, I feel like that's been a
12:26
really like unique niche that I've been
12:29
able to explore.
12:30
>> Let's go back go back to your freshman
12:32
class. I mean, it was just an amazing
12:36
class with Asia Kelly, Kennedy, Todd
12:37
Williams, Ana Fool, Ali Zaya, and you
12:41
and uh did you reflect on on what that
12:45
group did to turn the program around and
12:49
how odd was it that all the others
12:51
transferred at some point and you were
12:53
the only one who stayed five seasons?
12:55
>> Yeah. So, we Yeah, we had a great um
12:57
freshman class. like you said, there's
13:00
five of us and that's a big class coming
13:02
in to a new program and that's enough
13:05
people to change the culture and and
13:08
trajectory of a program. And I think
13:10
something unique about our group is that
13:11
we all got along. Um we were friends off
13:14
the court and that was that made our job
13:17
easier on the court. Um, I do remember
13:19
when I agreed to come back for my fifth
13:22
year, one of the coaches asked me, I was
13:24
like, "Alyssa, how does it feel to be
13:27
the only one left of your class?" I was
13:29
like, I honestly like I I don't know.
13:32
It's like it's a little overwhelming
13:33
because these are people that I imagine
13:35
like spending the rest of my life with
13:37
and have them always like right by my
13:39
side, but that's just like a part of
13:42
life. And you move on. every different
13:44
phase you're going to have different
13:45
people that are really close to you in
13:46
proximity and those are going to be some
13:48
of your closest friends. I'm but I'm
13:49
fortunate now that I'm still close with
13:51
a few of the girls and so uh we talk
13:53
about our college career all the time
13:55
now. I'm saying it like it's 10 years
13:57
ago but it's like two or three [snorts]
13:58
years ago. But um yeah, we were just at
14:01
a like I just got really lucky that I
14:03
was with a bunch of great girls and
14:05
Courtney Bangghart was willing to take a
14:06
chance on me and put me on her fifth
14:08
spot because I know I wasn't ranked in
14:10
the ESPN top 100 coming in and so I was
14:13
a little bit of an underdog grab and she
14:16
made sure to me she made sure to tell me
14:18
that I wasn't going to play right away
14:20
and that I would have to earn some
14:22
things. But then I ended up starting by
14:24
Christmas my freshman year. So that was
14:27
like it was just more of an opportunity
14:28
than I could have ever asked for.
14:30
>> Dubtail
14:32
dubtailing on that, I mean uh you and uh
14:35
KTW I guess were the only players in
14:37
that class who weren't in the top 100,
14:40
but it seems like at various stages of
14:43
your career, you've been underestimated
14:45
and that has continued with the WNBA
14:48
press if I can say so. And uh then when
14:52
you went out drafted, you couldn't make
14:54
the Sparks roster and you headed to
14:56
Italy. Uh what what is it like mentally?
15:00
Like obviously as you mentioned,
15:02
Courtney said you're going to have to
15:04
earn your playing time. You proved
15:05
yourself quickly. It seems like if a
15:08
WNBA team gave you a chance, you would
15:10
prove yourself. I mean, how do you
15:12
approach these various stages when you
15:14
have been underestimated?
15:17
>> Yeah, I mean I I agree. I think every
15:21
[snorts] opportunity that I've been
15:23
given so far in my career, um, even if
15:25
it's just a sliver of an opportunity,
15:27
I've taken it and I've run with it and
15:29
I've really shown how I can add value to
15:31
a team. And I'm still just eagerly
15:34
waiting for my opportunity in the WNBA
15:36
to do that. And I know that will come
15:38
eventually and I'm going to trust the
15:39
process because I want to my goal is to
15:43
be in the WNBA, but I also want to have
15:45
a long and healthy basketball career.
15:47
And so I'm willing to do what it takes.
15:50
Whether that means to go overseas for
15:51
eight months away from my family and
15:53
work on different areas of my game to
15:55
get better and eventually get back here
15:56
so I can stay home and play in front of
15:58
fan friends and family. Like that's
16:00
something that I'm willing to sign on
16:01
for. And I know that I'm in a good space
16:05
mentally and I have a lot of people in
16:07
my support system that are pushing me in
16:09
the right direction as well.
16:12
>> I know that you follow the WNBA. We all
16:14
do and it's been a very interesting
16:15
season. The big controversy of course
16:17
lately has been Caitlyn Clark and how
16:19
she's treated and is she treated
16:21
differently than other players as far as
16:22
far as hard fouls. Was quite a
16:24
controversy about that. Do you have a
16:26
particular take about that?
16:28
>> I don't necessarily. I know I'm a big
16:31
fan of the WNBA and I support all the
16:34
girls that are playing in there and I
16:36
have a lot of close friends that play
16:37
there as well and so I I'm not as much
16:41
involved or up to date on like things
16:44
that go on like that. Um but I [snorts]
16:47
support the WNBA and their mission of
16:49
trying to expand the game for more women
16:51
to have opportunity back here in the
16:52
States. Um, but I'm still like I'm still
16:55
trying to gain knowledge on some of
16:56
these situations as well. And I know
16:58
there's multiple sides to stories and
17:01
sometimes that's a little overwhelming
17:02
for me to try to follow because I'm not
17:05
directly connected to the situation. I'm
17:06
not inside those locker rooms, not at
17:09
the games. And so I feel a little too
17:10
disconnected to fully have an opinion.
17:14
But I mean, I wish like the best for all
17:16
those girls because I want the W to keep
17:18
growing and to keep inspiring the next
17:19
generation of women.
17:21
Who's your favorite WNBA player to
17:23
watch?
17:24
>> I would say my favorite player is Maddie
17:26
Seagrist. She plays for the Dallas and
17:29
she played at Villanova.
17:31
>> So her and I played on the Team USA 3v3
17:36
U23 team together and so it's been super
17:40
cool to watch her journey from like
17:42
closer view. So
17:44
>> yeah. What what uh what one or two
17:47
Carolina games stand out for you? I
17:49
mean, in my mind, you obviously would
17:51
mention the triple double and the the
17:54
big game you had against Michigan State
17:55
in the 2024 [clears throat] tournament,
17:57
I believe it was. That's 17 rebounds.
18:00
And then your final home game in
18:03
Carmichael, you had 22 against West
18:05
Virginia. There there are lots of
18:07
memorable moments. I mean, is is there
18:09
another game that might be even more
18:11
memorable that we wouldn't think of? Um,
18:15
well, I think I agree with the West
18:17
Virginia game, but for a different
18:19
reason is being able to jump up on the
18:21
scoreboard and celebrate. It was just
18:25
something I've always wanted to do. And
18:27
as soon as the game was over, I like
18:29
tapped our assistant coach. I was like,
18:30
"Hey, can I do it? Can I do it?" She's
18:32
like, "Oh my gosh, yes." And so I jumped
18:34
up on there and it was just like it was
18:36
less of a thing for me to be seen up on
18:40
the score table as much as I wanted to
18:42
like excite our crowd and like just kind
18:46
of be a part of the atmosphere even more
18:48
because like getting to host in
18:50
Carmichael is such a special experience.
18:52
like we work so hard for these
18:54
opportunities so we can have all of our
18:56
friends and family and Carolina
18:57
community supporters have some really
18:59
great basketball March Madness
19:01
basketball in their backyard. So that's
19:04
that was just a super cool opportunity
19:06
that I felt like I could share and um
19:09
just bring a lot of joy because nobody
19:11
was expecting that. So like oh my gosh I
19:13
cannot believe she did that. So that was
19:16
definitely a blast. And then
19:18
some other games, I'm not sure. All the
19:20
ones that you mentioned are definitely
19:22
highlights for me. Um, in the triple
19:24
double, I always have to shout out Maria
19:26
Gawkden. I think she was absolutely on
19:28
fire in the low post, scoring without
19:30
any dribbles. So, I think I had maybe
19:32
seven assists to her to in order to get
19:34
my triple double. So, she was very
19:37
crucial in me achieving that
19:39
accomplishment. So, I couldn't have done
19:40
it without her and the rest of my
19:42
teammates. I
19:43
>> think we lost Brit, but no.
19:45
>> Yeah. What what were the last few
19:48
minutes like when when you were you knew
19:51
you were close to that triple double? Uh
19:54
I mean were you were your teammates and
19:56
coaches kind of talking it up? Did you
19:59
you were aware that you were that close?
20:01
>> So the first moment that I was aware
20:04
that I could even be anywhere close was
20:07
at halftime the one of the assistant
20:09
coaches came up to me and said you have
20:12
nine assists. I was like, "Wait, really?
20:15
Nine?" And I just or maybe it was eight
20:18
at halftime. Nine or eight. And I knew
20:21
that if I'm averaging around a double
20:23
double with points and rebounds is if I
20:25
have these assists, then I could be
20:26
close to a triple double. And in the
20:29
third quarter, I remember I was one one
20:31
or two points away. Um, and I heard from
20:35
a bunch of fans in the stands yelling at
20:37
me that I needed one more point. And
20:39
because I throw in the because I inbound
20:41
the ball after made baskets, I'm usually
20:44
standing on the baseline waiting for the
20:46
referee to hand me the ball. So the
20:48
people that are sitting along uh the
20:50
baseline and the seats on the floor, all
20:53
those people were telling me that I was
20:56
just one point away. And so that was
20:58
super exciting. So when I was on the
20:59
free throw line, I was like, "Oh no, I'm
21:00
gonna have to earn it right here." So
21:03
[laughter]
21:04
a great memory for sure.
21:06
>> That's pretty cool.
21:08
>> I am back. Uh, was when you were in
21:09
Italy, was there a specific comfort food
21:11
or item that you couldn't get that maybe
21:12
your parents shipped to you?
21:15
>> Let's see. I had them send me a lot of
21:18
different protein bars.
21:20
>> Ah, nice.
21:21
>> That might be an odd thing, but um, a
21:25
lot of those. And then I ordered a lot
21:26
of stuff on Amazon. And so, um, I was
21:30
able to kind of like get some familiar
21:32
items there. But otherwise, comfort
21:34
foods, not necessarily. I think my mom
21:37
Oh, my mom did bake me a lot of our
21:39
Christmas like yearly treats that we
21:42
have. And so that was super special for
21:44
me because I have these treats every
21:46
single year around the holidays. And so
21:48
the fact that she was able to package
21:49
them all up and bring them over when she
21:51
came to visit was amazing.
21:53
>> That's awesome.
21:55
>> Tell me about your dad. I mean, I when
21:57
you came to Carolina, he bought a house
22:00
in uh Chapel Hill and I think he assumed
22:04
that when your career was done, he'd
22:06
sell the house, but he's still there. I
22:09
think you have a brother in the area.
22:12
Are are you all just becoming uh North
22:15
Carolina residents for life or what?
22:18
>> Definitely the opportunity is there. Um,
22:21
I mean, my whole family has enjoyed my
22:24
experience here at Carolina and have
22:26
grown a community out here. And so, we
22:28
definitely want to stay connected with
22:30
our friends in the Carolina community.
22:33
And so, I could see my dad wanting to
22:35
keep that location, especially because I
22:38
don't know too much about the housing
22:40
market, but he purchased this home in
22:42
2020 and uh he's like is going to make a
22:45
good return on his investment whenever
22:47
he does decide to sell it. But we're
22:49
definitely still going to be n like
22:52
residents in Minnesota, but we'll kind
22:54
of see what the future holds um based on
22:56
what he thinks.
22:58
>> And I see you've been around the program
23:00
here this summer and uh met a lot of the
23:04
newcomers. Uh what are your impressions
23:06
of some of the newcomers uh for the
23:09
program?
23:10
>> Yeah, we have a lot of great newcomers.
23:12
Um obviously some that have stood out to
23:15
me is Kate Hartbring. she's an
23:18
incredible five-star freshman. Um, and
23:21
then a Cho, she's a transfer, and Chloe,
23:25
another transfer. I just think, and
23:27
Gabby White is somebody that I'm super
23:29
super excited about. So, they have a lot
23:32
of really strengthening pieces. Um, and
23:35
I've been able to be around him while
23:37
I've been like in and out of the coach's
23:39
offices and just working camps and
23:42
supporting the girls in any way I can.
23:44
And that's an exciting group to watch
23:45
practice. like they're super competitive
23:48
and they have a lot of fun. They're
23:49
laughing a lot and those are all good
23:51
signs of a healthy program and a healthy
23:52
culture and so it was really exciting
23:54
for me to just watch them practice. So I
23:56
can't wait to see what they put together
23:57
for game day.
23:58
>> How was it dealing with all the changes?
24:00
I mean there were a couple of players I
24:03
won't mention any names. A lot of fans,
24:05
one in particular, uh they were really
24:08
surprised they transferred and you know,
24:10
fans really get to love players and and
24:14
then they'll go on and move on to
24:16
another program. Is that just just the
24:18
way it is these days?
24:21
>> It kind of is the way it is, but I do
24:24
understand where some fans are coming
24:26
from and without me being in the
24:30
experience, I would have a hard time
24:31
understanding it, too. Um, but I do
24:34
think that at the end of the day, the
24:36
system that is set up that's trying to
24:38
benefit as many people as possible. Um,
24:41
it's just it's there's not like every
24:43
everybody can't win. And that's the hard
24:45
part because as a player, you want to go
24:48
you want to be somewhere that you feel
24:50
like you're growing, that you're
24:52
supported by your coaches and your
24:54
teammates and the community. And even if
24:56
all those things are true, you still
24:58
might have like an itch or a reason that
25:02
you want to go somewhere else. And it's
25:03
not because the place you weren't you
25:05
were at wasn't great. It's because you
25:07
think that there could be more
25:08
opportunity elsewhere. And a lot of
25:10
girls like related like related to
25:13
Carolina are not because I have a lot of
25:14
other friends that are in the college
25:16
scene all across the country. like it's
25:19
a hard decision to make when you're a
25:21
19, 20-year-old girl and you're trying
25:24
to navigate what do I want to do
25:25
academically. Does that school like
25:27
offer that? And so there's so many
25:28
factors that go into it. And so, but at
25:31
the same time, I understand the
25:32
perspective from a fan because you want
25:34
to be connected to your team. You want
25:36
to watch your favorite player grow year
25:38
after year and you're excited for them
25:40
to come back and see what they can do
25:41
with new added pieces. Um, but I think
25:44
at the end it's it's kind of how the
25:47
structure is set up and everybody is
25:49
just trying to make the best of what the
25:52
opportunities are presenting.
25:54
>> Listen, we certainly do appreciate that.
25:56
>> One more I want to ask you. So, you're
25:59
going back to the same team in Italy uh
26:02
next season?
26:03
>> Not the same team. I'm going to play for
26:05
a team that's located in Venice, Italy.
26:08
So, I'll be
26:09
>> Oh, wow.
26:09
>> Northern Italy. And this team is a Euro
26:12
League team. And so just for anybody who
26:14
doesn't know what Euro League is, Euro
26:16
League is like the top classification of
26:19
European where at the end of the season,
26:21
well throughout the season you not only
26:23
play your country's conference games,
26:26
but you also play other Euro League
26:28
teams. That could be anybody else all
26:30
throughout Europe. So I'll be traveling
26:32
to multiple different countries to play
26:35
in this league. And then at the end of
26:37
the season, we'll have our Italian
26:39
conference championships and then we'll
26:41
also have Euro League championships. And
26:43
so it'll be twice as many game about
26:45
twice as many games as I played last
26:47
year. So yeah, it's an exciting
26:49
experience and definitely a big jump up
26:52
in competition, too.
26:54
>> It sounds really exciting. We appreciate
26:56
you spending some time with us. Why
26:57
don't you give out your socials so
26:58
people can keep up with you, interact
26:59
with you?
27:00
>> Yeah. So, my Instagram is Alyssa USB. A
27:03
l y ssa u s tb y. And then I'm also for
27:07
any girls that are listening or families
27:09
or parents, I'm running a youth girls
27:12
camp in North Carolina August 1st and it
27:17
is being held in Durham. This will be my
27:18
fifth annual youth girls basketball
27:21
camp. So, I'm working with girls from
27:23
third to third to 11th grade. and I
27:26
bring a bunch of current Tarheel
27:28
players, former players, and I have a
27:30
bunch of girls flying in from all over
27:32
to come help out with the camp and just
27:34
give a great experience. So, if
27:35
anybody's interested, you can look me up
27:37
on Instagram and all the registration
27:39
links are on there.
27:41
>> Sounds great. And good luck with the
27:42
camp. Good luck with everything in your
27:44
future. Again, thanks for joining us and
27:46
we appreciate you spending some time
27:47
with us, Alyssa Usby. And, uh, until
27:49
next time, we'll see you on the Tarhill
27:51
Tribune podcast. You can keep up with
27:52
everything Carolina.com.
27:55
All right. Thanks, Alissa.
27:56
>> Thanks, guys.
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