The Observer: The team finished the season with a 17-15 record, 6-8 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. You also lost 4 of the last 5 games, all conference play, before playing in the ACC tournament. Do you attribute that to a really tough schedule at the end of the season or was the team not playing at its best?

Ayla Brown: I think our whole schedule is difficult given the conference that we’re in so it didn’t really have anything to do with the tough games being at the end of the season. The problem with the ACC is that every team is good so you have to kind of play at your best all the time and it just didn’t happen for us in the last 4 or 5 games of the season.

O: How do you feel about the team’s record in your final season?

AB: I don’t think anyone is satisfied with our record. It was great that we beat a lot of ranked teams this year, but on the flip side of that, we lost to the teams we shouldn’t have lost to, and those are games we can’t get back.

O: You played in all 32 games this season and started in 11 games. You shot 37% from the field and 74% from the free throw line, averaging 5.8 points a game. Compared to last season where you played in 35 games, started 30, shot 40% from the field, 63% from the line, and averaged 6.5 points a game, do you think that you improved as a player in any way from last season?

AB: I think throughout the past four years, my game has been pretty consistent. Of course I wanted to have the standout and breakout senior year, but that didn’t happen just given the situation. I went back to playing post, after the previous two years where I had been playing guard. Things were working against me a little bit, but I tried to make the best of the situation. For my free throw percentage, I was drawing fouls more down low, as opposed to when I was playing guard, where you’re only fouled if you drive to the hoop, so I had the opportunity to shoot more.

O: Overall, how do you feel about the way you played in your final season at Boston College?

AB: I wish it was better. I wish it had ended on more of a high note. I feel like I didn’t have a standout senior game this year, which is something that I really wanted. Our last Florida State game in the ACC, I was really close to that breakout game, but you know, it’s never good enough for me. I wish it had ended a little better.

O: The team had some really close losses this season. Lost 81-82 to Harvard, 68-70 to Virginia, 65-68 to Clemson, 56-60 to Wake Forest. Is a loss any more disappointing when the game was within reach, 2 or 3 points away from a victory?

AB: I think those are the most heartbreaking games, and I wish those are the games we had back because it’s hard to lose to a team by one or two points. I just wish with the way that the ACC works that we had some of those games back. Especially Harvard, the way we are now, we’re a lot more experienced, we’re playing a lot better. We could definitely beat them now, you know that was our first game of the season. To come out with a loss in our first game didn’t make us look very good.

O: The team went 6-8 in the conference. Three of your close losses this season came to ACC teams. Do you think that three more conference wins might have made a big difference for the team selections in the NCAA tournament?

AB: Of course every game is important, but those are the games that we should have won but didn’t. Those are the ones that came back to bite us. We did beat ranked teams. We had some wins over really good teams, but we lost games we shouldn’t have. I would have loved to make it to the NCAA tournament. It had been my goal since I was a freshman and I still haven’t been there.

O: In the ACC tournament, you beat Virginia Tech and Florida State, but then lost 57-63 to North Carolina State in the semifinal. You were tied at 56-56 with only 1:47 left to play. In what was a really close game at one point, how do you think the game got away from you?

AB: I can talk from experience because I was there, but we were all just so tired. It all came down to which team had the most energy at the end of game. You know, things that were working for us in the beginning of the game, for about a two-minute stretch at the end, they just weren’t anymore. Like getting the ball inside, using the clock. NC went on a two-minute run, and it ended up costing us the whole game. If we had played them in the first game of the tournament, when we were fresh, no doubt we could have beat them. It was the two-minute stretch at the end that hurt us.

O: Going into the tournament, did the team think it had a good shot at winning the ACC?

AB: Our goal was to win the ACC championship, and everyone knew that it was possible. It came down to us buckling down and getting work done. First we got it done against Virginia Tech, then second we got it done against Florida State. Even though they had a better record than us, ranked 8th in the country, we knew as team we could beat them. It’s very rare that everyone is totally consistent and everyone has same answer, but we all knew we could beat them. Unfortunately we didn’t get it done in the semifinal game.

O: Your coach, Sylvia Crawley, said of the semifinal game, “It was very disappointing to get this far and not come out with a win. Our players are hurting because they work hard and they deserve to win. However, we did some things that didn’t put us in position to win. I thought turnovers hurt us and they had 27 points off our turnovers.”  Do you think if you guys had had less turnovers that you would have advanced to the final?

AB: Of course. I think that’s pretty obvious. Turnovers play a huge part in the game. You can’t have over 20 turnovers in each game and expect to still win. I mean, luckily we have incredible guards and post players who have overshadowed the turnovers, but it has been our problem all year. It’s definitely resulted in losses.

O: Your coach also said “This team has done incredible things this year. We have upset a lot of teams.” Was there one upset or one win that you were especially proud of this season?

AB: Definitely Duke. It was our first big win over a top-10 team in the country. We were just so ecstatic. It was a home game, and it ended up working out so perfectly. Everyone was so excited. There was also the win over FSU in the ACC tournament, but Duke was our first really big win.

O: BC women’s basketball doesn’t have as many fans that attend the games as the men’s basketball team. What do you attribute that to? Do you wish you had more fans?

AB: Being in Boston, you know, there are so many professional and collegiate teams, that everyone is kind of doing their own thing. I don’t think it has anything to do with the men’s team versus the women’s team. It is really cool though when we go away, and there are thousands and thousands of fans in attendance. It does make me wish we had that. But I wouldn’t compare it to the guys and say I’m frustrated because of them. I am frustrated with the area, the lack of fans and everything going on around.

O: What will you miss the most about being a part of the women’s basketball team?

AB: The players and getting to know them and hanging out with them. They definitely make the best friends. I’m going to miss them a lot.

O: What are your plans after you graduate in May? Will you get a job? Pursue a singing career?

AB: Yeah, I’ll be doing both. Working and singing. I have some big news, but I’m not allowed to say anything yet.

O: Have you watched American Idol at all this year? What do you think of Ellen DeGeneres being a new judge?

AB: Yes, I have, but I’ve missed so many episodes because of traveling for games. I try to watch as many as I can, but I am very disappointed this season. I think Ellen has been great. She adds something different. She is one of the reasons I continue to watch. I am not disappointed in her, but the contestants are really, really bad.

O: Who has been your biggest fan in your career?

AB: This girl named Mary.  She came to camp a few years back, and I was her camp counselor. She comes to camp every year. She’s from Maine, and she drives from Maine to every single home game. She just came to the ACC tournament, too. We’ve become really, really close. We facebook message, checkup on each other, and see how each other is doing. She is such a sweetheart. She has been my biggest fan in basketball and music. She has travelled and heard me sing at so many places; it’s unbelievable. Her parents have been really supportive of that.

O: How was it with your dad running for and then winning the late Kennedy’s seat in the Senate? Were you at all used to the spotlight because of American Idol? Did your dad miss many of your games because he is in Washington, D.C.?

AB: When he ran for Senate, it was definitely a more intense spotlight than when I was on Idol, but Idol kind of prepared me for this moment. Even though it had nothing to do with me because it was all about my dad, in terms of media attention, I felt prepared. My dad actually only missed one game, but he drove to our games against Virginia Tech and North Carolina State when we played down there. He drove with my mom 4 ½ hours each way, so he made it up.

O: Do you think you’ll ever get a chance to play on the basketball court in the White House?

AB: I hope so. We’ve been trying to get that to happen, so hopefully it does someday.